Joyland pockets Cannes sidebar Jury Prize

Pakistani film Joyland, written and directed by debutant Saim Sadiq, won the Jury Prize in the Un Certain Regard section of the 75th Cannes Film Festival on Friday, becoming the first-ever film from the subcontinent to bag the award.

The award for Joyland represents a global breakthrough of immeasurable proportions for the relatively small Pakistani movie industry. Incidentally, Joyland also won the Prix Queer Palm, awarded by Jury chaired by filmmaker Catherine Corsini. One of the central characters in the film is a transwoman played by a real-life transwoman Alina Khan. The Un Certain Regard Best Director Award went to the Romanian director Alexandre Belc for Metronom, while the Best Screenplay Prize was bagged by the Israeli-Palestinian director Maha Haj for Mediterranean Fever. — PTI

The Worst Ones wins top prize in ‘Un Certain Regard’ competition

The Worst Ones, a film set in the working class suburbs of the northern French city Boulogne-sur-Mer won the top prize in the “Un Certain Regard” competition. The Worst Ones, directed by Lise Akoka and Romane Gueret, explores the challenges of street casting, telling the story of a community’s reaction to the arrival of a film crew. Reuters

War Pony poodle fetches Palm Dog

A day before Cannes Film Festival’s top prize, the Palme d’Or, the real scene-stealers get their awards at the annual Palm Dog ceremony. Britney, a standard poodle who stars in Riley Keough’s directorial debut War Pony, was crowned the top dog this year, snagging the coveted gilded collar prize. Britney, who plays a well-loved character called Beast, was unable to attend the ceremony, but two elaborately-coiffed poodles stood in to receive her prize. A new award was added this year, the Elvis Palm Hound Dog—a nod to Baz Luhrmann’s Elvis biopic, a top festival draw. It went to Titane, a sharp-muzzled mutt with pointy ears. Reuters