CULTURE
Venice Hands Its Lion to May el-Toukhy, and Answers a Question About Women
The festival's winners' list, led by a Danish drama and a Guardian-produced Gaza documentary, follows a season of criticism over the absence of female directors in competition.
Eleonora Vanzetti430 wordsEdition №115Monday, 14 September 2026 — Edition № 115
May el-Toukhy took the Golden Lion at the 83rd Venice film festival for Woman Unknown, a drama following a Danish servant through the uneasy years after the Second World War, according to the Guardian and the New York Times. The Guardian notes she becomes the eighth female director to win the festival's top prize. Lee Chang-dong's Possible Love took the runner-up award, the New York Times reported.
The special jury prize went to NAZA, directed by Yuval Abraham and Rachel Szor and produced by the Guardian, a documentary built on testimony from Israeli intelligence officers and soldiers about the civilian death toll in Gaza. The Guardian reported a 25-minute standing ovation at its premiere, and published video of Abraham saying after the win that it was important Israelis watch the film.