Cannes 2021 jury announced

The Cannes 2021 jury will go down as a milestone, for the simple fact that it is probably the very first major movie festival in the world to have more women jury members than men. This has been a growing issue over the past few years, as the movie industry and its festivals were increasingly criticized for being a boys club. But the choice of jury members shows that Cannes remains true to its core belief in the power of movies and moviemakers from five continents around the world.

It’s worth mentioning the 2021 festival poster too. For the first time in many years, it is not celebrating a glamorous image from the past. It actually features a living, breathing film-maker – who also happens to be the jury president and black. That’s a lot of messages in one monochrome image.

It’s good to see the festival show its actual face, rather than hiding behind the pretty nostalgia of previous posters. Cannes is a powerful, ambitious and occasionally abrasive movie festival. It does not need images of Marilyn Monroe to justify its presence.

Cannes 2021 jury members