It appears Alberto Barbera has done it again.
The artistic director of the Venice International Film Festival, who unveiled the official lineup for the 74th Venezia on Monday, has managed to upstage Cannes with a selection heavy both on big blockbuster titles — Denis Villeneuve’s Dune, Ridley Scott’s The Last Duel, Edgar Wright’s Last Night in Soho — and buzzy independent and arthouse films, from Ana Lily Amirpour’s Mona Lisa And The Blood Moon to Jane Campion’s The Power Of The Dog to new features from Pedro Almodovar (Madres Paralelas), Paul Schrader (The Card Counter) and Paolo Sorrentino (The Hand of God).
While Cannes 2021 represented a tentative — and most attendees would agree, broadly successful — return to the international film festival circuit, Venice this year is hoping to mark a true re-start to the global film business after the shocks of the coronavirus pandemic. The international industry will be carefully watching to see how audiences on the Lido respond to this year’s selection and, more importantly, what the Venice festival platform still means for theatrical business and the fall awards season.
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Shortly after unveiling the 78th lineup, Barbera spoke with The Hollywood Reporter‘s European bureau chief about his hopes for this year’s festival, why he thinks the pandemic has hit female directors and the long-term impact of the pandemic on the movie business.
When you wrapped the 2020 festival last September, did you imagine a year on you’d be planning for a second pandemic-era Venezia?
When we had this 2020 festival, we thought it was the beginning of the opening — of a return to a state of more or less normality. Of course, it was not the case because then came the second and third wave of the pandemic.
At first [preparing for 2021], I was quite worried. I had no idea how the pandemic would impact the festival; what the impact would be on the number of films that would be available. But then we started to receive submissions, since the middle of December last year. And they never stopped coming. We spent the entire time, from January to last week screening films, all day long, every single day of the week; even sometimes during the weekend. There were so many films available; films from two seasons, 2020 and 2021. Nobody stopped making film during the second lockdown. That was unexpected. But what surprised me was the quality of the films. We saw a lot of great movies, excellent ones. So it was very easy to come up with a lineup that, in my opinion, is one of the strongest lineups ever for Venice.
Announcing this year’s lineup, you mentioned that there are fewer female directors in the competition this year than last (five compared with eight in 2020), and suggested the pandemic might be partially responsible. Can you elaborate?
Of course, it is difficult to say. Two years ago, we had two female directors in competition. Last year, we had eight films from women directors. This year, we have five. It is difficult to say if it is a consequence of the pandemic or just a small difference from one year to the other. Last year, 28 percent of the films in official selection [including out-of-competition titles and films in Venice’s Horizons sidebar] were directed by women. Two years ago, it was 26 percent. This year, it is 25 percent. So, a small difference. But even if we want to consider [this year] a small setback in the process of renovation, this process will start up again right after the pandemic, because we are all aware of the fact that the previous situation was unbearable. There is no way to keep considering that there is a real difference in creativity between men and women directors.
One thing that stands out this year is the return of the studio films to Venice, including WarnerBros.’ Dune, Disney’s The Last Duel and Last Night in Soho from Universal/Focus Features. What’s behind that?
The fact is that the studios were in very strict lockdown for the past year and a half. From March 2020 to just a few months ago. They couldn’t wait any longer to get back to theaters; to start promoting films again and so on. The Americans succeeded in vaccinating much of their population before most countries in Europe, so they are ready to start again. They consider the fall of 2021 as the moment where, most probably, everyone will be able to reopen and restart. And for Venice, of course, being the first festival at the start of this new season, this is a wonderful opportunity. A wonderful opportunity to support films and make a proper promotion internationally.
In the beginning, I spoke to the studios to tell them what films I was interested in, but it was very easy to convince them to come back. Also because Venice has shown how well it works as a platform to really launch films internationally and for the awards season, for the Oscars. We also proved last year with the last edition that we can hold a festival during the pandemic with all the safety measures in place so everyone can feel secure.
What are the conditions like in Italy right now? The government last week announced new COVID-19 safety measures. Will the situation in Venice be similar to last year, with capacity restrictions in theaters and masks required?
So far, we don’t know exactly. We’ll have to wait and see what will happen in the next few weeks. But it looks like it will be the same situation as last year. There will be the same strict safety protocols. The capacity of the theaters will be at 50 percent. Everyone entering the theaters will need to reserve in advance and get an assigned seat. To enter the theater, you will need to have a green pass [to show you have been fully vaccinated] or a swab [negative COVID test] taken in the last 48 hours. But we will organize everything. You will not need to show the green pass or the swab result every time you go into the theater, because it will be in the system. It won’t be difficult to get access to the theaters. But everyone will be extremely safe and secure.
Do you expect to see an impact on international visitors? There were far fewer Americans, not to mention Asian and Latin American attendees, in Cannes this year.
We expect most of the delegations of the invited films, most of the filmmakers and talent, to attend. There are a few countries, including China and maybe Australia and Brazil, which are either still in lockdown or where travel is limited, which won’t be able to come. But most can and are willing to come. And with the green pass and swab system, they won’t have to go into quarantine. The Italian law says if you have a business reason for travel, you can spend 120 hours in the country without the need for quarantine. This will help. We already know there will be a lot more people coming. We have 30 percent more requests for accreditation this year compared to 2020. So, more journalists, more media representatives. It will be a bigger festival than last year, for sure.
Looking back to your hopes for 2020, what are your expectations for Venice this year for your second pandemic-era festival?
Last year we thought it was the start of the reopening of everything — of production, distribution, theaters, and so on. This was not the case, obviously. But I am still very confident that this year, the festival will be what we expected from last year. We don’t know yet, of course. The pandemic is not over. But, I’m optimistic it will be the first festival of a new era. The real reopening.
