Galaxy of stars steal Cannes AIDS gala

CANNES: A galaxy of stars including Leonardo DiCaprio, Dustin Hoffman, Nicole Kidman and Will Smith turned out for an AIDS benefit that is the social highlight of the Cannes film festival.

The annual amfAR Foundation for AIDS Research gala dinner at the luxury Eden Roc hotel just along the French Riviera at Cap d’Antibes saw celebrities and benefactors paying up to $0.5 million for a table.

Actresses Jessica Chastain, Milla Jovovich and Eva Longoria, former footballer David Beckham, Director David Lynch and Director and jury President Pedro Almodovar were also among A-listers present for the auction to help the charity founded by the late Hollywood leg- end Elizabeth Taylor.

They were aiming to beat the €22 million ($24.6 million) raised at last year’s dinner when DiCaprio — who acted as auctioneer — sold a sculpture by British artist Damien Hirst for €3.1 million and a day with Hollywood star Kevin Spacey for $0.5 million.

“Ending AIDS is not a fantasy. Its a goal within our reach and one amfAR was among the first to recognize as attainable,” said the foundation’s President Kenneth Cole.

“Our goal is a cure for 2020. You have the power to stop this pandemic that has killed 35 million people,” he told the gala’s guests.

This year’s lots included a week in an exclusive resort in the Maldives for 60 people, a fully restored 1958 Jaguar XK150 sports car and a weekend for 30 on a luxury yacht.

For those on more modest budgets, there was a 14-meter statue specially created for the occasion by French artist JR, whose “Faces Places” documentary with Agnes Varda is one of the hits of the festival, which ends Sunday.

The final figure from this year’s auction will be released later Friday.

Since the galas began at the Cannes festival in 1993, the “Cinema Against AIDS” dinners have raised more than €174 million for the charity.