The 2023 Cannes Film Festival is set to include a mix of celebrity names, veteran filmmakers and new talent from around the world. The line-up includes the highest number yet of women directors in the main competition, as well as several films from the African continent.
Organisers unveiled their picks of the world's best cinema at a press conference in Paris on Thursday.
The presence of six women directors out of 19 in the main competition, including Italy's Alice Rohrwacher and Senegalese filmmaker Ramata-Toulaye Sy, beats last year's record of five.
In competition for the Palme d’Or are France’s Justine Triet with "Anatomy of a Fall", Catherine Breillat with "Last Summer", "Club Zero" by Jessica Hausner from Austria and Tunisia’s Kaouther Ben Hania with "Four Daughters".
The Certain Regard category promises to take audiences on a round-the-world trip thanks to first-time entries from Sudan ("Goodbye Julia" by Mohamed Kordofani) and Democratic Republic of Congo ("Augure" by Baloji Tshiani).
Australian director Warwick Thornton is back with "The New Boy", produced by Cate Blanchett, and in the running for Camera d’Or for first feature is Mongolia’s Zoljargal Purevdash and “If only I could hibernate”.
Meanwhile, household name Wes Anderson is in competition with his "Asteroid City" set to bring a cavalcade of stars to the red carpet, including Tom Hanks, Margot Robbie and Scarlett Johansson.
Among other red carpet favourites are Natalie Portman and Julianne Moore, who appear in "May/December", a romance by director Todd Haynes.
Loach, Wenders, Wang Bing
Two-time Palme winner Ken Loach is also on the list with "The Old Oak", as is Wim Wenders with "Perfect Days".
The competition also includes past Palme winners Nanni Moretti and Nuri Bilge Ceylan, as well as Hirokazu Kore-eda and Aki Kaurismaki.
Making a comeback to the Croisette is China, whose filmmakers have been absent from recent editions due to Covid restrictions. This year the country's thriving cinema industry will be represented by Wang Bing with two features, "Shanghai Youth" in competition and "Man in Black" as a special screening.
Arthouse fans will be pleased to see the return of British director Jonathan Glazer with a Holocaust-set romance, "The Zone of Interest", based on a novel by Martin Amis.
The festival has already announced several Hollywood premieres, including the fifth installment in the Indiana Jones series. "Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny" will debut in Cannes with none other that Harrison Ford himself, alongside Phoebe Waller-Bridge and Antonio Banderas.
Depp times two
Martin Scorsese’s "Killers of the Flower Moon", starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Robert De Niro, will also have its world premiere out of competition – though festival director Thierry Frémaux hinted that it may end up running for an award.
He also stressed that last-minute decisions were still being made and that films may be added to the official selection in the coming days.
Johnny Depp is making his comeback in "Jeanne du Barry", the opening night feature by French director Maiwenn.
Depp will be joined on the red carpet by his daughter, Lily Rose Depp, who stars in "The Idol", a TV series playing out of competition that was produced by musician Abel "The Weeknd" Tesfaye.
Also playing out of competition is a documentary about wartime Amsterdam, "Occupied City", by celebrated British director Steve McQueen ("12 Years a Slave"), which Frémaux described as "a very radical film of several hours".
Game-changer
Victory in Cannes can give a major boost for arthouse films – such as last year's winner "Triangle of Sadness", which went on to pick up several Oscar nominations.
Its director, Sweden's Ruben Ostlund, heads this year's jury.
Newly appointed festival president Iris Knobloch told reporters at the press conference in Paris: "Cannes is a game-changer" in the life of a film, calling it an extraordinary springboard for directors of all kinds.
She hailed her predecessor Pierre Lescure, congratulated the festival for maintaining its high standards and keeping the public’s love for cinema alive.
Despite streaming platforms and the rise of individual screens, she declared, “the public is back in love with cinema”.
The Cannes Film Festival runs from 16–27 May 2023.
