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The Un Certain Regard Jury of the 74th Festival de Cannes
The Opening Ceremony of Un Certain Regard will take place on Wednesday, July 7th and the list of prize-winners will be revealed on Friday, July 16th. The 2021 Un Certain Regard Selection presents 20 feature films.
Meet the jury:
Andrea Arnold – Director, screenwriter (United Kingdom)
Internationally acclaimed filmmaker Andrea Arnold was born in England. Her early short films included Milk (1998), Dog (2001), and Wasp for which she won an Academy Award in 2005. Her first feature film Red Road (2006) and second film Fish Tank (2009) competed at the Festival de Cannes and both won the Jury Prize, before being awarded at the BAFTA’s. In 2011 she completed shooting the adaptation of Emily Brontë’s Wuthering Heights which premiered at the Venice Mostra. That same year, she was appointed Officer of the Order of the British Empire for services to the film industry. Andrea Arnold returned to Cannes in 2016 to present her film American Honey in Competition where she won her third Jury Prize. Arnold has also directed several episodes of the series Transparentand I Love Dick, as well the second season of the series Big Little Lies. She’s currently working on her new project, Bird.
Mounia Meddour – Director, screenwriter, producer (Algeria)
Born in Moscow, Mounia Meddour grew up in Algeria and later in France, where she studied journalism and then trained in cinema. After making several documentaries, Elementary Particles (2007), La Cuisine en héritage (2009) and Algerian Cinema: A New Breath (2011), she directed her first short fiction film Edwige (2011), which received a special mention at the Journées Cinématographiques in Algiers. In 2019, she created a sensation with her first feature film Papicha, which was presented in the Official Selection at the Festival de Cannes 2019 as part of Un Certain Regard. Acclaimed by the critic, the film received the César for Best First Feature, in 2020, while Lyna Khoudri was awarded Best Female Newcomer. Papicha also represented Algeria on the list of submissions for the Oscars. Mounia Meddour is currently working on her next feature film Houria.
Elsa Zylberstein – Actress (France)
After her breakthrough performance in Van Gogh by Maurice Pialat, Elsa Zylberstein received the Michel-Simon Award in 1992 and a César nomination for Best Female Newcomer. After winning the Romy-Schneider Award (1993) for Mina Tannenbaum by Martine Dugowson, she starred in Farinelli by Gérard Corbiau (1994), Man Is a Woman by Jean-Jacques Zilbermann, Lautrec by Roger Planchon (1998), Modigliani by Mick Davis (2004), four films with Raoul Ruiz, including That Day, selected in Competition (2003). In 2009, she received the César for Best Actress in a Supporting Role for I’ve Loved You so Long by Philippe Claudel which received Golden Globes nominations and a BAFTA award for best foreign film. She goes on with Un + Une (2015) and Everyone’s Life (2017) by Claude Lelouch. She has just finished filming Big Bug by Jean-Pierre Jeunet and playing the role of Simone Veil in Simone Veil, A Woman of the Century by Olivier Dahan (to be released in 2022).
Daniel Burman – Director, producer, screenwriter (Argentina)
Director, producer and screenwriter, Daniel Burman is considered one of the most important Argentinian filmmakers of his generation. He has directed 11 films and produced over 25. In 2004, he won critical and international acclaim with El Abrazo Partido (Silver Bear, Berlinale). His award-winning films also include Todas las Azafatas Van al Cielo (Sundance NHK Award) and La Suerte en tus Manos (Best Screenplay, Tribeca Film Festival). In 2008, at the Venice Film Festival, he received the Robert-Bresson Award from the Vatican State, in recognition of his humanitarian vision. He stands as CEO of the Oficina Burman, a Mediapro Studio Company as well as, Head of Content for The Mediapro Studio US, since 2018. He co-created and produced Victoria Small (International Emmy Award Nominee) and he’s currently working on the new Amazon series Iosi, the Repentant Spy.
Michael Covino – Director, producer, actor (United States)
Filmmaker and actor, Michael Covino sees his first feature film The Climb, premiering at Un Certain Regard in 2019, where he won the Coup de Coeur of the Jury Award. The film is adapted from the eponymous short, presented at the Sundance Film Festival in 2018. We recently saw him as an actor alongside Tom Hanks in News of the World. Prior to that, he produced Hunter Gatherer, awarded of a Special Jury Prize at the South by Southwest Film Festival and was nominated for the John Cassavetes Award in 2017. His career as a producer was also marked by movies like Kicks, which premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival and released by Focus World in 2016, Keep in Touch, which he co-wrote, and Babysitter which premiered at SXSW in 2015. In 2016, he was added to the Moviemaker Magazine’s 25 Screenwriters to Watch list.
World News
Major step in malaria prevention as three West African countries roll out vaccine
In a significant step forward for malaria prevention in Africa, three countries—Benin, Liberia and Sierra Leone—today launched a large-scale rollout of the life-saving malaria vaccine targeting millions of children across the three West African nations. The vaccine rollout, announced on World Malaria Day, seeks to further scale up vaccine deployment in the African region.
Today’s launch brings to eight the number of countries on the continent to offer the malaria vaccine as part of the childhood immunization programmes, extending access to more comprehensive malaria prevention. Several of the more than 30 countries in the African region that have expressed interest in the vaccine are scheduled to roll it out in the next year through support from Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, as efforts continue to widen its deployment in the region in coordination with other prevention measures such as long-lasting insecticidal nets and seasonal malaria chemoprevention.
Benin, which received 215 900 doses, has added the malaria vaccine to its Expanded Programme on Immunization. The malaria vaccine should be provided in a schedule of 4 doses in children from around 5 months of age.
“The introduction of the malaria vaccine in the Expanded Programme on Immunization for our children is a major step forward in the fight against this scourge. I would like to reassure that the malaria vaccines are safe and effective and contribute to the protection of our children against this serious and fatal diseases,” said Prof Benjamin Hounkpatin, Minister of Health of Benin.
In Liberia, the vaccine was launched in the southern Rivercess County and will be rolled out afterwards in five other counties which have high malaria burden. At least 45 000 children are expected to benefit from the 112 000 doses of the available vaccine.
“For far too long, malaria has stolen the laughter and dreams of our children. But today, with this vaccine and the unwavering commitment of our communities, healthcare workers and our partners, including Gavi, UNICEF and WHO, we break the chain. We have a powerful tool that will protect them from this devastating illness and related deaths, ensuring their right to health and a brighter future. Let’s end malaria in Liberia and pave the way for a healthier, more just society,” said Dr Louise Kpoto, Liberia’s Minister of Health.
Two safe and effective vaccines — RTS,S and R21 — recommended by World Health Organization (WHO), are a breakthrough for child health and malaria control. A pilot malaria vaccine programme in Ghana, Kenya and Malawi reached over 2 million children from 2019 to 2023, showing a significant reduction in malaria illness and a 13% drop in overall child mortality and substantial reductions in hospitalizations.
In Sierra Leone, the first doses were administered to children at a health centre in Western Area Rural where the authorities kicked off the rollout of 550 000 vaccine doses. The vaccine will then be delivered in health facilities nationwide.
“With the new, safe and efficacious malaria vaccine, we now have an additional tool to fight this disease. In combination with insecticide-treated nets, effective diagnosis and treatment, and indoor spraying, no child should die from malaria infection,” said Dr Austin Demby, Minister of Health of Sierra Leone.
Malaria remains a huge health challenge in the African region, which is home to 11 countries that carry approximately 70% of the global burden of malaria. The region accounted for 94% of global malaria cases and 95% of all malaria deaths in 2022, according to the World Malaria Report.
“The African region is taking positive steps in scaling up the rollout of the malaria vaccine – a game-changer in our fight against this deadly disease,” said Dr Matshidiso Moeti, WHO Regional Director for Africa. “Working with our partners, we’re committed to supporting the ongoing efforts to protect, save the lives of young children and lower the malaria burden in the region.”
Aurelia Nguyen, Chief Programme Officer at Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, noted: “Today we celebrate more children gaining access to a new lifesaving tool to fight one of Africa’s deadliest diseases. This introduction of malaria vaccines into routine programmes in Benin, Liberia, and Sierra Leone alongside other proven interventions will help save lives and offer relief to families, communities and hard-pressed health systems.”
Progress against malaria has stalled in these high-burden African countries since 2017 due to factors including climate change, humanitarian crises, low access to and insufficient quality of health services, gender-related barriers, biological threats such as insecticide and drug resistance and global economic crises. Fragile health systems and critical gaps in data and surveillance have compounded the challenge.
To put malaria progress back on track, WHO recommends robust commitment to malaria responses at all levels, particularly in high-burden countries; greater domestic and international funding; science and data-driven malaria responses; urgent action on the health impacts of climate change; harnessing research and innovation; as well as strong partnerships for coordinated responses. WHO is also calling attention to addressing delays in malaria programme implementation.
World News
Kid Cudi cancels tour after breaking foot at Coachella
Kid Cudi has been forced to cancel his tour after breaking his foot at Coachella over the weekend. During the fest’s Weekend Two on Sunday night, the rapper went to the hospital with a broken foot after jumping off the stage at the Sahara Tent. (more…)
World News
The Un Certain Regard Jury of the 77th Festival de Cannes
The Canadian actor, director, screenwriter and producer Xavier Dolan will be the President of the Un Certain Regard Jury of the 77th Festival de Cannes. He will be joined by French-Senegalese screenwriter and director Maïmouna Doucouré, Moroccan director, screenwriter and producer Asmae El Moudir, German-Luxembourg actress Vicky Krieps, and American film critic, director, and writer Todd McCarthy. They will be in charge of awarding prizes for the Un Certain Regard section, which showcases art and discovery films by young auteurs.
This year, 18 films have been selected, including 8 first films. The 2023 Un Certain Regard top prize went to director Molly Manning Walker’s debut feature How to Have Sex.
When the light breaks by Rúnar Rúnarsson will open the Un Certain Regard section on Wednesday May 15, 2024.
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Kanye West reportedly planning to launch porn studio
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Additions to the selection of the 77th Festival de Cannes
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