Jury Prize (Cannes Film Festival)


The Jury Prize is an award presented at the Cannes Film Festival, chosen by the Jury from the "official section" of movies at the festival. According to film critic Dave Kehr, the award is "intended to recognize an original work that embodies the spirit of inquiry."

History

In 1946, a prize named International Jury Prize was awarded for that year only. Starting from 1951, the Special Jury Prize was awarded among other secondary prizes. In 1954, after a lot of criticism about the whimsical nature of these awards, the Festival authorities decided to turn to a more traditional prize-giving arrangement. In 1967, with the creation of the Grand Prix Spécial du Jury, the second in importance prize after the Palme d'Or, the Special Jury Prize gave its place to the Jury Prize and has been awarded under this name since. Six times in the 1970s, three in the 1980s and in 2001, no Jury Prize was awarded. The Special Jury Prize reappeared only twice, once in 1995, given along with the Jury Prize, and once in 1996, as the only prize of the Jury.
New Zealand filmmaker Jane Campion was the president of the Jury for the 2014 festival and oversaw a rare decision, in which the Jury Prize was awarded to two films: Mommy, by 25-year-old Xavier Dolan, and Goodbye to Language, by 83-year-old Jean-Luc Godard.
UK directors Andrea Arnold and Ken Loach are tied for the record for most Jury Prizes. As of 2016 Arnold was awarded the prize for her films Red Road, Fish Tank, and American Honey, while Loach was awarded the prize for his films Hidden Agenda, Raining Stones, and The Angels' Share. Michelangelo Antonioni, René Clément, Masaki Kobayashi, and Samira Makhmalbaf have each won the award twice.
Film academic Andrew M. Butler regards jury prizes such as Cannes' as a way of helping a film gain a distribution deal.

Award winners

The following films were awarded the Jury Prize at the Cannes Film Festival through the years.