Jury for 79th Locarno Film Festival revealed

Locarno 79: Fabrice Du Welz to chair the jury Keystone-SDA

Belgian director Fabrice Du Welz will chair the jury for the International Competition at the 79th Locarno Film Festival, which is scheduled to take place from August 5-15

Joining him are Italian producer Marco Alessi, French actress Lolita Chammah, Chilean actress Paulina García and Olivier Père, executive director of Arte France Cinéma and former artistic director of the Ticino festival.

The jury for ‘Cineasti del Presente’ – the section dedicated to first and second films and emerging filmmakers – has also been announced, comprising Tunisian actress, director and producer Afef Ben Mahmoud, Czech producer and director Radovan Síbrt, and Italian director Margherita Spampinato.

For ‘Pardi di Domani’, reserved for short films, the jury comprises Lebanese director Mounia Akl, South African producer Steven Markovitz and Italian director Antonio Piazza.

The Swatch First Feature Award will be decided by Matthieu Darras, Sung Moon and the Swiss-Peruvian director Klaudia Reynicke, whilst the Pardo for Change jury will comprise Ticino-based reporter and author Gianluca Grossi, Somali-Austrian director Mo Harawe and Seta Thakur, Head of Communications and Social Innovation at the Wyss Academy for Nature.

The jury for the Locarno Kids Screenings is also making its debut: thirteen girls and boys aged between 11 and 15 will assess the seven films in the new competitive section dedicated to younger audiences and will award the Locarno Kids Award la Mobiliare, whilst also taking part in an educational programme focused on the analysis and evaluation of the films.

“Selecting the films that will be screened in the competitive sections is a task that always brings out desires and emotions. The diversity of talent meets the diversity of perspectives. Ultimately, however, what matters most is a willingness to be surprised, to be amazed, and to embrace the unexpected,” stated the festival’s Artistic Director Giona A. Nazzaro.

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Translated from German, reviewed by an English Department journalist.