Current:Home > ScamsGreta Gerwig named 2024 Cannes Film Festival jury president, first American female director in job-InfoLens
Greta Gerwig named 2024 Cannes Film Festival jury president, first American female director in job
View Date:2024-12-23 15:21:41
PARIS — Greta Gerwig, actor, writer and film director, notably for the blockbuster "Barbie," will preside over the jury of the 77th Cannes Film Festival in May, the first American female director to be named jury president, the festival announced Thursday.
At 40, Gerwig is also the youngest person to take on that role since Sofia Loren, who headed the Cannes jury in 1966 at age 31, the festival noted in a statement.
"I'm overwhelmed, enthusiastic and touched with humility," the statement quoted Gerwig as saying. "I can't wait to discover what voyages await us!" She described Cannes as "the pinnacle of what the universal language of movies can be."
'Barbie' review:Margot Robbie, Ryan Gosling dazzle in hilariously heady toy story
Festival officials, too, were excited, about their choice for jury president for the May 14-25 festival on the French Riviera, a premiere film extravaganza.
"This is an obvious choice, since Greta Gerwig so audaciously embodies the renewal of world cinema, for which Cannes is each year both the forerunner and the sounding board," said festival president Iris Knobloch and general delegate Thierry Frémaux.
More:Margot Robbie tells Cillian Murphy an 'Oppenheimer' producer asked her to move 'Barbie' release
Gerwig also marks "an era that is breaking down barriers and mixing genres, and thereby elevating the values of intelligence and humanism," they added.
One other American woman has led the Cannes jury: Olivia de Haviland in 1965. Unlike Gerwig, the actress never directed movies.
Gerwig began her career as an actress before moving into writing movies, then co-directing and finally flying solo in the director's chair, notably with "Lady Bird" in 2017 — nominated for five Academy Awards, including Best Director, followed by "Little Women," then "Barbie," released last July. There, she transformed the famous Barbie doll into a living young woman, raucously exploring sexism and women's independence.
Interview:Margot Robbie never thought she'd have 'empathy for a doll.' Then she made 'Barbie.'
"An international cultural phenomenon, Barbie is the biggest success of the year and has made Greta Gerwig the most bankable female film director in history," the statement by the Cannes Festival said.Swedish filmmaker Ruben Östlund headed last year's festival.
The rest of the jury has yet to be announced. Films competing in the 2024 film festival are to be unveiled in mid-April.
More:'Anatomy of a Fall' director Justine Triet wins Cannes Film Festival's Palme d'Or award
veryGood! (688)
Related
- Parts of Southern California under quarantine over oriental fruit fly infestation
- Virginia Senate panel votes to reject Youngkin nominations of parole board chair, GOP staffer
- Yells for help lead to Maine man's rescue after boat overturns: Lobstermen saved his life
- South Africa evacuates small coastal towns near Cape Town as wildfires burn out of control
- What is ‘Doge’? Explaining the meme and cryptocurrency after Elon Musk's appointment to D.O.G.E.
- What to know about Elon Musk's Neuralink, which put an implant into a human brain
- Joni Mitchell announces Hollywood Bowl concert, her first LA performance in 24 years
- Kristin Juszczyk receives NFL licensing rights after making custom jacket for Taylor Swift
- Record-setting dry conditions threaten more US wildfires, drinking water supplies
- Oregon lawmaker suggests non-Christians are unfit for elected office
Ranking
- When do new episodes of 'Cobra Kai' Season 6 come out? Release date, cast, where to watch
- Man wanted for allegedly killing girlfriend and leaving body at Boston airport is arrested in Kenya
- Whoopi Goldberg on why she leaves 'The View' group chat: 'If I need to talk to you, I talk to you'
- Robert F. Kennedy Jr. mulls running for president as Libertarian as he struggles with ballot access
- New Jersey will issue a drought warning after driest October ever and as wildfires rage
- The Best At-Home Hair Glosses and Glazes That Give You a Salon Refresh in No Time
- Mississippi lawmakers advance bill to legalize online sports betting
- Gigi Hadid Reacts to Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce's PDA Moment
Recommendation
-
Mississippi woman pleads guilty to stealing Social Security funds
-
Belarusian journalist accused of being in an extremist group after covering protests gets prison
-
Apple's Mac turns the big 4-0. How a bowling-ball-sized computer changed the tech game
-
From 'Lisa Frankenstein' to 'Terrifier 3,' these are the horror movies to see in 2024
-
More than 150 pronghorns hit, killed on Colorado roads as animals sought shelter from snow
-
EU envoy urges Kosovo and Serbia to step up normalization efforts before the bloc’s June elections
-
At least 2 people hospitalized after Amtrak train hits milk truck in Colorado
-
Britain’s Conservative government warned against tax cuts by IMF economist