Refresh for latest…: The 81st Venice Film Festival is drawing to a close this evening with awards about to be handed out inside the Lido’s Sala Grande. Jury president Isabelle Huppert and her panel will bestow the Golden Lion along with the other main prizes over the next hour or so. Scroll down to see the list of laureates as we update live.
The last 12 days at the world’s oldest film festival have been beyond glamorous — in stark contrast to last year’s edition which unspooled under the cloud of the SAG-AFTRA strike, preventing many stars from coming out in support of their movies. Not so this time around as famous faces came ashore by the boatload. They included Michael Keaton, Jenna Ortega, Cate Blanchett, Angelina Jolie, Nicole Kidman, Adrien Brody, Jude Law, Nicholas Hoult, George Clooney, Brad Pitt, Daniel Craig, Julianne Moore, Tilda Swinton, Joaquin Phoenix and Lady Gaga.
Not all of them had films in the competition which was rife with strong titles and performances. Receiving particularly strong notices were Luca Guadagnino’s Queer starring Craig; Pablo Larrain’s Maria Callas biopic Maria with a buzzy lead turn from Jolie; Pedro Almodovar’s The Room Next Door led by Moore and Swinton (and earning a mega 18-minute ovation following its premiere); and Halina Rejin’s Babygirl featuring a committed performance by Kidman.
Other titles that got folks excited include Brady Corbet’s third feature here in Venice, The Brutalist, starring Brody, Walter Salles’ I’m Still Here and Dea Kulumbegashvili’s April.
It was five years ago this weekend that Todd Phillips’ Joker sashayed away with the Golden Lion; this year he returned with sequel Joker: Folie à Deux which didn’t appear to overwhelm audiences in the same manner, though Phoenix was roundly praised again for his take on Arthur Fleck.
We’ll know which way the jury has voted in just a little bit, so check back below.
Awards Updating Live:
Golden Lion
Silver Lion Grand Jury Prize
Silver Lion Best Director
Special Jury Prize
Best Screenplay
Best Actress
Best Actor
Marcello Mastroianni Award for Best New Young Actor or Actress
Paul Kircher for And Their Children After Them
HORIZONS
Best Film
The New Year That Never Came by Bogdan Muresanu
Best Director
Sarah Friedland for Familiar Touch
Special Jury Prize
One of Those Days When Hemme Dies by Murat Firatoglu
Best Actress
Kathleen Chalfant for Familiar Touch
Best Actor
Francesco Ghegi for Family
Best Screenplay
Happy Holidays by Scandar Copti
Lion of the Future – Luigi De Laurentiis Award for a Debut Film
Familiar Touch by Sarah Friedland
Best Short Film
Who Loves The Sun by Arshia Shakiba
HORIZONS EXTRA
Audience Award
The Witness (Shahed)
VENICE CLASSICS WINNERS
Best Restored Film
Ecce Bombo, Nanni Moretti
Best Documentary On Cinema
Chain Reactions
VENICE IMMERSIVE WINNERS
Venice Immersive Achievement Award
Impulse Playing With Reality
Venice Immersive Special Jury Prize
Oto’s Planet
Venice Immersive Grand Prize
Ito Meikyū
More to come…
