CANNES, France:

With every step down the red carpet at the Cannes Film Festival, Chinese social media star Lili Xu reckons she is getting ever closer to her dream of a career in the movies.

In a red dress with gold stars like the flag of China, she poses for the ranks of photographers that are here to catch established Hollywood talent such as Susan Sarandon and Julianne Moore attending the same premier.

Xu, 29, who used to be a makeup artist for pets in a country where tinting and preening dogs and cats is remarkably popular, hopes her large social media following will help her secure a movie role, and is in Cannes to make vital contacts. (RTRS)