The 'Mona Lisa Smile' actress and the 'Now You See Me' star join the jury headed by Spike Lee for the competition at the upcoming Cannes International Film Festival.
- Jun 25, 2021
AceShowbiz - The Cannes Film Festival has unveiled another female-dominant Competition jury for the annual event which begins next month (Jul21).
Actors Maggie Gyllenhaal and Melanie Laurent, filmmaker Mati Diop, Canadian-French singer/songwriter Mylene Farmer, and Austrian director/producer Jessica Hausner are joined by Brazilian director/producer Kleber Mendonca Filho, actor Tahar Rahim, and South Korean actor Song Kang-ho on the jury for the 74th edition of the event. The jury will be headed up by previously announced president Spike Lee.
It's the second time in the festival's history that female jury members will be in the majority. Three years ago the split was also five women and four men when "Carol" star Cate Blanchett was jury president.
The group all have previous links to the festival, with Diop's debut feature "Atlantics" previously winning the Grand Prix after having its world premiere in Competition at the festival in 2019, and Gyllenhaal's official selection credits include John Waters' "Cecil B. Demented", which played Out of Competition in 2000.
Farmer, from Quebec, one of the world's best-selling French-language performers, has collaborated with numerous Cannes regulars during her 35-year long career, including filmmakers Darius Khondji and Abel Ferrara.
French actors Laurent and Rahim are Cannes regulars, the former having appeared in such competition titles as "Days of Glory" (2006) and "Inglourious Basterds" (2009), and the latter in 2009 Grand Jury winner "The Prophet" and 2013's "The Past".
Meanwhile, actor Song was feted at the film festival in 2019 with Bong Joon-ho's Palme d'Or and Oscar-winning "Parasite".
The jury will watch 24 films in competition with the winners announced on the final day of the festival.
