The program of the 82nd Venice Film Festival has been unveiled: 21 films in competition, including “La grazia” by Paolo Sorrentino starring Toni Servillo, which will open the festival, and the highly anticipated “Frankenstein” by Guillermo del Toro. Werner Herzog and Kim Novak will receive the Golden Lion for Lifetime Achievement, and Julia Roberts is also expected at the festival for the first time
There is an air of novelty at the 82nd Venice International Film Festival. This can already be perceived by looking at the official poster for this edition: it depicts a film crew shooting a scene among the rooftops and domes of Venice. To bring these images to life, which from August 27 to September 6 will accompany jurors, journalists, and cinephiles, the baton has passed from Lorenzo Mattotti to Manuele Fior, an Italian cartoonist and illustrator among the most acclaimed in recent years, who has imagined, narrated, drawn, and above all lived Venice. The figures drawn by Fior, even though they move across the rooftops and chimneys of Venice, do not represent surreal, dreamlike, or circus characters, but very earthly, everyday figures in which anyone can potentially recognize themselves.
And “Never as in these years” stated Festival Director Alberto Barbera “has cinema returned to being the mirror of the present, an invitation to reflect on contemporary themes, the litmus test of reality and its unresolved conflicts.”
#Venezia82 presents itself with an important program, major international names ready to parade on the world’s most prestigious red carpet, and which sees Italian cinema as protagonist with five films in competition; however, without renouncing the dimension of entertainment, dreams, and “stardust,” it also remains a special moment to ask questions, to ignite curiosity about the world around us, to open ourselves to the possibility of viewing reality through the countless eyes of the filmmakers, coming from 65 different countries, who day after day will arrive at the Venice Lido.
Over ten days, the big screens will show 91 feature films, 25 short films, 4 TV series, 19 restored classics, in addition to the 69 virtual reality works (Venice Immersive) exclusively on the island of Lazzaretto Vecchio.
Films in competition and expected stars
Twenty-one feature films will compete for the Golden Lion in a selection that favors established filmmakers and promises surprises. Guillermo del Toro (Golden Lion in 2017 for The Shape of Water) has chosen to bring his highly anticipated Frankenstein to Venice in competition, with Oscar Isaac, Jacob Elordi and Christoph Waltz. Alongside him is the 2023 Golden Lion winner (for Poor Things) Yorgos Lanthimos: his Bugonia is the third collaboration with Emma Stone after the success of the previous ones, both presented at the Lido.
Among the other international productions in competition, The Wizard of the Kremlin by French director Olivier Assayas (awarded Best Director at Cannes in 2016) with Paul Dano, Jude Law and Alicia Vikander stands out, as does Jay Kelly by Noah Baumbach (at his third participation in competition in Venice) which reunites George Clooney, Adam Sandler, Laura Dern and Greta Gerwig. Oscar winner Kathryn Bigelow will be there with A House of Dynamite, featuring Idris Elba, while Jim Jarmusch will be in competition for the first time with Father Mother Sister Brother starring Adam Driver, Charlotte Rampling and Cate Blanchett.
Five Italian titles are vying for the Golden Lion. La Grazia by Paolo Sorrentino, with Toni Servillo and Anna Ferzetti, has been entrusted with opening the festival on the evening of August 27. Sorrentino returns to Venice after winning the Silver Lion in 2021 with The Hand of God. Also in competition are Elisa by Leonardo Di Costanzo, Duse by Pietro Marcello dedicated to the great actress, Un film fatto per bene by Franco Maresco and Sotto le nuvole by Gianfranco Rosi, winner of the Golden Lion in 2013 with Sacro GRA.
The jury and lifetime achievement awards
Alexander Payne leads a prestigious international jury that includes French director Stéphane Brizé, Italian filmmaker Maura Delpero, Silver Lion at Venice for Vermiglio in 2024 and the first woman to win the David di Donatello for Best Director, Romanian director Cristian Mungiu (Palme d’Or at Cannes) and Iranian filmmaker Mohammad Rasoulof (Golden Bear in Berlin). Completing the panel are Brazilian actress Fernanda Torres and Chinese actress Zhao Tao.
Werner Herzog will receive the Golden Lion for Lifetime Achievement for a filmography that has redefined the boundaries of documentary and fiction. The director will also present his latest documentary Ghost Elephants out of competition. The Golden Lion for Lifetime Achievement will also go to Kim Novak, Hollywood icon and Alfred Hitchcock’s muse in Vertigo, who will be honored as an actress who has maintained her artistic independence within the Hollywood system.
Out of Competition: the major returns
Julia Roberts will make her Venice red carpet debut for the premiere of After the Hunt by Luca Guadagnino, alongside Andrew Garfield and Ayo Edebiri. The closing film will be the dystopian thriller Chien 51 by Cédric Jimenez with Gilles Lellouche, Adèle Exarchopoulos and Louis Garrel. Also out of competition are numerous other internationally acclaimed titles: In the Hand of Dante by Julian Schnabel reunites Oscar Isaac, Al Pacino, Martin Scorsese and Gal Gadot, while Dead Man’s Wire by Gus Van Sant stars Bill Skarsgård and Al Pacino. Also out of competition is award-winning Italian director Marco Bellocchio, who will present the first two episodes of the TV series Portobello.
New features: Spotlight and Venice Immersive
Venice Spotlight debuts as a new section where the audience will elect the winner among eight selected films.
Venice Immersive confirms itself as a global laboratory for virtual reality with 69 projects from 27 countries hosted on the Island of Lazzaretto Vecchio, accessible by free shuttle in three minutes from the Lido.
The Venice Production Bridge transforms the Hotel Excelsior into the film industry headquarters from August 28 to September 3, with financing markets, literary rights, and invitation-only meetings with streaming platforms for international producers and distributors.
Ceremonies and opening
This year there will be no traditional “godmother” figure. In fact, the decision was made to abandon this terminology for the host of the opening and closing ceremonies, as explained by Director Barbera. This role has been entrusted to Emanuela Fanelli, winner of two consecutive David di Donatello awards.
The pre-opening on Tuesday, August 26 offers a double feature: Origin by Yann Arthus-Bertrand at 6 PM, followed (at 9 PM) by Queen Kelly by Erich von Stroheim in restored version with live soundtrack by the Syntax Ensemble.
The Venezia da Vivere team will be present at the Festival to cover the most anticipated event of the film year live and day by day.
Continue to follow us with Coffee with Venezia da Vivere to discover insights and in-depth coverage of the films of each day, your daily guide to navigate the program. Follow us also on our social media and Instagram live streams so you don’t miss a single moment of this extraordinary edition.
Article by Pietro Gallina (Veneziacinema) and Lucia Pecoraro.
