Cannes 2024 Award Winners
Cannes 2024 Award Winners | Cannes 2024 is in the books, and it looks like we have a lot of brilliant films to watch out for. In this post, I’ll focus on some of the award-winning films from the festival, providing a bit more insight into each one.
Full list at the end.
Grand Prix
First up is the Grand Prix award, essentially the second-best film of the festival as judged by the jury. The 2024 winner is All We Imagine As Light, an Indian film by Pel Capadia. This film didn’t have much buzz going into the festival but garnered significant attention after its premiere. Pel Capadia, primarily a painter and visual artist, has translated her artistic vision beautifully to the screen. The film follows three women from different backgrounds in India who form a sisterhood. It has received incredibly strong reviews, including a five-star review from The Guardian’s Peter Bradshaw, who called it an absolute triumph. All We Imagine As Light will be distributed by Sideshow and is expected to hit theaters soon.
Jury Prize
The Jury Prize, often my favorite award, is given to original works that embody the spirit of inquiry. These films are generally the more unconventional and innovative ones. The 2024 winner is Amelia Perez, a film that follows a woman helping a cartel leader undergo sex reassignment surgery to evade law enforcement. This film is a mix of genres—musical, comedy, and crime thriller—and was originally written as an opera. Netflix has acquired distribution rights for North America and the UK, with a limited theatrical release expected soon.
Acting Awards
The Best Actress award went to the ensemble cast of Amelia Perez, comprising Zoe Saldaña, Carla Sofia Gascon, and Selena Gomez. For Best Actor, Jesse Plemons won for his role in Kinds of Kindness, a new film by Yorgos Lanthimos. Known for his unique and often bizarre storytelling, Lanthimos delivers another intriguing project with Kinds of Kindness, featuring three different stories filled with violence, sex, and oddities. Jesse Plemons‘ performance stood out among a star-studded cast, which also includes Emma Stone.
Best Director
The Best Director award went to Miguel Gomes for Grand Tour. This Portuguese filmmaker is known in arthouse circles, and Grand Tour is one of his larger projects, garnering wider attention. The film is a period drama set in 1917-1918 Burma, following a British civil servant named Edward who embarks on a grand tour of Asia on his wedding day. Shot in black and white, the film uses actual locations in Asia, offering a visually captivating exploration of self-discovery and love. The release is expected in late 2024 or early 2025.
Best Screenplay
Best Screenplay went to Coralie Fargeat for The Substance. This feminist take on body horror follows a fading celebrity who uses a black market drug to retain her youth, with predictably disastrous consequences. Starring Demi Moore, Margaret Qualley, and Dennis Quaid, the film has received high praise, including being called an instant classic by David Ehrlich of IndieWire. The Substance will be available on Mubi starting September 20th, with a limited theatrical release expected.
Palme d’Or
The most significant award, the Palme d’Or, was awarded to Anora by director Sean Baker. Distributed by Neon, this marks the fifth consecutive year a Neon film has won the Palme d’Or. Anora is a comedy-drama starring Mikey Madison as an exotic dancer in a romance with the son of a Russian oligarch. Known for exploring real human themes with humor and depth, Sean Baker‘s latest project is highly anticipated, with a theatrical release expected in mid to late 2024.
These are the major highlights from Cannes 2024. There are, of course, other award winners worth checking out, but these are the ones that stood out the most. Stay tuned for their releases and enjoy some of the best films of the year!
Full List
Palme d’Or: “Anora”
Grand Prix: “All We Imagine as Light”
Jury Prize: “Emilia Pérez”
Special Prize (Prix Spécial): “The Seed of the Sacred Fig,” Mohammed Rasoulof
Best Actress: The Ensemble of “Emilia Pérez”
Best Actor: Jesse Plemons, “Kinds of Kindness”
Best Director: Miguel Gomes, “Grand Tour”
Best Screenplay: “The Substance,” Coralie Fargeat
Camera d’Or: “Armand,” Halfdan Ullman Tondel
Camera d’Or Special Mention: “Mongrel,” Chiang Wei Liang, You Qiao Yin
Short Film Palme d’Or: “The Man Who Could Not Remain Silent,” Nebojša Slijepčević
Short Film Special Mention: “Bad for a Moment,” Daniel Soares
Golden Eye Documentary Prize: “Ernest Cole: Lost and Found” and “The Brink of Dreams”
Queer Palm: “Three Kilometers to the End of the World”
Palme Dog: Kodi, “Palm Dog”
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