VENICE (Reuters) -The Venice International Film Festival is the oldest film festival in the world, with its 82nd edition opening on Wednesday.
Below are some facts about the festival and the 2025 contenders:
WHEN IS THE FESTIVAL?
It opens on August 27 with the premiere of Italian director Paolo Sorrentino’s “La Grazia”, starring Toni Servillo. The event runs until September 6 and closes with a French film, “Chien 51”, directed by Cedric Jimenez.
WHERE IS IT HELD?
The festival takes place on the Venice Lido, the so-called beach of Venice, a thin barrier island in the Venetian Lagoon, which is a short boat trip from the main city. Unlike Venice itself, cars have access to the Lido.
WHY IS IT SO CLOSELY WATCHED?
The festival marks the start of the awards season and regularly throws up big favourites for the Oscars. In the past nine editions of the Oscars, the award for Best Actress or Best Actor has gone eight times to the protagonists of films first seen in Venice, while eight of the past 13 Best Director awards went to movies launched in Venice.
The event also draws a multitude of stars, with Cate Blanchett, Emily Blunt, Lee Byung Hun, George Clooney, Laura Dern, Andrew Garfield, Oscar Isaac, Dwayne Johnson, Julia Roberts, Adam Sandler, Amanda Seyfried and Emma Stone all expected on the Lido during the 11-day event.
WHAT MOVIES HAVE BEEN SELECTED FOR THE FESTIVAL?
There are several categories making up the official selection of films shown, the top being those competing for the coveted Golden Lion award. This year’s 21 contenders, in order of their screening, are:
“La Grazia” (IT) Dir. Paolo Sorrentino
“Orphan” (HU-GB-DE-FR) Dir. Lazlo Nemes
“Bugonia” (GB) Dir. Yorgos Lanthimos
“Jay Kelly” (US-GB-IT) Dir. Noah Baumbach
“A Pied D’Oeuvre” (FR) Dir. Valerie Donzelli
“No Other Choice” (KOR) Dir. Park Chan-wook
“Sotto Le Nuvole” (IT) Dir. Gianfranco Rosi
“Frankenstein” (US) Dir. Guillermo del Toro
“The Wizard Of The Kremlin” (FR) Dir. Olivier Assayas
“Father Mother Sister Brother” (US-IRE-FR) Dir. Jim Jarmusch
“The Testament Of Ann Lee” (GB) Dir. Mona Fastvold
“The Smashing Machine” (US) Dir. Benny Safdie
“L’Etranger” (FR) Dir. Francois Ozon
“A House Of Dynamite” (US) Dir. Kathryn Bigelow
“The Voice Of Hind Rajab” (TUN-FR) Dir. Kaouther ben Hania
“Duse” (IT) Dir. Pietro Marcello
“Girl” (TAI) Dir. Shu Qi
“Elisa” (CH) Dir. Leonardo Di Costanzo
“Un Film Fatto Per Bene” (IT) Dir. Franco Maresco
“The Sun Rises On Us All” (CHN) Dir. Cai Shangjun
“Silent Friend” (DE-FR-HU) Dir. Ildiko Enyedi
WHO LEADS THE COMPETITION JURY?
The jury for the main competition will be chaired by U.S. director Alexander Payne. He will be joined by fellow directors Stephane Brize, Maura Delpero, Cristian Mungiu, Mohammad Rasoulof, and the actresses Fernanda Torres and Zhao Tao.
ARE ANY BIG FILMS BEING SHOWN OUT-OF-COMPETITION?
Like other festivals, Venice reserves a number of spots for interesting movies that are shown out-of-competition. This year, there is “After The Hunt”, directed by Luca Guadagnino and starring Julia Roberts; “In The Hand Of Dante”, directed by Julian Schnabel and starring, among others, Gal Gadot, Al Pacino, John Malkovich and Jason Momoa; “Dead Man’s Wire”, a true crime film directed by Gus Van Sant.
(Reporting by Crispian Balmer; Editing by Alex Richardson)
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