Bong Joon Ho to head 2021 Venice Film Festival jury

Oscar-winning director Bong Joon Ho will be the president of the International Jury of the Competition at the 78th Venice International Film Festival (September 1 – 11, 2021), which will assign the Golden Lion for Best Film, as well as other official awards.

The decision was made by the Board of Directors of the La Biennale di Venezia, who confirmed the recommendation of the Director of the Venice Film Festival, Alberto Barbera.

In accepting the proposal, Bong Joon Ho said: “The Venice International Film Festival carries with it a long and varied history, and I’m honored to be woven into its beautiful cinematic tradition. As president of the jury – and more importantly as a perpetual cinephile – I’m ready to admire and applaud all the great films selected by the festival. I’m filled with genuine hope and excitement.”

Alberto Barbera commented: “The first, good news item regarding the 78th Venice Film Festival is that Bong Joon Ho has enthusiastically agreed to preside over the Jury. Today, this great Korean director is one of the most authentic and original voices in worldwide cinema. We are immensely grateful to him for having agreed to put his passion as a cinephile attentive, inquisitive, and unprejudiced, at the service of our festival. It is a pleasure and an honor to be able to share the joy of this moment with the countless admirers, throughout the world, of his extraordinary movies. The decision to entrust the Jury to a Korean filmmaker, for the first time in the festival’s history, is also confirmation that the Venetian event embraces the cinema of the entire world, and that directors from every country know they can consider Venice their second home.”

The 2020 Venice Film Festival, headed by Oscar-winning actress Cate Blanchett, landed at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic but as Italy and other European countries had begun to see a flattening of the curve. It was the first major film festival of the year to hold in-person screenings and a traditional red carpet since the pandemic outbreak shut down theaters in March.

On the final night (September 11, 2021) of the upcoming 78th Venice Film Festival, the International Jury of Venezia 78, chaired by Bong Joon Ho and composed of seven international celebrities in the spheres of film and culture from different countries, will assign the following official prizes among the feature-length films in the Competition:

· Golden Lion for Best Film
· Silver Lion – Grand Jury Prize
· Silver Lion – Award for Best Director
· Coppa Volpi for Best Actor
· Coppa Volpi for Best Actress
· Award for Best Screenplay
· Special Jury Prize
· Marcello Mastroianni Award for Best New Young Actor or Actress

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