The 82nd annual Venice International Film Festival was held from 27 August to 6 September 2025, at Venice Lido in Italy. American filmmaker Alexander Payne served as Jury President for the main competition, while Italian actress and comedian Emanuela Fanelli hosted the opening and closing ceremonies.
The Golden Lion was awarded to Father Mother Sister Brother by Jim Jarmusch. German filmmaker Werner Herzog and American actress Kim Novak were awarded the Golden Lion for Lifetime Achievement during the festival.
Before and during the festival numerous Pro-Palestine demonstrations were held, supported by the festival organization or by stars attending, specially during the world premiere of Gaza-set docudrama The Voice of Hind Rajab, where further demonstrations took place demanding an end for the ongoing violence in Gaza during its 23-minutes long standing ovation. Artistic director Alberto Barbera endorsed any demonstrations, but stated that the protests should not disrupt the festival's schedule.
The festival opened with La grazia by Paolo Sorrentino, and closed with Dog 51 by Cédric Jimenez.
Juries
Main Competition (Venezia 82)
Orizzonti
Luigi de Laurentiis Award for Debut Film
Venice Classics
- Tommaso Santambrogio, Italian filmmaker â Jury President
Venice Immersive
- Eliza McNitt, American filmmaker â Jury President
- Gwenael François, French director and producer
- Boris Labbé, French visual artist
Giornate degli Autori
Golden Globe Impact Prize for Documentary
Official Selection
In Competition (Venezia 82)
The following twenty-one films were selected to the main competition for the Golden Lion:
Out of Competition
The following films were selected to be screened out of competition:
The following films were selected to the Orizzonti main competition:
Orizzonti Short Films Competition
The following films were selected to compete for the Orizzonti Award for Best Short Film, assigned by the Jury of the Orizzonti section:
Venice Spotlight
Formerly called Orizzonti Extra, the section was officially renamed Venice Spotlight in this year edition. The collateral section programs independent films with commercial appeal from newcomers filmmakers or internationally established ones. The section winner is attributed by popular vote at the end of the festival, the following films were selected:
Venice Classics
Filmmaker Tommaso Santambrogio will serve as Jury President over 24 students recommended by professors of film studies from various Italian universities, the group will award the prizes for Best Restored Film and for the Best Documentary About Cinema. The following films were selected to the Venice Classics section:
Venice Immersive
The Venice Immersive is entirely devoted to immersive media and includes all XR means of creative expression, from 360ð videos to XR works of any length, including installations and virtual worlds. The following projects were selected for the XR - Extended Reality section of La Biennale di Venezia:
In Competition
Biennale College - Cinema
The following films were selected for the Biennale College - Cinema section:
Final Cut
The section is providing since 2013 support in the completion of films from African and Middle East countries. The following eight work-in-progress films have been selected for the 12th edition of Final Cut in Venice:
Independent Sections
40. Settimana Internazionale della Critica
The following films were selected to the International Criticsâ Week sections:
The following films were selected to the Giornate degli Autori section:
Official Awards
Main Competition (Venezia 82)
Venice Spotlight
Venice Classics
Venice Immersive
- Grand Prize: The Clouds are Two Thousand Meters Up by Singing Chen
- Special Jury Prize: Less Than 5GR or Saffron by Négar Motevalymeidanshah
- Achievement Prize: A Long Goodbye by Kate Voet and Victor Maes
Independent Awards
Venice International Critics' Week
- IWONDERFULL Grand Prize: Straight Circle by Oscar Hudson
- People's Choice Award: Ish by Imran Perretta
- Luciano Sovena Award for Best Independent Producer: Agon by Giulio Bertelli
- Mario Serandrei - Hotel Saturnia Award for Best Technical Contribution: Waking Hours by Federico Cammarata and Filippo Foscarini
- Best Short Film: Marina by Paoli de Luca
- Best Director: Nadir Taji for Family Feast
- Best Technical Contribution â Fondazione Fare Cinema: Marina by Paoli de Luca
- GdA Director's Award: Inside Amir by Amir Azizi
- Europa Cinemas Label Award: Bearcave by Stergios Dinopoulos and Krysianna B. Papadakis
- People's Award:
- Memory by Vladlena Sandu
- A Sad and Beautiful World by Cyril Aris
- SIAE Creative Talent Prize: 6:06 by Tekla Taidelli
Golden Globe Impact Prize for Documentary
ARCA CinemaGiovani Award
Authors Under 40 Award
Bisato d'Oro Award
- Best Immersive: Reflections of Little Red Dot by Chloé Lee
- Special Mention:
- Ancestors by Steye Hallema
- Constantinopoliad by Sister Sylvester and Nadah El Shazly
- Less Than 5gr of Saffron by Négar Motevalymeidanshah
BookCiak Award
Brian Award
Casa Wabi - Mantarraya Award
CICT - UNESCO Enrico Fulchignoni Award
Cinema & Arts Award
- The Tale of Silyan by Tamara Kotevska
- Who is Still Alive by Nicolas Wadimoff
- Special Mention Dedicated to a Multidisciplinary Artist: Morteza Ahmadvand and Firouzeh Khosrovani
Premio CinemaSarÃÂ
Croce Rossa Italiana Award
Edipo Re Award
Premio Fondazione Fai Persona Lavoro Ambiente
Fanheart3 Award
FEDIC Award
- Special Mention for Best Film: The Holy Boy by Paolo Strippoli
- Special Mention for Best Short Film: Arca by Lorenzo Quagliozzi
Francesco Pasinetti Award
Green Drop Award
ImpACT Award
Interfilm Award
Lanterna Magica Award
Leoncino d'Oro Award
Lizzani Award
- Confession â How I Found Out I Wouldn't Make the Revolution by Bonifacio Angius
NETPAC Award
NUOVOIMAIE Talent Awards
- Best New Young Actors: Giacomo Covi, Pietro Giustolisi and Samuel Volturno for A Year of School
La Pellicola d'Oro Award
- Best Production Manager: Elda Baldi for La grazia
- Best Prop Maker: Michael Ceracchini for Duse
- Best Chief Electrician: Diana Martia Hernandez Giralo for Elisa
Premio Speciale Film Impresa
RB Casting Award
SIGNIS Award
"Sorriso Diverso Venezia Award" XI Edition
Premio Soundtrack Stars Award
- Best Soundtrack: Fabrizio Elvetico, Marco Messina and Sacha Ricci for Duse
UNIMED Award
Campari Passion for Film Award
1964 Pop Art Award
References
External links