Last year, Nadine Labaki received more critical acclaim than ever before, thanks to her incredible film “Capernaum.” The Oscar-nominated film probably could have won Best Foreign-Language Film, if not for the behemoth “Roma” and the similarly amazing “Cold War.” Of course, being one of the Academy’s five best foreign language films is pretty incredible in its own right. And as the proverbial cherry on top, it appears that Labaki has earned her place as the jury president for this year’s Un Certain Regard section of the Cannes Film Festival.
According to Deadline, Labaki has been named the head of the jury that will select the winner from this year’s competition. The Un Certain Regard section is best known as the program that competes alongside the coveted Palme d’Or section, but tends to focus on the films that are more non-traditional in their style and visuals. The 2018 winner of the section was the troll love story/drama “Border,” which would go on to receive a strong release worldwide after earning rave reviews at the French film festival.
“I remember back when I used to come to Cannes as a film student, I was so excited to experience the world’s most prestigious festival,” said Labaki. “Back then, it seemed so out of reach to me. I remember getting up early in the morning and the endless queues to get a ticket. It seems like yesterday, but it was fifteen years ago that I filled in the Festival de Cannes’ Cinéfondation registration form, my heart full of hope and my hand shaking.”
She continued, “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. 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.”
Labaki has a strong history at Cannes. Each one of her three feature-length directorial efforts was featured at the prestigious event, starting in 2007 with her debut feature “Caramel.” The director returned to Cannes in 2011, playing in the aforementioned Un Certain Regard section, with her film “Where Do We Go Now?” And obviously, last year saw the debut of her latest work, “Capernaum.”
The 2019 Cannes Film Festival lineup will be announced in the coming weeks, and the festival begins on May 15.
