Venice names global jury as Gyllenhaal presides over autumn festival

Variety reported on Monday that the Venice Film Festival's competition jury for its September edition will be led by Gyllenhaal alongside Hong Kong director Johnnie To, Tunisian filmmaker Kaouther Ben Hania and Afghan director Shahrbanoo Sadat. The announcement comes as the Lido prepares for its eighty-third edition, one of three major European festivals where international cinema competes for prestige and distribution deals that shape the autumn film calendar.

The composition reflects a deliberate geographic spread: To brings decades of experience in Hong Kong action cinema and genre work; Ben Hania's films have centred on women's experiences in North Africa and the diaspora; Sadat's work has documented Afghan life through the Taliban's return to power. Together, the panel represents a departure from previous years' rosters, which have often weighted European and American voices more heavily. The festival's choice of Gyllenhaal as president signals confidence in her recent turn toward independent cinema and art-house projects.