Cannes has announced its 2017 Director’s Fortnight lineup, and seven of 20 films screening are helmed by women, amounting to 35 percent of the slate. This is a dramatic improvement from last year, when just 22 percent of the program was women-directed. We’re thrilled to see one of Cannes’ most high-profile sections approaching the 40 percent benchmark this year. This is a solid number for a fest in general, but especially by Cannes’ standards. Bear in mind that just 15 percent of the films in Cannes’ 2017 main competition lineup — the titles duking it for the fest’s most prestigious honor, the Palme d’Or — are directed by women.
French helmer Claire Denis’ “Un Beau Soleil Intérieur” has been selected as Opening Night Film. The Juliet Binoche-starrer is a loose adaptation of “A Lover’s Discourse: Fragments,” a 1978 book by influential French literary theorist Roland Barthe. ScreenDaily describes the text as “a collection of musings about what it means to be a lover.” Denis previously screened “Chocolat” and “Bastards” at Cannes. “What touched us is that [‘Un Beau Soleil Intérieur’] marks a radical change in tone for Claire Denis,” commented Artistic Director Edouard Waintrop. “We like it when filmmakers try something new.”
Chinese-American director Chloé Zhao is set to return to the fest just two years after screening her first feature, “Songs My Brother Taught Me,” in the Directors’ Fortnight. The Indie Spirit Award nominee will be debuting “The Rider,” a portrait of a cowboy reeling in the aftermath of a near fatal rodeo accident.
While the lineup features familiar names, it also includes some relative newcomers, including British-Zambian director Rungano Nyoni, who’s set to premiere her feature debut “I Am Not a Witch.” Set in present-day Africa, the satire centers on a nine-year-old girl accused of witchcraft.
Cannes runs from May 17–28. Check out all of the women-directed films screening in the Directors’ Fortnight below. List adapted from ScreenDaily.
“Un Beau Soleil Intérieur,” Claire Denis (opening film)
“I Am Not A Witch,” Rungano Nyoni
“La Defensa Del Dragón,” Natalia Santa
“Marlina The Murderer In Four Acts,” Mouly Surya
“Nothingwood,” Sonia Kronlund
“Just To Be Sure (Ôtez-moi D’Un Doute),” Carine Tardieu
“The Rider,” Chloé Zhao
