Only one of the 20 films competing for the Golden Lion at this year’s Venice Film Festival was directed by a woman, down from six of 21 in the previous edition, after organisers unveiled the 2026 lineup in Rome.
The film is Woman Unknown, a drama by the Danish-Egyptian director May El-Toukhy. The 83rd edition runs from 2 to 12 September on the Lido.
Who else is in competition?
Artistic director Alberto Barbera announced a slate weighted towards established auteurs. It includes new work from Martin McDonagh, Werner Herzog, Lee Chang-dong, Hirokazu Kore-eda, Florian Zeller and Casey Affleck.
McDonagh’s Wild Horse Nine, a black comedy starring John Malkovich, Sam Rockwell and Steve Buscemi, follows CIA officers on Easter Island before the 1973 Chilean coup. Herzog’s Bucking Fastard stars the sisters Rooney Mara and Kate Mara. Five Italian titles are in competition, among them Nanni Moretti’s return to the festival.
The longest entry is Ilya Khrzhanovsky’s Dau, at 210 minutes.
How many women directed films in the Venice 2026 competition?
One film in the 20-title main competition at the 83rd Venice International Film Festival was directed by a woman: Woman Unknown, by the Danish-Egyptian director May El-Toukhy. That compares with six of 21 competition films directed by women at the previous edition. The 2026 lineup was announced in Rome by artistic director Alberto Barbera, with the festival running from 2 to 12 September 2026 on the Venice Lido. Danny Boyle’s Ink, about the early years of Rupert Murdoch’s tabloid business, opens the festival in competition, and Giovanni Veronesi’s Dio Ride closes it out of competition. Maggie Gyllenhaal presides over the main competition jury. George Clooney and Ellen Burstyn each receive a Golden Lion for lifetime achievement. Awards are announced at the closing ceremony on 12 September at the Palazzo del Cinema.
What opens and closes the festival?
Danny Boyle’s Ink opens proceedings on 2 September, competing for the Golden Lion. The drama covers the early days of Rupert Murdoch’s tabloid empire, with Guy Pearce as Murdoch, Jack O’Connell as Sun editor Larry Lamb and Claire Foy. Netflix acquired the film ahead of its premiere. Giovanni Veronesi’s period drama Dio Ride closes the festival out of competition.
Maggie Gyllenhaal chairs the jury, joined by Kaouther Ben Hania, Johnnie To, Xavier Giannoli, Shahrbanoo Sadat, Daniel Blumberg and Francesco Casetti.
What does the selection say about the industry?
Studio titles are largely absent, continuing a pattern seen at Cannes. Screen Daily reported the competition ran to 20 films with a five-strong Italian contingent.
Around 4,500 films were reviewed for this edition, against 4,200 the year before. The Hollywood Reporter noted non-fiction highlights including a documentary on the Oasis reunion tour. Venice screens world premieres only, and functions as an early marker for the awards season.
Out-of-competition titles include new work from Lav Diaz and Paul Schrader, and the crime thriller Father Joe starring Kiefer Sutherland and Al Pacino. Barbera described the selection as addressing war, the climate crisis, migration and social tension.
Related coverage
Sources for this report
The Redline News Desk
The Redline News desk files and edits world reporting. Every story carries the sources it was built from, and corrections are published on the story itself.
Leave a Reply