Parties You Will Never Get Into

Microsoft’s “other big guy”, co-founder Paul Allen, drew in a slew of A-list personalities when he sponsored an exclusive invitations-only yacht party at the 2008 Cannes Film Festival in May. Allen’s guests were ferried to his 301-foot yacht, Tatoosh, the other half of his mega yacht collection. The party was held to usher in the start of the prestigious festival which gathers some of the movie industry’s best and brightest as well as serious filmmakers from around the world.

The affair was so exclusive that guests were provided with a list of “unenforced” party instructions that included a photo ID, a hard copy of the non-transferable invitation, and flat “non-marking” shoes. In addition, guests were also reminded not to take interior shots of the yacht.

Allen’s party gathered virtually the festival’s cream of the crop topped by Sean Penn, who is the jury president. Brad Pitt, U2’s Bono, Edward Norton, jury member Natalie Portman, Salma Hayek, Woody Harrelson, Dennis Hopper, Adrian Brody, and Supermodel Petra Nemcova were also spotted enjoying the celebration.

Lasting till the wee hours of the morning, the party saw guests enjoy music performed by Allen and his band. As he rocked out with Neil Young’s “Rockin’ in the Free World,” Allen’s celebrity guests had fun mingling with each other while enjoying the luxurious comforts of the yacht like the bottom-raised lap pool filled with roses. The yacht also has its own mini-cinema.

Aside from big-name stars, Allen’s Cannes kick-off party was also attended by some of the most prominent industry personalities like Stacey Snider, Brad Grey, Barry Diller, Brian Grazer and girlfriend Chosan Nguyen, and Paramount executives Rob Moore, John Lesher, and Brad Weston who were at the festival to attend the premiere screening of Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull.

Read more about mega yachts owned by billionaires.