VENICE, Italy (AP) — Some of Hollywood’s biggest stars are heading to Venice, Italy, for the 82nd edition of the Venice Film Festival, which kicks off on Wednesday.
Here’s a rundown of everything you need to know about the festival, the Oscar buzz and who’s going.
What is the Venice International Film Festival?
FILE – George Clooney arrives in Venice, Italy on a taxi boat for the 65th Venice Film Festival, Tuesday Aug. 26, 2008. (AP Photo/Joel Ryan, File)
It’s one of the most prestigious film festivals in the world, second only to Cannes, and technically the oldest. Venice is also a reliably starry affair, gathering some of the best films in international cinema and often factoring into the Oscars race.
The film festival was established in 1932, then a non-competitive event, by the La Biennale di Venezia, hosting films like “Grand Hotel” and “It Happened One Night.” By 1935, they decided to make it an annual event. Suspicions that the festival was succumbing to fascist influences actually led to the establishment of the Cannes Film Festival, as an alternative, after the 1938 edition.
The Golden Lion award as we know it today wouldn’t be introduced until 1949 (“Rashômon” won in 1951). Other winners throughout history include “Belle de jour” (1967), “Au revoir les enfants” (1987), “Brokeback Mountain” (2005), “Somewhere” (2010), “Poor Things” (2023) and, last year, “The Room Next Door.”
When is the Venice Film Festival?
The festival kicks off on Wednesday and runs through Sept. 6, when the awards will be announced. The opening night film is Paolo Sorrentino’s “La Grazia.”
Who’s going this year?
Julia Roberts, George Clooney, Emma Stone, Dwayne Johnson, Adam Sandler and Idris Elba are among the stars expected to grace the red carpets this year. It’ll be the first time at the festival for both Roberts, starring in the #MeToo-themed drama “After the Hunt,” and Johnson, who transformed for his role as MMA fighter Mark Kerr in “The Smashing Machine.”
Other stars in the lineup include Oscar Isaac, Jacob Elordi, Jesse Plemons, Cate Blanchett, Adam Driver, Andrew Garfield, Ayo Edebiri, Bill Skarsgård, Colman Domingo, Amanda Seyfried, Callum Turner and Jude Law. Lifetime achievement award recipients this year include “Vertigo” star Kim Novak and filmmaker Werner Herzog.
What are the biggest and buzziest films?
After taking a year off, Netflix, still on the hunt for a best picture win, is back in full force with three major films in the main competition: Guillermo Del Toro’s “Frankenstein,” Kathryn Bigelow’s political thriller “A House of Dynamite,” and Noah Baumbach’s comedic drama “Jay Kelly.” Also in competition are: Kaouther ben Hania’s “The Voice of Hind Rajab”; Yorgos Lanthimos’ “Bugonia,” with Emma Stone; Benny Safdie’s “The Smashing Machine”; Jim Jarmusch’s anthology film “Father Mother Sister Brother”; Mona Fastvold’s musical about the Shakers, “The Testament of Ann Lee”; Park Chan-wook’s “No Other Choice”; and Olivier Assayas’s “The Wizard of the Kremlin.”
The buzz is strong for several out-of-competition films too, like Luca Guadagnino’s “After the Hunt,” Gus Van Sant’s “Dead Man’s Wire,” Julian Schnabel’s “In the Hand of Dante” and Sofia Coppola’s Marc Jacobs documentary “Marc by Sofia.”
How does Venice play into the Oscar race?
Festival director Alberto Barbera thinks Venice’s place in the Oscar race was solidified in 2012, when they hosted the premiere of “Gravity,” which went on to win a leading seven Oscars that March and established Venice as a place to launch a campaign. It’s only intensified as the membership of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has gotten more international. Since 2014, they’ve hosted four best picture winners (“Birdman,” “Spotlight,” “The Shape of Water” and “Nomadland”).
Last year, the festival had several eventual Oscar-winning films in the lineup, including Brady Corbet’s “The Brutalist,” which won three including best actor for Adrien Brody, Walter Salles’ best international feature winner “I’m Still Here,” and the animated short “In the Shadow of the Cypress.”
What is the Lido?
When people think of Venice, they usually think of landmarks like the Rialto bridge and St. Mark’s Square. The festival actually takes place on a different island, a nearly 7-mile (11-kilometer) barrier island called the Lido, which is about a 20-minute ferry (vaporetto) ride away.
A military outpost in the 12th century, it transformed into a seaside resort, a favorite of European aristocrats, by the end of the 19th.
Where do celebrities stay?
On the Lido, the only five-star hotel is the Hotel Excelsior, which dates back to 1908 and is where Quentin Tarantino has stayed. But rooms go quickly, and there are so many luxury hotels on the different islands that offer a bit more privacy, away from the frenzy of the festival and photographers.
Perhaps the most famous of the bunch is the Belmond Hotel Cipriani, on Giudecca, home of one of Clooney’s favorite bars. There’s the Hotel Danieli, which has been featured in films like “Moonraker” and “Casino Royale,” and regularly hosts kickoff parties for the festival. Another favorite is the Gritti Palace, where everyone from Brad Pitt to Elizabeth Taylor has stayed. There’s also a St. Regis and the Aman Venice, where George and Amal Clooney were married.
How do people get around the festival?
The scattered hotels are also the reason you see so many celebrities photographed on the Excelsior docks: They arrive to the festival, including press conferences and premieres, by private water taxi. Sometimes, they’re transported a very short distance from the Excelsior to the red carpet in cars. Unlike the main island of Venice, vehicles are allowed on the Lido, including buses and private cars. But many festivalgoers prefer to rent a bike to get around.
Who decides on the Venice awards?
“Nebraska” filmmaker Alexander Payne is presiding over the main competition jury, which includes Brazilian actor Fernanda Torres, Iranian director Mohammad Rasoulof, French director Stéphane Brizé, Italian director Maura Delpero, Chinese actor Zhao Tao and Romanian director Cristian Mungiu. The award winners will be announced on Sept. 6.
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