CANNES 2026 Film Festival Jury – Diane Carson reports

The 2026 Cannes International Film Festival Jury Press Conference proved a more exhilarating one than might be expected, primarily because of the full endorsement of the critical union of politics and poetry in films. Moderator Didier Allouch began the press conference with introductions to Jury President, South Korean filmmaker, Park Chan-wook and the eight jurors (see list below).

Asked by Allouch their reactions upon receiving the call inviting them to serve on this year’s jury, to a person each expressed their delight at the honor. U.K. writer Paul Laverty said he immediately wondered if it was a hoax, his three sons “up to some mischief.” Director/writer Chloé Zhao described the upcoming days as a master class with those whose work she admired. Ethiopian/Irish actress Ruth Negga said, “My heart skipped a beat. This feels like poetry . . . the honor and privilege of a lifetime with such extraordinary artists.” American actress Demi Moore reiterated feeling “tremendously honored.” With amusement, Swedish actor Stellan Skarsgård’s commented, “Finally. I’m so relieved I didn’t die first.” Concluding this round, Park Chan-wook humbly wondered if he was up to the task, knowing how stressful the jury president position is, remembering his time as a juror in 2017 with Pedro Almodóvar as jury president. Park realized, “It was my time to give back” also knowing “we’d have great conversations throughout the festival and, after review of the jurors, knew we’d have a good time.”

Following these enjoyable remarks, attention turned to the more serious aspects of evaluation and analysis, particularly regarding politics and art. Stellan Skargaard began saying, “I don’t think politics and art should be divided. It’s a strange concept that they would be divided. Just because a work makes a political statement doesn’t mean it isn’t art.” Following up on recognition that ‘polis’ in ‘politics’ literally means city in Ancient Greek and that power lies at the heart of everything, like the air we breathe, Ivorian actor Isaach de Bankolé questioned, “How can we not talk about it?”

Pursuing that idea, wondering if it is detrimental to talk about politics in film, American actress Demi Moore immediately responded, “I hope not. If we start censoring ourselves, we won’t discover ourselves.” Adding to the issue, Santiago born, Chilean filmmaker Diego Céspedes expanded the context, saying, “I’m a very political person, and I hope the cinema gets more diverse and not only rich people make films.” The most passionate juror on the topic throughout the press conference, receiving enthusiastic applause after each assertion, Irish-Scottish screenwriter Paul Laverty described optimal viewership as watching films with an open heart, trying to see them with more generosity. Further elaborating on the consensus that art and politics are not in conflict, Laverty spoke eloquently and passionately of the importance of objections to “the concentration of power and the consequences” to which Céspedes had referred. Most vehement and expansive on the subject, Laverty said, “we can’t leave it to the powerful right-wing libertarians to make the decisions.” He then added, “We must make it more democratic and transparent,” reinforcing his opening pronouncement that in these dark times, when we see so much violence in Gaza and too many places in the world, it’s refreshing to have a festival that has given us such joy, noting that “a festival that celebrates diversity is particularly inspirational.”

Not ignoring the necessary element of poetry in cinema, Belgian filmmaker Laura Wandel hopes “to discover films that take a stance, take risks.” In that important arena, responding to a related question, Demi Moore affirmed the need for more women behind the camera and in strong roles in front of it. When asked about her trust in A.I., whether we’re doing enough to protect ourselves, Moore humbly responded that she doesn’t know enough, “but probably not, but what A.I. can never replace is what comes from the soul.” Supplementing that, writer/director Chloé Zhao feels we also “have a deep yearning for mystery.” As a self-proclaimed student of Jung, she fears “storytelling lost some poetry along the way, but at some point we all come from the same place.” Bankolé best summarized these encouraging points with, “Films unite us more than our language or ideology.” Laverty got the last word regarding the current political environment, saying, “Shame on Hollywood for blacklisting artists like Mark Ruffalo, Susan Sarandon, and others for stating their views.” The jury awards for this year are without question ones to anticipate with greater eagerness than usual.
 
The 2026 Cannes Film Festival Jury is:
 
PARK CHAN-WOOK
Director, Writer, Producer (South Korea)
President
 
DEMI MOORE
Actress (United States)
 
RUTH NEGGA
Actress (Ethiopia, Ireland)
 
LAURA WANDEL
Director, Writer (Belgium)
 
DIEGO CÉSPEDES
Director, Writer (Chile)
 
ISAACH DE BANKOLÉ
Actor (Côte d’Ivoire, United States)
 
PAUL LAVERTY
Writer (United Kingdom)
 
CHLOÉ ZHAO
Director, Writer, Film Editor (China)
 
STELLAN SKARSGÅRD
Actor (Sweden)