“«A woman should be two things: who she is and what she wants», So the famous phrase of Coco Chanel To tell emancipation, independence and female self -determination. And if Chanel challenged the social rules for women through fashion; The directors today challenge gender stereotypes behind the scenes of cinema And they still do it with a lot of effort. At82nd Venice International Film Festival there is no No Italian director in the race and they are present Only six international female voices in competition between over one hundred films. Who are these women?
The presence of women in Venice 2025
The situation in Venice 2025 is very unbalanced. No woman behind the camera He contributes among the five films selected for the official competition, nor between the three TV series: Eight works, eight men. According to the Association Women in movies, Television & Mediathe directors in competition are 6 and represent 28.6% of the category. Widening to all The sections of the exhibition (excluding immersive venice), women represent 26.71% of the signatures (39 out of 146). In Days of the authors The female presence is stronger, with 41.38% (12 out of 29), while in the Criticism Week The directors are 26.32% (5 out of 19). In total, among all the sections considered, the works signed by women are the 28.87% (56 out of 194).
Men’s movies telling women
Despite some positive signal in the collateral sections, The overall photograph remains clear: the women behind the camera still struggle to conquer spaces and awards. But in front of the car? “Why are women all the more interesting for men than men for women?” he wondered Virginia Woolf. A current question at the Lido of this year: No Italian director in competition, but many female stories told by men. This is the case of Elisa – I wanted it kill And Dusetwo powerful portraits of extraordinary women. And then there is After the Hunt by Luca Guadagnino, out of competition, which marks the debut of Julia Roberts in Venice. Even Andrea’s island Of Antonio Capuano – presented as “a film about the tense relationship between men and women” – explores female dynamics, telling the legal battle of two parents for the custody of the child.
The Italian directors present in Venice: horizons as a space of visibility
Despite the absence in the official competition, The Italian directors find space in the Orizzonti sectiondedicated to emerging languages and new perspectives of world cinema. Carolina Cavalli present Arabella’s kidnappingWhile Laura Samani brings A year of school. Both films offer a fresh and original look, but their location in a “lateral” section makes the nose turn up. If on the one hand Orizzonti gives visibility to emerging talents, on the other he confirms how difficult it is for the Italian directors to win the spotlight of the official competitionunderlining the need for greater opening and recognition of female voices in Italian cinema.
Flowers in the desert, the directors in competition in Venice
In a panorama dominated by the men’s directors, the directors present this year at Lido are real precious gemsoriginal and courageous voices that bring intense, intimate and politically significant stories to the screen. Despite their rarity, their talent illuminates the festival with new and necessary prospects.
Shu Qi – Nühai (Girl)
From the actress to the director, Shu qi begins in Venice with an intense story set in Chinawhere two girls with similar names live opposite destinies. One awakening in the other dreams, symbol of ambitions and detained desires, while the mother recalls the dangers of wanting too much in a country that does not fully recognize the value of women. A film that intertwines delicacy and social denunciation, offering a sensitive look at the female condition.
Kaouther Ben Hania – The Voice of Hind Rajab
The Tunisian director, known for Four Daughtersbears the dramatic story of the little one on the screen Hind Rajabtrapped in a car during the attack on Gaza. Through the use of real telephone recordings of the girl, Ben Hania builds an intense and moving story, capable of resist oblivion and to transform personal pain into collective memory.
Kathryn Bigelow – A House of Dynamite
First woman to win the Oscar directed by with The Hurt Locker, Kathryn Bigelow Come back the camera with a geopolitical thriller tense and current. The story opens with a missile that affects the United States, unleashing the chaos in the oval room and forcing the protagonists to confront the nightmare of nuclear annihilation. With Idris Elba And Rebecca Ferguson In the main roles, the film explores human power, fear and fragility, confirming the director’s talent in telling political catastrophes and global conflicts with cinematographic intensity.
Ildikó Enyedi – Silent friend
A work in three acts which crosses time – 1908, 1972 and 2020 – and cinematographic techniques, from 35 mm to digital, creating a unique visual pace. At the center of the story a gigantic ginkgo bilobaalmost a character in himself, around which stories, silences and secrets intertwine.
Valérie Donzelli – À Pied d’œuvre
A intimate drama Which explores the search for meaning and authenticity: a successful photographer decides to abandon his brilliant career to devote himself to writing, accepting humble and far from media clamor. Through this choice, the film reflects on the courage to follow its vocation and the rediscovery of oneself. Virginie Ledoyen And Bastien Bouillon They interpret the protagonists, giving life to a delicate and reflective story, in which every gesture and each word reveal the fragility and determination of the characters.
Mona FastVold – The Testament of Ann Lee
Mona FastVold signature The Testament of Ann Leea musical shot in 70 mm which combines visual skill and historical narrative. Written together with her husband Brady Corbet (director of The brutalist), the film reconstructs the birth of the Shaker movement in the eighteenth century, exploring faith, community and devotion with a contemporary look.
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