73rd Venice International Film Festival

The 73rd annual Venice International Film Festival was held from 31 August to 10 September 2016, at Venice Lido in Italy.

English filmmaker Sam Mendes was the Jury President of the main competition. Italian actress Sonia Bergamasco hosted the opening and closing nights of the festival. The Golden Lion was awarded to The Woman Who Left by Lav Diaz.

A new project named Venice Production Bridge was introduced in this edition of the festival. The new project is intended to attract industry professionals and focus on original projects for films, internet, series, virtual reality, and works in progress, in order to help their development and production. It is also meant to work in conjunction with the Venice Film Market which started in 2012. Such projects as Final Cut in Venice, meant to help finance original films from African countries, and the Venice Gap-Financing Market will come under its scope.

The festival opened with La La Land by Damien Chazelle, and closed with The Magnificent Seven by Antoine Fuqua.

Juries

Main competition (Venezia 73)

Sam Mendes, British filmmaker and stage director - Jury President
Laurie Anderson, American artist, composer, musician and film director
Gemma Arterton, English actress
Giancarlo De Cataldo, Italian novelist and screenwriter
Nina Hoss, German actress
Chiara Mastroianni, French-Italian actress
Joshua Oppenheimer, American filmmaker
Lorenzo Vigas, Venezuelan film director, screenwriter and producer
Zhao Wei, Chinese actress, singer and film director

Orizzonti

Robert Guédiguian, French filmmaker, producer and actor - Jury President
Jim Hoberman, American film critic and academic
Nelly Karim, Egyptian actress, fashion model and ballerina
Valentina Lodovini, Italian film and TV actress
Moon So-ri, South Korean actress, film director and screenwriter
José María "Chema" Prado, director of the Filmoteca Española
Chaitanya Tamhane, Indian filmmaker

Luigi De Laurentiis Award for a Debut Film

Kim Rossi Stuart, Italian actor and director - Jury President
Rosa Bosch, Spanish-born film producer
Brady Corbet, American actor and filmmaker
Pilar López de Ayala, Spanish film actress
Serge Toubiana, Tunisian-born journalist and film critic

Official Sections

In competition (Venezia 73)

The following films were selected for the main competition:

Out of Competition

The following films were selected to be screened out of competition

Orizzonti

The following films were selected for the Horizons (Orizzonti) section:

Venice Classics

The following films were selected to be screened in the Venice Classics section:

Biennale College - Cinema

The following films were selected for the Biennale College - Cinema section.

Final Cut in Venice

The following films were screened for the "Final Cut in Venice" section, a workshop to support the post-production of films from Africa:

Il Cinema nel Giardino

The following feature films were selected for the Il Cinema nel Giardino section:

Special screenings

The following film was presented as a Special Screening of the Official Selection:

Spes contra Spem: Liberi Dentro (documentary) by Ambrogio Crespi

Independent Sections

International Critics' Week

The following films were selected for the International Critics' Week section:

Venice Days

The following films were selected for the 13th edition of the Venice Days (Giornate degli Autori) section:

Official Awards

In Competition (Venezia 73)

Golden Lion: The Woman Who Left by Lav Diaz
Grand Jury Prize: Nocturnal Animals by Tom Ford
Silver Lion for Best Director:
- Amat Escalante for The Untamed
- Andrei Konchalovsky for Paradise
Volpi Cup for Best Actress: Emma Stone for La La Land
Volpi Cup for Best Actor: Oscar Martínez for The Distinguished Citizen
Best Screenplay: Noah Oppenheim for Jackie
Special Jury Prize: The Bad Batch by Ana Lily Amirpour
Marcello Mastroianni Award: Paula Beer for Frantz

Golden Lion for Lifetime Achievement

Jean-Paul Belmondo
Jerzy Skolimowski

Orizzonti

Best Film: Libera Nos by Federica Di Giacomo
Best Director: Home by Fien Troch
Special Jury Prize: Big Big World by Reha Erdem
Best Actress: Ruth Díaz for The Fury of a Patient Man
Best Actor: Nuno Lopes for Saint George
Best Screenplay: Bitter Money by Wang Bing
Horizons Prize for Best Short: La Voz Perdida by Marcelo Martinessi

Venice Classics Awards

Best Documentary on Cinema: The Graduation by Claire Simon
Best Restored Film: Break Up by Marco Ferreri

Luigi De Laurentiis Award for a Debut Film (Lion of the Future)

The Last of Us by Ala Eddine Slim

Special Awards

Jaeger-LeCoultre Glory to the Filmmaker Award: Amir Naderi
Persol Tribute To Visionary Talent Award: Liev Schreiber

Independent Sections Awards

The following official and collateral awards were conferred to films of the autonomous sections:

Venice International Critics' Week

Audience Award - Circolo del Cinema di Verona: The Nobodies by Juan Sebastián Mesa
SIAE Award: Paolo Sorrentino
Mario Serandrei - Hotel Saturnia Award: The Last of Us by Ala Eddine Slim

Venice Days

Venice Days Award: The War Show by Andreas Dalsgaard and Obaidah Zytoon
BNL Award: Pamilya ordinaryo by Eduardo Roy Jr.
Brian Award: Worldly Girl by Marco Danieli
Fedeora Awards:
- Best Film: The Road to Mandalay by Midi Z
- Best Young Director: Amanda Kernell for Sami Blood
- Best Actress: Ashleigh Cummings for Hounds Of Love
- Best European Film: Quit Staring at My Plate (Ne gledaj mi u pijat) by Hana Jušić
Gianni Astrei Award: Indivisible by Edoardo De Angelis
Label Europa Cinema Award: Sami Blood by Amanda Kernell
Lizzani Award: Worldly Girl by Marco Danieli
Lina Mangiacapre Award: Indivisible by Edoardo De Angelis
MigrArti Award: No Borders by Haider Rashid

Independent Awards

The following collateral awards were conferred to films of the official selection:

Open Award

Open Prize: Vangelo by Pippo Delbono

Francesco Pasinetti – SNGCI Award

Best Film: Indivisible by Edoardo De Angelis
Best Actor: Michele Riondino for Worldly Girl
Best Actress: Sara Serraiocco for Worldly Girl
- Special mention: Angela and Marianna Fontana for their roles in Indivisible

Queer Lion

Heartstone by Guðmundur Arnar Guðmundsson

Arca CinemaGiovani Award

Best Film (Main competition): Arrival by Denis Villeneuve
Best Italian Film (Biennale College - Cinema): Ears by Alessandro Aronadio
Civitas Vitae Award: Piuma by Roan Johnson

FEDIC Award

Indivisible by Edoardo De Angelis
- Special mentions:
  - The Greatest Dream by Michele Vannucci
  - Ears by Alessandro Aronadio

FIPRESCI Awards

Best Film (Main competition): A Woman's Life by Stéphane Brizé
Best Film (Horizons): Kékszakállú by Gastón Solnicki

Fondazione Mimmo Rotella Award

James Franco (director) and Ambi Pictures (production) for In Dubious Battle
Paolo Sorrentino and Jude Law for the series The Young Pope (Out of competition)
Roan Johnson (director) and Lucky Red (distributor) for the film Piuma
- Special Award for the production: Andrea Iervolino for In Dubious Battle (Il Cinema nel Giardino)

Enrico Fulchignoni – CICT-UNESCO Award

Hotel Salvation Shubhashish Bhutiani

Future Film Festival Digital Award

Arrival by Denis Villeneuve
- Special mention: Voyage of Time: Life's Journey by Terrence Malick

Giovani Giurati del Vittorio Veneto Film Festival Award

The Distinguished Citizen by Gastón Duprat & Mariano Cohn

Green Drop Award

Spira Mirabilis by Massimo D’Anolfi and Martina Parenti
Voyage of Time: Life's Journey by Terrence Malick

Human Rights Nights Special Award

Bitter Money by Wang Bing
- Special mention: Robinù by Michele Santoro

Interfilm Award

White Sun by Deepak Rauniyar

Lanterna Magica Award (CGS)

Dark Night by Tim Sutton

Leoncino d'Oro Agiscuola Award

On the Milky Road by Emir Kusturica

Cinema for UNICEF mention

Paradise by Andrei Konchalovsky

Golden Mouse

Jackie by Pablo Larraín
Silver Mouse: Austerlitz by Sergei Loznitsa

NuovoImaie Talent Award

Best Young Actor: Daniele Parisi for his role in Ears
Best Young Actress: Camilla Diana for Tommaso by Kim Rossi Stuart

Francesco Pasinetti Special Prize

the cast of Piuma by Roan Johnson

Sfera 1932 Award

Spira Mirabilis by Massimo D’Anolfi and Martina Parenti

SIGNIS Award

Piuma by Roan Johnson
- Special mention: On the Milky Road by Emir Kusturica

C. Smithers Foundation – CICT-UNESCO Award

The Bleeder by Philippe Falardeau

Soundtrack Stars Award

Jovanotti for Summertime by Gabriele Muccino

Sorriso Diverso Venezia Award - Best Italian Film

These Days by Giuseppe Piccioni
The Greatest Dream by Michele Vannucci

Sorriso Diverso Venezia Award - Best Foreign Film

The Woman Who Left by Lav Diaz

Padre Nazareno Taddei Award

Paradise by Andrei Konchalovsky

Kinèo Awards

Best Film: Perfect Strangers by Paolo Genovese
Best Director: Daniele Luchetti for Call Me Francis
Best Debut Director: Them who? by Francesco Micciché and Fabio Bonifacci
SNCCI Audience and Critics Award: Roberto Andò for Le confessioni
Movie&Art TaorminaFilmFest Award: Marco Giallini
RAI Com Award for Best Italian foreign release: They Call Me Jeeg by Gabriele Mainetti
Best Movie Award: Gabriele Mainetti for They Call Me Jeeg
Excellence Award: Patty Pravo
International Movie Award: Sophie Turner
Best Actor: Claudio Santamaria for They Call Me Jeeg
Best Actress: Paola Cortellesi for The Last Will Be the Last
Special Ferragamo Parfums Award for Best Actress: Anna Foglietta for Perfect Strangers
Best Movie's poll for best film: The Last Will Be the Last by Massimiliano Bruno
Best Supporting Actor: Alessandro Borghi for Suburra
Best Supporting Actress: Matilde Gioli for Belli di papà and Un posto sicuro
Excellence Award: Claudio Brachino
Excellence Award We World: Carolina Crescentini
Excellence Award: Laura Delli Colli