American director Jonathan Demme will head the Orizzonti, or Horizons, section dedicated to world cinema that awards prizes for Best Film, Best Director, Best Actor or Actress, Best Short and a Special Jury award.
Meanwhile, Italian helmer Saverio Costanzo will lead the Luigi di Laurentiis jury, which awards the Lion of the Future to a debut film. Accompanied by a cash prize of $100,000 split between the director and producer, this is the Venice equivalent of Cannes’ Camera d’Or.
Ahead of Venice, Demme will take his new film, Meryl Streep-starrer “Ricki and the Flash,” to the Locarno Film Festival in August. Also a Venice perennial, Costanzo’s little-seen, effectively creepy domestic thriller “Hungry Hearts” won both Coppa Volpi awards last year: Best Actress for Alba Rohrwacher and Best Actor for Adam Driver.
READ MORE: Venice Taps a Master Auteur to Lead Competition Jury
As already announced, director Alfonso Cuarón will head up the Competition jury when the festival unfolds on the Lido from September 2 to 12.
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