Cannes 2026: Park Chan-wook and Demi Moore ready to judge festival contenders • FRANCE 24 English

Key Concepts

• Palme d’Or: The highest prize awarded at the Cannes Film Festival.
• Jury President: The head of the jury responsible for the final decision on the Palme d’Or.
• Un Certain Regard: A major sidebar competition at Cannes focusing on up-and-coming directors and diverse cinematic voices.
• Korean Noir: A genre characterized by bloody crime narratives, moral ambiguity, and meticulous, striking imagery.
• Genre-blending Cinema: A filmmaking style that combines narrative, stylistic, and moral elements (notably associated with Park Chan-wook).

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1. The 79th Cannes Film Festival Overview

The festival features 22 films in competition for the Palme d’Or. Despite the absence of major Hollywood studios, the festival maintains high prestige by showcasing works from world-renowned filmmakers.

Hotly Anticipated Features:

• Fatherland (Paweł Pawlikowski, Poland) – Starring Sandra Hüller.
• Parallel Tales (Asghar Farhadi, Iran) – Featuring a French-speaking cast including Isabelle Huppert and Virginie Efira.
• Fjord (Cristian Mungiu, Romania) – A Norwegian-set drama starring Renata Reinsve.
• Hope (Na Hong-jin, South Korea) – A sci-fi project featuring an international cast including Michael Fassbender and Alicia Vikander.
• Sheep in the Box (Kore-eda, Japan) – A topical film exploring Artificial Intelligence.

2. The Jury and Artistic Philosophy

The jury is noted for its international diversity, including Scottish screenwriter Paul Laverty, Chilean director Diego Cespedes, and American actress Demi Moore.

• The Role of Politics in Art: Addressing recent controversies regarding whether filmmakers should be political, Demi Moore stated: "I think part of art is about expression. Um so, if we start censoring ourselves, then I think we shut down the very core of our of our creativity, um which is, I think, where we can discover truth and answers."
• Jury Leadership: The jury is presided over by South Korean director Park Chan-wook. Critics suggest that with Park and Paul Laverty at the helm, the jury is likely to favor films that offer significant social commentary.

3. Spotlight: Park Chan-wook

Park Chan-wook is the first Korean to preside over the Cannes jury. His career trajectory at Cannes spans over 20 years:

• 2004: Oldboy won the Grand Prix.
• 2022: Decision to Leave won Best Director.
• Style: Known for "Korean Noir," his work often critiques capitalist society and explores themes of social violence and moral revenge. His latest project, No Other Choice, focuses on the desperation of an unemployed man.

4. Gender Representation and Social Issues

• Gender Gap: Only five films in the main competition are directed by women, a ratio described as "disappointing" despite higher representation in festival sidebars.
• Notable Female-led/Directed Films:
  • La Vie du film (Charlene Bourgeois Takayama) – Starring Lea Drucker.
  • Gentle Monster (Marie Kreutzer) – Starring Lea Seydoux.
  • Garance (Jean Herrick) – A story about a young actress living paycheck to paycheck.
• Social Realism: The film Forsaken revisits the 2020 murder of French teacher Samuel Paty, exploring the deep societal fractures caused by the incident.

5. Sidebar Selections and Special Screenings

• Un Certain Regard: Highlights include Congo Boy (Central African Republic), the first-ever Rwandan film in official selection (Ben Imani), and Teenage Sex and Death at Camp Miasma (Jane Schoenbrun).
• Midnight Screenings: The festival will feature a restoration print of the 2001 blockbuster The Fast and the Furious, highlighting the festival's mix of high-brow cinema and popular culture.

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Synthesis

The 79th Cannes Film Festival serves as a global nexus for cinematic excellence, marked this year by a strong influence from Asian cinema—both in the jury presidency of Park Chan-wook and the high-profile competition entries from directors like Na Hong-jin and Kore-eda. While the festival continues to grapple with issues of gender parity in its main competition, it remains a platform for both intense social critique and the celebration of diverse, international storytelling. The overarching theme for this year’s jury appears to be a commitment to artistic expression that engages with contemporary social realities.