Jessica Hauser: Best-known as ‘Lourdes’ (2009) and ‘Little Joe’ (2019), actress Jessica Hauser will oversee the Locarno Film Festival which will held at Aug 7-17 as Concorso Internazionale. Hausner expressed her excitement about leading the jury at Locarno, emphasizing the importance of hearing different perspectives and valuing artistic and original filmmaking. She sees Locarno as a festival that supports innovative cinema. Giona A. Nazzaro, the artistic director of the festival, praised Hausner as a filmmaker who deeply explores contemporary society. He highlighted her ability to create both spiritual and fantastical worlds, making her an excellent choice to lead the jury and ensure thoughtful discussions about the films in competition.
Jessica Hauser
What Is The Career Of Jessica Hauser ?
Jessica Hausner started her career with short films after studying at the Film Academy of Vienna. Her first big international success was at Locarno, where she won the main prize in the Pardi di Domani section for her short film “Flora” in 1997. Hausner later made a name for herself at the Cannes Film Festival with her graduation film “Inter-View” in 1999. She co-founded the production company coop99, which has produced many films, including Maren Ade’s “Toni Erdmann” and Jasmila Žbanić’s “Quo Vadis, Aida?”.Her first feature films, “Lovely Rita” (2001) and “Hotel” (2004), premiered at Cannes in the Un Certain Regard section. Her film “Lourdes” (2009) competed at the Venice Film Festival and won the FIPRESCI prize. She continued to make notable films such as “Amour Fou” (2014), her English-language debut “Little Joe” (2019), and “Club Zero” (2023)
What Is Locarno Film Festival?
Overview
The Locarno Film Festival is a major international film festival held annually in Locarno, Switzerland. Founded in 1946, the festival features a variety of competitive and non-competitive sections, including feature-length narrative, documentary, short, avant-garde, and retrospective programs. One of the most notable sections is the Piazza Grande, an open-air venue that accommodates 8,000 spectators.
The festival’s top prize is the Golden Leopard, awarded to the best film in the International Competition. Other significant awards include:
Leopard of Honour: Awarded for career achievement
Prix du Public: The public choice award
History
The Locarno Film Festival began on August 23, 1946, at the Grand Hotel of Locarno with the screening of “O sole mio” by Giacomo Gentilomo. The inaugural edition was organized in less than three months and featured fifteen films, including notable titles such as:
“Rome, Open City” by Roberto Rossellini
“And Then There Were None” by René Clair (1945)
“Double Indemnity” by Billy Wilder (1944)
“The Song of Bernadette” by Henry King (1943)
Over the years, the festival has showcased the works of many prominent international directors, including:
Claude Chabrol
Stanley Kubrick
Paul Verhoeven
Miloš Forman
Marco Bellocchio
Glauber Rocha
Raúl Ruiz
Alain Tanner
Mike Leigh
Béla Tarr
Chen Kaige
Edward Yang
Alexandr Sokurov
Atom Egoyan
Jim Jarmusch
Ang Lee
Gregg Araki
Christoph Schaub
Catherine Breillat
Abbas Kiarostami
Gus Van Sant
Pedro Costa
Fatih Akin
Claire Denis
Kim Ki-Duk
Notable Editions
73rd Edition (2020): Scheduled from August 5 to 15, was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Instead, a special edition called “Locarno 2020 – For the Future of Films” was held, featuring a retrospective curated by directors like Lucrecia Martel and Lav Diaz, screened both online and in physical locations.
74th Edition (2021): Took place from August 4 to 14, with over 75,000 attendees.
75th Edition (2022): Held from August 3 to 13, opened with Brad Pitt’s film “Bullet Train”.
76th Edition (2023): Took place from August 2 to 12. Introduced gender-neutral acting categories, combining Best Actor and Best Actress into a single Best Performance category.
77th Edition (2024): Scheduled for August 7 to 17. This edition will feature a new award launched in collaboration with the social media site Letterboxd.
Special Features
The Locarno Film Festival’s open-air screening venue on the Piazza Grande is so iconic that it has been featured on the Swiss twenty-franc banknote since 2017.
The Locarno Film Festival is a major international film festival held annually in Locarno, Switzerland. It was founded in 1946 and features a variety of competitive and non-competitive film sections, including feature-length narratives, documentaries, short films, avant-garde works, and retrospective programs.
Where is the Locarno Film Festival held?
The festival is held in Locarno, Switzerland.
What is the top prize awarded at the Locarno Film Festival?
The top prize is the Golden Leopard, awarded to the best film in the International Competition.
