Cara Delevingne Has the Most Relatable Reason for Ignoring the New Cannes Film Festival Dress Code (Exclusive)

When Cara Delevingne stepped out for her first Cannes Film Festival red carpet this year, she was right in line with the new dress code.

And she didn’t even realize it.

“I did hear about [the new dress code], but I don’t even think I understand it,” Delevingne, 32, tells PEOPLE with a laugh while at the festival.

For this year’s event, the festival instituted a dress code that banned two very popular styles: nude looks and large trains. As stated on the official FAQ website for the event, “nudity is prohibited on the red carpet, as well as in any other area of the festival,” due to “decency reasons.” In addition to that, “voluminous outfits, in particular those with a large train, that hinder the proper flow of traffic of guests and complicate seating in the theater are not permitted.”

Delevingne is also at this year’s Cannes Film Festival as a L’Oréal Paris spokesperson and was also on hand for the Lights on Women’s Worth Awards on May 23. She tells PEOPLE that she’s long been “inspired” by the L’Oréal Paris brand ambassadors and was so pleased when she was first invited to be a part of the family.

“It’s such a wide variety of women with different voices, with different purposes from different places who all come together and have something to say,” she tells PEOPLE. “Jane Fonda, Viola Davis, these women are either women I’ve met before, worked with, or women I’ve looked up to. And just having these conversations, it is truly one of the most incredible rooms to be in.”

For this year’s ceremony, in which the beauty brand and the film festival are celebrating women in film for the fifth year, Academy Award-winning actress and L’Oréal Paris ambassador Viola Davis joined as Juror, following in the footsteps of Elle Fanning and Kate Winslet. Davis presented the 2025 award to one standout female director from the Cannes Short Film Competition or La Cinef selection.

“Why I love L’Oréal Paris so much is what they do behind the scenes — not just being a brand, but about how they support womanship, womanhood, sisterhood,” Delevingne says. “We need the spotlight, we need the platform. I think it’s changing, but it’s changing slowly and we need more spotlights on these women filmmakers. We need more women’s voices, we need more women’s stories, we need more women in film. So I think L’Oréal Paris does a great job of using sisterhood and helping women lift each other up and highlighting filmmakers. It’s really honorable. L’Oréal Paris is a brand that says it and they do it. It’s not just smoke and mirrors.”

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Once she departs the festival, Delevingne will be ready to kick off summer, which means she’ll be settling into her summer beauty routine — and L’Oréal Paris is stacked with her faves. The model likes to keep things easy in the summer months, because — much like the rest of us — she’s getting sweaty. That’s why she leans into keeping things “glowy.”

“When we’re out in the sun and sweating — maybe dancing at a gig or festival — I like to continue a glowy look,” she says. “I love the Revitalift Serum because it’s got hyaluronic acid in it and it really lasts. I personally am a big fan of just a little bottle of Elnett [hairspray] because those are the best things for my eyebrows on a little mascara wand. And really I like to keep my makeup pretty simple, especially if my skin is good. If not, we’re in trouble. I’ll probably use Paradise Big Deal Mascara for big eyelashes, and if I’m feeling really risky, I might for a red lip just by itself. Depends on how I feel.”