Zoey Deutch, Lucy Fry and Danila Kozlovsky play the lead trio, with Olga Kurylenko, Cameron Monaghan, Sami Gayle, Claire Foy and Ashley Charles in supporting roles. Mark Waters is directing the film adapted from the Richelle Mead series by his brother Dan Waters. The plot revolves around two best friends (Deutch’s Rose and Fry’s Lissa) who attend a school for vampires and half-vampires to rain and learn their place in the world. Sherwood will play Lissa’s love interest, Byrne will be Victor, the head of the Academy, while Hyland will play his daughter and a friend to Rose and Lissa. Filming in London begins next week.

Sherwood starred in British series “The Cut” and most recently appeared alongside John Magaro and Bella Heathcote in rock n roll coming of age drama “Not Fade Away.” Hyland has played Haley on hit ABC sitcom “Modern Family” throughout its five seasons and recently appeared in horror spoof “Scary MoVie.”

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“The Great Gatsby” opened the festival on Wednesday but was released in the US last Friday. I was hugely disappointed with Baz Luhrmann’s film, describing it on Twitter as “if Baz Luhrmann watched a Baz Luhrmann film and then decided to imitate Baz Luhrmann.” It was the wrong side of gaudy and garish – and the 3D did nothing to help the pic, instead detracting from what could have been a gorgeous film.

Some of the more high profile English-language films featuring rising stars we are familiar with here are not showing until the end of the festival (“Only Lovers Left Alive”, “Only God Forgives”, “The Immigrant”) but it’s been interesting discovering new, European talents that we can only hope are brought to the mainstream through Hollywood (because it’s unfair to say that Hollywood is a sell out). “Jeune et Jolie” has been a stand out so far, particularly Marine Vacth‘s breakthrough performance, and I’m hearing good things about Pauline Beret’s performance as Berenice Bejo’s daughter in “The Past.” I’m unfortunately probably not going to be able to catch Ashgar Farhadi’s latest this time around but I’ve been keeping my ears open for more information.

“The Bling Ring” was my first film on Thursday – I called Sofia Coppola’s latest effort “an enjoyable yet cautionary tale for our time” – but of course the big favorite so far, and definitely my personal favorite of the festival, is Ryan Coogler’s “Fruitvale Station.” A chilling true story based on the last 24 hours in the life of Oscar Grant, Coogler’s film stars Michael B. Jordan in the performance of his career so far, and we’re pretty sure there’s a lot more to see from him. He stunned us at Friday’s round table with clear, honest and considerate answers to questions on race, working with Grant’s family and, yes, whether those “Fantastic Four” rumors are true (he laughed, winked and said he couldn’t say anything – we’re taking that as a good sign!)

While waiting for “Fruitvale Station” and trying hard not to lose my place (you really have to stand your ground here and be prepared to push and shove) I realized Sasha Stone from AwardsDaily was in front of us. One of my favorite female film journalists, it was great to finally meet her and Craig Kennedy from Living in Cinema, who was with her. Warm and welcoming, we discussed “Gatsby”, “The Bling Ring” and, of all things, babies! The great thing about this second year in Cannes is the opportunity it now presents to meet as many new people as possible. A Film Festival curator from Marfa, Sasha, Craig, numerous other film journalists, a distributor from Japan … the terrible weather Cannes is experiencing this week is helping to bring us together in our misery.

For the rest of my stay here in Cannes you can expect more reviews including Rebecca Zlotowski’s debut “Grand Central” starring Lea Seydoux and Tahar Rahim, the premiere of the Coen Brothers’ “Inside Llewyn Davis“, Sundance transfer “Ain’t Them Bodies Saints” with Rooney Mara, lots of information from press conferences and after parties – and I’m sure much more talk of the rain!

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Greenwell plays a young visionary garden designer whose dream it is to compete in and win the Chelsea Flower show, considered to be “the Olympics of gardening.” Hughes will play a young environmentalist who is enlisted to help her. Filming on location in Ireland and Ethiopia will take place over the next few months.

Greenwell plays the slightly unhinged Mandy on Showtime family drama “Shameless”, the young cast of which has been landing roles left and right in recent days. Her onscreen love interest Jeremy Allen White landed the lead in found footage thriller “Glimmer” while Cameron Monaghan, who plays younger Gallagher brother Ian, is enrolling at “Vampire Academy: Blood Sisters.” Hughes starred in British comedy “Cemetary Junction” opposite Ricky Gervais and was part of BAFTA’s inaugaral class of Brits to Watch in 2011. He most recently wrapped “I Am Soldier” with Noel Clarke.

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Wilde and Pettyfer play a pair of high school students who fall deeply in love and whose intense relationship puts her parents on edge. When they are forced to break up until the end of high school, Pettyfer’s character sets an ill-fated plan into motion to appear as a hero in front of them to win back their favor, leading to tragic consequences. Okeniyi plays the role of Pettyfer’s daredevil best friend, while Wakefield will play Wilde’s older brother, who struggles to live up to the legacy of their older brother, who passed away. No word on who Rigby plays.

Wakefield starred on famed Aussie soap “Home and Away” and James Cameron’s “Sanctum.” He’ll soon be seen in home invasion thriller “The Purge.” Ribgy starred on British soap “Hollyoaks” and plays the Red Queen in ABC series “Once Upon a Time in Wonderland”, which was just picked up to series.

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“Jeune et Jolie” (“Young and Beautiful”) was the first In Competition film I saw at this year’s Cannes Film Festival and it couldn’t have been a better film to start with. A contemplative tale on female sexuality and the burgeoning discovery teenagers go through, its star Marine Vacth is a joy to watch and someone we all need to keep our eye on over the next few years.

Director Francois Ozon‘s tale is set over four seasons and four Francois Hardy songs, following Vacht’s Isabelle, a seventeen year old girl who turns to prostitution as she explores the power of her femininity and what her body can do for others. This is not a moral tale, nor a story on right and wrong but an honest portrayal of a complicated time.

“Jeune et Jolie” starts with an uncomfortable scene, as a young boy who turns out to be Isabelle’s brother Victor (Fantin Ravat) is spying on her as she sunbathes topless on the beach. Vacth and Ravat work well together on screen and it is obvious the siblings have a special closeness, but Ozon makes it obvious early on that as Victor enters adolescence and Isabelle leaves it, their age difference may be too much for that closeness to hold. Isabelle soon loses her virginity and has an out-of-body experience, a symbolic touch as she realizes she has left childhood. By the second season, we see very quickly that Isabelle has moved on to a darker stage in her life.

Soon the seasons change again and Isabelle’s family discover her secret and the realization that none of them are who they thought they were. To his credit, Ozon never gives us any real indication as to why Isabelle has turned to prostitution, and Vacth, in her first leading role, works with this, turning in an assured and confident performance that was often reminiscent of Jessica Chastain.

This is a subtle yet powerful story, and one which leaves the audience with questions but also with a sense that we innately recognize the confusion Isabelle confronts as she enters the strange new world of adulthood.

B+

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Kurylenko is one of our Faces to Watch in 2013 thanks to her dueling roles in Tom Cruise’s sci-fi epic “Oblivion” and Terrence Malick’s latest, “To the Wonder.” It’s clear the “Quantum of Solace” Bond Girl is not resting on those laurels and continuing to pick diverse and interesting roles, including her latest as the headmistress of YA adaptation “Vampire Academy: Blood Sisters.”

Australian actor Bracey is a name we often hear being shortlisted for high profile roles – from “Singularity” (scrapped) to “Need for Speed” (which went to Aaron Paul) to “Divergent” (which went to Theo James) – with small roles in rom com “Monte Carlo” opposite Leighton Meester and “G.I. Joe: Retaliation.”

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The dark and twisted take on fairy tales sees a childless baker and his wife trek into some magical woods to find the witch who put the spell on them. Also heading into the woods are Little Red Riding Hood on her way to grandma’s house, Jack off to sell a cow (only to get some magic beans in return), Cinderella to sneak her way into a ball and more iconic characters. Streep is taking on the role of the Witch, Depp will have a bit role as a sexy version of the Wolf who preys upon Little Red and Pine and Gyllenhaal will play Cinderella’s and Rapunzel’s vain and self-absorbed Princes. The film has no official greenlight or start date yet, but is expected to shoot in the fall.

Blunt broke out in “The Devil Wears Prada” opposite Streep, then had a streak of duds like “Gulliver’s Travels” and “The Wolfman.” But 2012 was a major comeback year for the talented British star thanks to a star-making turn in Rian Johnson’s sci-fi thriller “Looper” opposite Joseph Gordon-Levitt. She’s been landing one high profile role after another since, with “Woods” following on the heels of futuristic wartime thriller “All You Need is Kill” and Emma Forrest’s memoir adaptation “Your Voice in My Head.”

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The two will play a young couple who embark on a home exchange with a couple in Paris but miss their flight, leading them to spy on their French houseguests, with “fascination and attraction [escalating] into a deadly game of cat and mouse.” Joe Ahearne will direct the film that is said to be in the vein of “Match Point” and “Closer.”

Former soap opera star Duhamel recently became the latest Nicholas Sparks leading man when he starred opposite Julianne Hough in “Safe Haven.” Pike, who’s known for “Pride and Prejudice”, “An Education” and more, recently wrapped Nick Hornby adaptation “A Long Way Down” as well as Edgar Wright’s Cornetto Trilogy conclusion “The World’s End.”

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Casey Affleck and Rooney Mara walk and talk and fight and make up against a gorgeously shot backdrop of trees and sunshine in the first clip from Sundance hit “Ain’t Them Bodies Saints”, released today by Entertainment Weekly.

David Lowery directed the film about Mara and Affleck as an outlaw couple whose crime spree comes to an end with him going to jail and her going free to give birth to their daughter. It picks up four years later when he breaks free and she’s not sure if she still wants him back in her new little family’s life. The film won a Special Jury Prize for Cinematography for Bradford Young at Sundance, it’s easy to see why in this first glimpse of the slow-moving Texas-set film that’s drawn comparisons to Terrence Malick.

Watch the first clip of Mara and Affleck below. We’re hoping to catch the film at the Cannes Film Festival this week, and everyone can watch it when it’s released in theaters on August 16th.

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The based-on-a-true story “Fruitvale Station” is very much 2013′s “Beasts of the Southern Wild” – a first time director, Ryan Coogler, taking Cannes Film Festival by storm following a world premiere at Sundance Film Festival, with an impressive awards-worthy performance from a rising star. And please Academy, award Michael B. Jordan with that Oscar nomination like you did for Quvenzhane Wallis.

An intimate film like “Fruitvale Station” rises and falls with its lead, and Jordan is hugely successful in holding us captive as we follow a day in the life of Oscar Grant (Jordan), a young man who was subjected to police brutality in the early hours of New Year’s Day in 2009.

The film starts at the end, with actual footage captured on people’s cell phones from the chaotic scene at the Fruitvale Station of the Bay Area’s BART system. As we move back in time to the early hours of New Year’s Eve 2008, it becomes a character study, a look at a young man who had spent time in prison and was dealing drugs, had recently lost his job and cheated on his girlfriend, but had also realized that he needed to make a change in his life. It often felt a little on the nose – that one man could have decided to change his life so dramatically right before a terrible event were to happen to him feels a little unrealistic (at one point, Oscar symbolically sits with a dying dog during his final moments before going on to throw a large amount of marijuana in to the ocean) – but it is the talent of Jordan that stops this from becoming too contrived.

Also starring are Octavia Spencer as Grant’s mother Wanda and Melonie Diaz as his girlfriend Sophina, and both turn in impressive, emotionally powerful performances, particularly Diaz as she tries to find out just what is happening up on the station platform after she is ushered outside without Oscar. But this truly is Jordan’s film, and he brings Grant to life in every scene, whether it’s secretly giving his daughter the extra treat she wanted or during a tense argument with an ex-employer.

Coogler also impresses with his first feature film. This was a story that needed telling, and Coogler has done so in a mostly quiet, collected way. There are no histrionics to add unnecessary tension, and Coogler makes the most of his brilliant cast, bringing Oscar Grant and the actions of the BART police force to life in a respectful but honest way.

A-

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