When religion is associated with political power and patriarchy, it can destroy the most intimate relationships and the dignity of individuals, as this Iranian family drama embodies. The jury was impressed by the film’s rich symbolism, its generous and hopeful ending, its touches of humour and its heartbreaking tension. The subtlety and sobriety of its writing, both dramatic and filmic, make it a metaphor for any authoritarian theocracy.
77th Festival de Cannes
14.05.2024 to 25.05.2024
Cannes
The mebers of the 50th Jury œcuménique in Cannes 2024, from left: Edgar Octavio Rubio Hernandez, Julienne Munyaneza (Jury President), Pierre Alain Lods, Johanna Haberer, Magali van Reeth, Alexander Bothe
"The Seed of the Sacred Fig" by Mohammad Rasoulof (Germany, France, Iran 2024) received the Prize of the Ecumenical Jury in Cannes 2024. The film also won the Prize of the Jury of International Film Critics (Fipresci). The Iranian director had fled his home country shortly beforehand after being sentenced to lashes and prison and made his first public appearance in Cannes. In 2020, his film "There is No Evil" (Iran 2020) was awarded the Prize of the Ecumenical Jury and the Golden Bear at the Berlinale.
The international festival jury, chaired by American actress and director Greta Gerwig, awarded the Palme d'Or to "Anora" by Sean Baker (USA 2024) and Silver Palms to "All We Imagine As Light" by Payal Kapadia (France, India, Netherlands, Luxembourg 2024; Grand Prix of the Jury) and "Emilia Pérez" by Jacques Audiard (France 2024; Prix du Jury). Rasoulof's "The Seed of the Sacred Fig" was awarded the Prix Spécial of the Jury.
This year, the Jury œcuménique celebrated its 50th anniversary in Cannes. On this occasion, on behalf of INTERFILM and SIGNIS, the organizers of the jury, it awarded a special prize in honour of his work to Wim Wenders, who received three ecumenical awards for his films in Cannes before - Prizes from ecumenical juries for "Paris, Texas" (1984) and "Perfect Days" (2023) as well as a commendation for "The Salt of Earth" (2014).
Wim Wenders at the award ceremony, with INTERFILM President Julia Helmke (left) and Adriana Răcăşan, President of the SIGNIS Cinema Desk (right; © INTERFILM / SIGNIS)
The Jury œcuménique gathered for the first time in 1974 at the 27th edition of the festival and awarded its Prize to "Angst essen Seele auf" (Ali: Fear Eats the Soul) by Rainer Werner Fassbinder. A Commendation was given to "The Conversation" by Francis Coppola, whose film "Megalopolis" was in the international competition at the festival this year.
To mark the jury's anniversary, Jean-Luc Gadreau, designated festival delegate of INTERFILM in Cannes and President of Interfilm France, has produced a video with statements by former winners of the Prix du Jury œcuménique (Wim Wenders, Atom Egoyan, Ken Loach, Hirokazu Kore-eda, Mohsen Makhmalbaf, Krzysztof Zanussi and Denys Arcand). A booklet was also produced with greetings from Julia Helmke (President of INTERFILM), Helen Osman (President of SIGNIS), David Lisnard (Mayor of Cannes) and Festival Director Thierry Frémaux as well as a list of all award winners.
Download: 50 Years of the Ecumenical Jury at the Festival de Cannes
Link: Website of the Jury œcuménique
50 Years Ecumenical Jury in Cannes
Awards
More about the festival
2024 was the year of women in Cannes, and this was clearly reflected in the awards. Although the Palme d'Or went to a man, to the American Sean Baker, his film "Anora" however has a combative female protagonist in Mikey Madsen. In his acceptance speech, Baker dedicated the award to all female sex workers.
A political highlight was saved for the finale in Cannes, the film "The Seed of the Sacred Fig" by Mohammad Rasoulof. Under the conditions of Iranian censorship, Rasoulof's film seems like a suicidal project.
As the Cannes Festival draws to a close, speculation is rife as to who might win the Palme d'Or this year. The New York Times sees two films at the forefront that are universally regarded as favourites. A preliminary summary.
Cannes loves the big names of international auteur cinema and is happy to invite them to the competition - this year Paul Schrader and Jia Zhang-ke, among others. Continuation of the festival coverage by Peter Paul Huth.
Perhaps the cinema is the ideal place to present questions of fluid identity. In current debates, linguistic sensitivity for particular identities is demanded under the label 'gender-appropriate language'. On the other hand, in 'liquid modernity' (Zygmunt Bauman), gender-specific boundaries are being abolished.
