The 70th annual Venice International Film Festival took place in Venice, Italy from 28 August to 7 September 2013. American film director William Friedkin was presented with a lifetime achievement award. Italian film director Bernardo Bertolucci was the President of the Jury. He was previously the President of the Jury at the 40th edition in 1983. Gravity, directed by Alfonso Cuarón, was the opening film of the festival. Italian actress Eva Riccobono hosted the opening and closing nights of the festival.
The Golden Lion was awarded to the Italian documentary film Sacro GRA. It was the first documentary film to win the award at the Venice Festival.
Juries
The following people were selected for the main competition jury:
Main competition (Venezia 70) Bernardo Bertolucci, Italian filmmaker - Jury President Andrea Arnold, English filmmaker Renato Berta, Swiss-France director of photography Carrie Fisher, American actress, screenwriter and novelist Martina Gedeck, German actress Pablo Larraín, Chilean filmmaker Virginie Ledoyen, French actress Ryuichi Sakamoto, Japanese composer Jiang Wen, Chinese actor and director
Horizons (Orizzonti) Paul Schrader, American screenwriter, film director and critic - Jury President Catherine Corsini, French filmmaker, screenwriter and actress Leonardo Di Costanzo, Italian director, screenwriter and cinematographer Golshifteh Farahani, Iranian actress, musician and singer Frédéric Fonteyne, Belgian film director Kseniya Rappoport, Russian actress Amr Waked, Egyptian actor
Opera Prima (Venice Award for a Debut Film) Haifaa Al Mansour, Saudi Arabian filmmaker - Jury President Amat Escalante, Mexican filmmaker, producer Alexej German Jr., Russian filmmaker Geoffrey Gilmore, director of Tribeca Film Festival Ariane Labed, Greek-French actress Maria Sole Tognazzi, Italian film director
Official Sections
In Competition
The following films were selected for the main competition:
Out of Competition
The following films were selected for the out of competition section:
Horizons (Orizzonti) The following films were selected for the Horizons (Orizzonti) section:
Highlighted titles indicate the Orizzonti Awards for Best Feature Film and Best Short Film respectively.
Venice Classics
The following selection of restored classic films and documentaries on cinema were screened for this section:
Highlighted titles indicate the Venice Classics Awards for Best Restored Film and Best Documentary on Cinema respectively.
Biennale College - Cinema
The following films were screened for the "Biennale College - Cinema" section, a higher education training workshop for micro-budget feature films:
Final Cut in Venice
The following films were screened for the "Final Cut in Venice" section, a workshop to support the post-production of films from Africa:
Special Screenings
The following films were the Special Screenings of the Official Selection: Dietro le quinte di otto e 1/2 by Gideon Bachmann (Italy) Dai Nostri Inviati – La RAI racconta la mostra del cinema di Venezia 1980-1989 by Enrico Salvatori, Giuseppe Giannotti, Davide Savelli (Italy)
Venice 70 - Future Reloaded
Under the project title Venice 70 - Future Reloaded, 70 top film directors were each invited to make a 60-90 second short film, as "both a collective tribute to the Festival (the first festival in the world to reach the milestone of 70 editions) and a reflection on the future of cinema".
Independent Sections
Venice International Film Critics' Week
The following films were selected for the Critics' Week:
Venice Days
The following films were selected for the 10th edition of the Venice Days (Giornate degli Autori) section: Starting from this edition, Venice Days has created its own international award "for a film from the entire Official Selection".
Highlighted title indicates the official Venice Days Award winner.
Official Awards
The following Official Awards were conferred at the 70th edition:
In Competition (Venezia 70) Golden Lion: Sacro GRA by Gianfranco Rosi Silver Lion for Best Director: Alexandros Avranas for Miss Violence Grand Jury Prize: Stray Dogs by Tsai Ming-liang Volpi Cup for Best Actor: Themis Panou for Miss Violence Volpi Cup for Best Actress: Elena Cotta for Via Castellana Bandiera Marcello Mastroianni Award: Tye Sheridan for Joe Golden Osella for Best Screenplay: Steve Coogan and Jeff Pope for Philomena Special Jury Prize: The Police Officer's Wife by Philip Gröning