Venice 2026: Competition Highlights and Controversies

The official selection for the 83rd Venice Film Festival was revealed just days ago, on July 23, and it has already sparked significant debate. The controversy centers around the notably low representation of female directors among the twenty films selected for the festival's main competition. Only one film, the Danish entry Kvinde ukendt, directed by May el-Toukhy, was helmed by a woman. In contrast, earlier this year, the major European festivals featured a more balanced selection, with nine films directed by women at Berlin, including works by Leyla Bouzid and Angela Schanelec, and five at Cannes, featuring directors like Valeska Grisebach, Jeanne Herry, and Léa Mysius.

The jury, led by American actress and director Maggie Gyllenhaal (The Bride!), will have the task of evaluating this predominantly male lineup as they determine the successor to last year’s Golden Lion winner, Father Mother Sister Brother, directed by Jim Jarmusch and awarded by a jury chaired by Alexander Payne.

Joining Gyllenhaal on the jury are Tunisian director Kaouther Ben Hania (La Voix de Hind Rajab, which won the Grand Prix at last year's Venice), English composer Daniel Blumberg (Le Testament d’Ann Lee, competing in Venice in 2025), Italian-American professor Francesco Casetti, French director Xavier Giannoli (Les Rayons et les ombres), Afghan director Shahrbanoo Sadat (No Good Men, which opened the recent Berlin Festival), and Chinese director and producer Johnnie To (Mad Fate by Soi Cheang).

As the festival approaches, which kicks off in just five weeks on September 2, the competition lineup includes several prestigious names from international cinema, many of whom have previously received accolades at Venice or other festivals. Notable among them is Italian filmmaker Nanni Moretti, who is more commonly associated with Cannes, where he has competed nine times, winning the Palme d’Or in 2001 for La Chambre du fils. He has only been in contention for the Golden Lion once before, forty-five years ago with Sogni d’oro. Another significant entry is German director Werner Herzog, who opted out of a Cannes selection for his latest film and returns to Venice after receiving an honorary Golden Lion last year.

The French cinema presence is modest yet notable, with four films competing this year. These include the latest works from Stéphane Brizé (Hors-saison), Cédric Kahn (Making of), Nicolas Pariser (Le Parfum vert), and Florian Zeller (The Son).

The 20 Films Competing at the 83rd Venice Film Festival

• 15/18 (France) by Cédric Kahn, featuring Zoé Monpart and Malou Khebizi, set for release in France on November 18
• Bucking Fastard (USA) by Werner Herzog, starring Kate Mara and Rooney Mara, with no release date in France yet
• Bunker (France) by Florian Zeller, featuring Penélope Cruz and Javier Bardem, with no release date in France yet
• Company (USA) by Casey Affleck, starring Nick Nolte and Ben Mendelsohn, with no release date in France yet
• Dau (Germany) by Ilya Khrzhanovsky, featuring Teodor Currentzis and Radmila Shchogolieva, with no release date in France yet

• The Echo Chamber (Italy) by Andrea Pallaoro, starring Luca Marinelli and Alicia Vikander, with no release date in France yet
• Il fuoco che ti porti dentro (Italy) by Edoardo De Angelis, featuring Vanessa Scalera and Lino Musella, with no release date in France yet
• Ink (UK) by Danny Boyle, starring Jack O’Connell and Guy Pearce, set to open on January 6, 2027
• Kami Nour (Iran) by Ali Asgari, featuring Misagh Zareh and Sadaf Asgari, with no release date in France yet
• Kvinde ukendt (Denmark) by May el-Toukhy, featuring Mathilde Arcel and Carsten Bjørnlund, with no release date in France yet

• Look Back (Japan) by Hirokazu Kore-Eda, featuring Natsuki Deguchi and Aju Makita, with no release date in France yet
• Mr Nelson Did You Kill People? (Japan) by Shinya Tsukamoto, featuring Rodney Hicks and Geoffrey Rush, with no release date in France yet
• Possible Love (South Korea) by Lee Chang-dong, featuring Jeon Do-yeon and Sul Kyung-gu, with no cinema release in France yet
• Primetime (USA) by Lance Oppenheim, starring Robert Pattinson and Merritt Wever, set for release in France on September 23
• Ritorno a Buenos Aires (Italy) by Marco Bechis, featuring Adriano Giannini and Ana Celentano, with no release date in France yet

• Succederà questa notte (Italy) by Nanni Moretti, featuring Louis Garrel and Jasmine Trinca, set for release in France on December 30
• La Spirale (Italy) by Paolo Strippoli, featuring Jasmine Trinca and Romana Maggiora Vergano, with no release date in France yet
• Un bon petit soldat (France) by Stéphane Brizé, featuring Alba Rohrwacher and Vincent Lindon, set for release in France on November 25
• Un peu avant minuit (France) by Nicolas Pariser, featuring Melvil Poupaud and Chiara Mastroianni, set for release in France on December 2
• Wild Horse Nine (UK) by Martin McDonagh, featuring John Malkovich and Sam Rockwell, set for release in France on November 4