Isabelle Huppert, Venice Jury: Concerns Over “Very Weak” Contemporary Cinema

French acting legend Isabelle Huppert, the president of the Venice Film Festival jury this year, was joined by her panelists as artistic director Alberto Barbera hosted the opening press conference for the 81st event this morning. The scene was notably different from last year’s, with no Writers Guild strike t-shirts in sight.

This morning’s session was short yet earnest, with several jury members voicing concerns about the current state of cinema.

“I’m worried about the things everyone is worried about. Making sure that cinema continues to live because it is very weak now,” Huppert said. “It’s very difficult to make a film. A film is not just an individual effort. It’s really something we deliver to the world. So I am concerned about whether our world will still connect with people. That’s why the Venice Film Festival is necessary. And that’s why I’m so happy to be here.”

Huppert’s concerns resonated with American filmmaker Debra Granik (Winter’s Bone), who heads the Venice Horizons jury. She expressed relief that Huppert had addressed the “elephant in the room.”

“We understand that the generations combined in this room need this [festival] to continue telling the stories that aren’t covered in the mainstream,” Granik commented. “Festivals are now maybe festivals of defiance. Going against the grain. This festival has 80 years of solidity and mobility. It doesn’t get old and you don’t get stale.”

The latest edition of the world’s oldest film festival kicked off this evening with the world premiere out-of-competition screening of Tim Burton’s Beetlejuice Beetlejuice. In competition are several highly anticipated films, including Todd Phillips’ Joker: Folie à Deux from Warner Bros, Pablo Larrain’s Angelina Jolie-starrer Maria, Luca Guadagnino’s William S Burroughs adaptation Queer featuring Daniel Craig, and Pedro Almodovar’s English-language feature debut, The Room Next Door.

During the press conference, Barbera reflected on last year’s edition, which occurred amid the height of two Hollywood strikes. He confidently stated that the festival “didn’t really miss the absence” of actors who didn’t travel to Italy to promote their films.

“There was a lot of concern that the lack of talent might undermine the efficacy of the festival’s machinery, which is also connected to the strong promotions provided by the festival,” he said. “But the last edition went really well despite our concerns. Despite the absence of actors, there was so much participation by everyone and the increasing audience.”

Working with Huppert are jury members James Gray – a Silver Lion winner for 1994’s Little Odessa and last in Venice with 2019’s Ad Astra – Andrew Haigh, Agnieszka Holland (Special Jury Prize winner for last year’s The Green Border), Kleber Mendonça Filho, Abderrahmane Sissako, Giuseppe Tornatore, Julia von Heinz, and Zhang Ziyi. Together, they will award the main prizes, including the Golden Lion for Best Film. Maria is the first title in the competition, which begins tomorrow.

Tonight’s opening film is Beetlejuice Beetlejuice. The festival runs until September 7.

Source: Deadline