Lebanese filmmaker Nadine Labaki has been named as the president of the Un Certain Regard jury in Cannes — becoming the first Arab to hold the position.
The festival said Labaki had been chosen after “moving hearts and minds at the last Festival de Cannes with her Academy Award and Golden Globe-nominated ‘Capernaum,’ which won the Jury Prize.”
She succeeds Benicio Del Toro as president of the jury.
“Today, I am the president of the Un Certain Regard Jury, which just goes to show that sometimes life can be even better than your dreams,” she said in a released statement. “I can’t wait to see the films in the selection. I can’t wait to debate and discuss, to be shaken up, to find inspiration in other artists’ work.”
