Tickets, please?

(Below) University of Georgia senior Kim Cichelli, far left, tries to get a ticket to the premiere of "Volver."

(Below) University of Georgia seniors, Anna Beaver, left, and Brooks Becker, right, stand outside the Palais de Festival looking for tickets to the evening premiere of "Fast Food Nation." The two women didn't have to wait long, because after I interviewed them, I gave them the two tickets that I had nabbed earlier from the last-minute ticket counter.
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Alex Jacobs said he plans to dress up in a tuxedo Saturday night to try to get a ticket to an evening film premiere.

Jacobs, a freshman at the University of Pennsylvania, is on a Cannes study abroad program. For 20 years, students in the UPenn program were able to obtain badges with greater access by forming fake production companies in advance.

But several years back, university officials discovered the practice and put a stop to it, Jacobs said.

Jacobs has a lowly black badge, which provides no access to the Palais de Festival or many of the screenings in nearby hotels.

But even attendees with poor accreditation have tricks up their sleve. There are many ways to get tickets to the evening premieres, even if you're not a member of the press or film industry.

Kim Cichelli, a senior at the University of Georgia, said she learned on the first day of the festival that hotel concierges and waiters are good sources for extra-ticket info. Cichellia was fortunate enough to attend the Wednesday premiere of "The Da Vinci Code" because of a tip.

Production companies typically order more tickets than they need, Cichellia said, because companies are alloted only a certain amount each year. Festival officials keep track of how many tickets are used with a bar code scanner. If companies don't use a significant portion of their allotment, they get fewer tickets next year. As a result, many companies give extra tickets away to keep their allottment numbers high, said Cichellia, who is part of a group of 25 students from UGA.

Meanwhile, inside the Palais de Festival, those with access can wait in line at the last-minute ticket booth, a station where people can physically or electronically return tickets they don't need.

While waiting at the booth, Harrison Coltun of Santa Barbara, Calif., said that on the opening night of "The Da Vinci Code," bad buzz caused a company to return 60-80 extra tickets. Coltun, an intern at the American Pavillion, said many of his coworkers rushed to the booth for a chance to walk the red carpet.

For those who are desperate, begging can go a long way. It's not uncommon to see a swath of people outside the Palais de Festival dressed in evening gowns and tuxedos while holding up signs requesting extra tickets.

Brooks Becker, a senior at UGA, said one-third of her group was able to attend "The Da Vinci Code" premiere by holding up these signs.

"We've had good luck," Becker added, while holding up a sign asking for a ticket to the "Fast Food Nation" premiere. "It always happens at the last second."