The 79th Cannes Film Festival ended on Saturday, May 23rd with the Palme d’Or awarded to Fjord by Cristian Mungiu. The Grand Prix went to Minotaur by Andrey Zvyagintsev. The ceremony presented by Eye Haïdara was also marked by several shared awards and engaged speeches.
The jury presided by Park Chan-wook unveiled the awards of the 79th Cannes Film Festival after several hours of deliberation. Twenty-two films were in competition to succeed A Simple Accident by Iranian director Jafar Panahi.
The Palme d’Or was awarded to Cristian Mungiu for Fjord. The Romanian filmmaker wins a second Palme after 4 Months, 3 Weeks, 2 Days in 2007. In this film inspired by true events, Cristian Mungiu sets his story in Norway to question the contradictions of a society that claims tolerance while rejecting those who deviate from the established framework.
On stage, Cristian Mungiu defended “a message for tolerance, inclusion, empathy,” referring to “magnificent terms” that should be “applied more often.”
Andrey Zvyagintsev calls on Vladimir Putin to “end this carnage”
The Grand Prix rewarded Andrey Zvyagintsev for Minotaur. The feature film transposes a marital plot in contemporary Russia against the backdrop of the war in Ukraine.
During his speech, Andrey Zvyagintsev directly addressed Vladimir Putin: “millions of people on both sides of the line of contact are waiting for just one thing, for the massacre to finally stop. And the only person who can put an end to this carnage is the president of the Russian Federation. End this slaughter, the whole world is waiting for it.”
The directing award was shared between Javier Ambrossi and Javier Calvo for La Bola Negra, as well as Pawel Pawlikowski for Fatherland. Pawel Pawlikowski used the ceremony to defend cinema freed from “activists” and “algorithms.”
The screenwriting prize distinguished Emmanuel Marre for Our Salvation, a film dedicated to the Vichy regime. The director explained wanting to alert about “violence, the need to dominate, to reassure oneself by excluding the other.”
Virginie Efira rewarded for the first time at Cannes
The female acting award was jointly given to Virginie Efira and Tao Okamoto for Suddenly by Ryusuke Hamaguchi. The film follows the bond between two women in a nursing home welcoming patients with senility.
This award marks the first acting prize at Cannes for Virginie Efira. A distinction accompanied by controversy since Le Figaro had, at the same time, awarded the Belgian actress a “Palm” for worst actress of the Festival.
The male acting award rewarded Emmanuel Macchia and Valentin Campagne for Coward by Lukas Dhont. The two actors play soldiers falling in love in the trenches during World War I.
Very moved, Emmanuel Macchia declared: “I really hope that this film will allow young men, young women, young people to be able to love themselves and accept themselves as they are.”
A Golden Camera for Rwanda and a Queer Palm for Jane Schoenbrun
The Golden Camera was awarded to Ben’imana by Marie-Clémentine Dusabejambo. Jury president Monia Chokri rewarded a first feature film dedicated to Rwanda’s memorial wounds and restorative justice after genocide.
The Queer Palm distinguished Teenage Sex And Death At Camp Miasma by Jane Schoenbrun. The jury co-presided by Thomas Jolly and Anna Mouglalis examined 22 films related to LGBTQ+ issues.
Three Honorary Palmes were also awarded to Barbra Streisand, Peter Jackson and John Travolta. Absent for health reasons, Barbra Streisand was celebrated on stage by Isabelle Huppert, who summed up her career with this sentence: “one is not born Barbra Streisand, one becomes it.”
The complete awards of the Cannes Film Festival 2026
- Palme d’Or: Fjord, by Cristian Mungiu
- Grand Prix: Minotaur, by Andrey Zvyagintsev
- Jury Prize: The Dreamed Adventure, by Valeska Grisebach
- Directing Award: Javier Ambrossi and Javier Calvo for La Bola Negra, and Pawel Pawlikowski for Fatherland
- Screenwriting Prize: Emmanuel Marre for Our Salvation
- Female Acting Award: Virginie Efira and Tao Okamoto for Suddenly
- Male Acting Award: Emmanuel Macchia and Valentin Campagne for Coward
- Golden Camera: Ben’imana, by Marie-Clémentine Dusabejambo
- Palme d’Or for Short Film: To Adversaries, by Federico Luis
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