The global coronavirus pandemic has caused the cancelation or postponement of numerous events, but the Venice Film Festival is sticking to its original September schedule despite everything going on in the world.

According to Variety, the Venice Biennale president Roberto Cicutto confirmed that the Venice Film Festival will push through on its original dates of Sept. 2 to 12. However, Cicutto also admitted that the festival may be different from previous editions.

Cicutto said that they expect smaller attendance from foreign participants and press. He also said that organizers are also running simulations of what the festival would be like, as well as having digital technology that will help foreign press participants.

Organizers are also expecting the Italian government to allow them to use cinemas, as they believe it would be easier to monitor six or seven movie houses as opposed to thousands.

The Hollywood Reporter also quotes Cicutto as saying that a possible collaboration with Cannes Film Festival may not push through as they have not been dialoguing with the organizers of the other film festival. According to Cicutto, Cannes Film Festival organizer Thierry Fremaux had not approached them with regards to any collaboration.

The Cannes Film Festival had earlier moved their festival to June because of the coronavirus pandemic, but even that new date has been canceled, with organizers planning to hold it either in September or October. Holding it in September would put the Cannes Film Festival in the same timeframe as the Venice, Toronto, and San Sebastian Film Festivals.

If the Venice Film Festival successfully holds its festival in September, it could be a piece of good news sorely needed by the film and entertainment industry. Because of the lockdowns caused by the coronavirus pandemic, the North American box office suffered a $600 million deficit during the month of March. The global film industry is also set to lose $5 billion due to the lack of business from huge markets like South Korea and Japan.

Whether the world will be in a better place by September is up for debate, as COVID-19 infections continue to rise around the world. According to the World Health Organization and its Apr. 20 status report, there are now 2,314,621 confirmed cases of COVID-19 around the world. Of those cases, 72,846 are new cases. Deaths worldwide from COVID-19 are now at 157,847 people, with new deaths amounting to 5,296.

Italy has 179,000 confirmed cases of COVID-19, with 23,000 fatalities caused by the disease. According to the World Health Organization, the European Region has the most number of infections at 1,149,071 people. Deaths in the region are at 103,586.