The Cannes Film Festival, like most major film festivals, is where studios deal behind the scenes to acquire films, although Cannes has the added touch of also packaging movies (which is why we’ve seen so many casting stories) and selling existing properties to foreign buyers. Lionsgate managed to sell nine of their movies, and their press release contains brief synopses for each of the films.  Some confirm what we already know, some provide new information, and some are Step Up 5 (“Fifth installment of Summit Entertainment’s successful STEP UP franchise”).

Hit the jump for the synopses as well as the cast and above-the-line crew.

The full lineup for the 2013 Cannes Film Festival was announced today, and it looks like a really great group of films will be screening in the south of France later next month.  Official selections include Steven Soderbergh’s Behind the Candelabra, Joel and Ethan Coen’s Inside Llewyn Davis, Nicolas Winding Refn’s Only God Forgives, Alexander Payne’s Nebraska, Roman Polanski’s Venus In Fur, and James Gray’s The Immigrant (previously titled Low Life).  Additionally, the Robert Redford man vs. nature film All Is Lost will premiere out of competition, and Sofia Coppola’s The Bling Ring, James Franco’s As I Lay Dying, and the Sundance hit Fruitvale Station (previously titled Fruitvale) will screen Un Certain Regard.

A number of these titles are early awards contenders, and I’m particularly interested to hear the reaction for the Coens’ Davis and Payne’s The Descendants follow-up Nebraska, which is a black-and-white road trip movie starring Will Forte and Bruce Dern.  Hit the jump to read the full lineup.  The 2013 Cannes Film Festival runs from May 15 – 26th.

Director Roman Polanski (The Pianist) is set to direct Venus in Fur, an adaptation of David Ives’ Tony Award-nominated Broadway play.  The play, itself a meta-adaptation of the 1870 Leopold von Sacher-Masoch novel, centers on a young playwright and the adulterous, erotic game of cat and mouse with one of the actresses auditioning for a role. The picture will be filmed in French and will star Emmanuelle Seigner (The Diving Bell and the Butterfly) and Louis Garrel (The Dreamers).  The independently financed film will shoot in Paris starting this November.  Hit the jump for the full press release.