The Venice Film Festival awarded its top prize on Saturday to a Danish-made drama about a woman trying to hide a wartime relationship with a Nazi — the only feature film with a female director in the competition.
\n\n“Woman Unknown” had been a major talking point of the festival due to its subject matter, which has rarely been explored in film, and because director May el-Toukhy was almost alone as a woman director in the event.
\n\nOnly one other woman — Israel’s Rachel Szor, co-director of the chilling documentary “NAZA” about Israel’s war on Gaza — was behind the 21 films vying for prizes at the star-studded closing ceremony in Venice.
\n\n“‘Woman Unknown’ is about the female body as a battleground and a public matter. And at the same time, the film tells the tale of women who are invisible, unseen and voiceless,” el-Toukhy told the ceremony.
\n\nDanish director May el-Toukhy receives the Golden Lion for the Best Film Award for Kvinde Ukendt (Woman Unknown) at the Venice International Film Festival 2026, Award Ceremony, Venice, September 12th, 2026 (Rocco Spaziani/Archivio Spaziani/Mondadori Portfolio via Getty Images)
\n\nThe head of this year’s jury, American actor-director Maggie Gyllenhaal, had questioned the dearth of…
Original source: https://www.breitbart.com/entertainment/
