Sofia Coppola becomes second woman ever to win Best Director, the cinema-vs-online-streaming debate and more
Photo: AFP/ Getty
Awards have been dished out, bags are packed and everyone has flown out of Cannes to continue with their lives as the 70th Cannes Film Festival draws to a close.
But there are key moments from the festival worth reminiscing.
The star-studded jury, which saw Pedro Almodovar as President this year, included American actor Will Smith, French-Lebanese composer Gabriel Yared, South Korean director Park Chan-wook, Chinese actress Fan Bingbing, Italian director Paolo Sorrentino, French actress Agnes Jaoui, American actress Jessica Chastain and German director Maren Ade.
Unexpectedly, The Square directed by Ruben Östlund won the coveted Palm d’Or, said to be the French equivalent of the Oscars Best Picture award.
Other entries for the grand prize included The Beguilded, Wonderstruck, In The Fade, 120 Beats Per Minute, Okja and You Were Never Really Here.
The Cannes Film Festival is where all the biggest directors, actors, and fans alike gather to celebrate the beauty of cinema.
Here are five controversies and highlights you may have missed:
Photo:David Fisher/ Rex/ Shutterstock
1. Sofia Coppola wins Best Director
The greatest win at the Cannes Film Festival is no doubt the Palme d’Or, which was given to Ruben Östlund’s satire, The Square.
But the most satisfying had to be the Best Director award for The Beguiled, which went to Sofia Coppola. She is the second woman to win Best Director at Cannes in 71 years.
Coppola’s civil war drama stars Nicole Kidman, Colin Farrell, Kirsten Dunst and Elle Fanning, and is based on the screenplay adapted from the namesake Thomas P Cullinan novel.
Film festivals have always suffered from a lack of representation from female directors and it seems like Sofia’s win will pave the way for more successes.
In fact, this year’s Cannes saw three out of 19 film entries directed by women.
This comes on the back of Wonder Woman’s success, which was the only DC film to be directed by a female director and yet scored better ratings than all the other DC Extended Universe series.
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