French actress Isabelle Huppert, best known for her role as a sado-masochist in "The Piano Teacher", will lead the jury at this year's Venice Film Festival, organisers announced Wednesday.The 81st edition of the prestigious festival will take place from August 28 through September 7 on the beach-lined Lido island.
"There is a long and beautiful history between the Festival and I," said Huppert, who has won Venice's Coppa Volpi for best actress twice, for Claude Chabrol's "Story of Women" and "La Ceremonie", in 1988 and 1995 respectively.
"Becoming a privileged spectator is an honour. More than ever, cinema is a promise. The promise to escape, to disrupt, to surprise, to take a good look at the world, united in the differences of our tastes and ideas," the 71-year-old said.Last year, the festival's top Golden Lion prize went to Greek director Yorgos Lanthimos's "Poor Things", a feminist reworking of Frankenstein. The 2023 jury was led by US director Damien Chazelle, best known for the Oscar-winning "La La Land".
Isabelle Anne Madeleine Huppert born on 16 March 1953 is a French actress. Known for her portrayals of cold, austere women devoid of morality. She is considered one of the greatest actresses of her generation. With 16 nominations and two wins, Huppert is the most nominated actress at the César Awards. She is also the recipient of several accolades, including five Lumières Awards, a BAFTA Award, three European Film Awards, two Berlin International Film Festival, Three Cannes Film Festival and Venice Film Festival honors, a Golden Globe Award, and an Academy Award nomination. In 2020, The New York Times ranked her second on its list of the greatest actresses of the 21st century.
