Marrakech: Composed of eight leading figures from four continents and spanning multiple generations, the festival jury is tasked with considering the 14 first and second feature films presented in an Official Competition dedicated to discovering new international talent, according to a press release from the organizers.
According to Agence Marocaine De Presse, South Korean director Bong Joon Ho, whose film Parasite made history by winning the Palme d’Or followed by four Academy Awards, chairs the jury. Praised for its formal inventiveness and critical scope, Bong’s work has renewed the dialogue between auteur cinema and mainstream cinema in a profound way.
He will be surrounded by filmmakers and performers whose careers are a reflection of the vitality of global cinema today: Brazilian director Karim Anouz, who won over international audiences with The Invisible Life of Eurdice Gusmo, which won the Un Certain Regard Award at the Festival de Cannes; Moroccan filmmaker Hakim Belabbes, a key figure in intimate, memory-based cinema; French director Julia Ducournau, Palme d’Or winner for Titane.
The jury also includes Iranian actor and director Payman Maadi, who rose to international fame in Asghar Farhadi’s A Separation (Golden Bear at Berlinale and Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film), which earned him the Silver Bear for Best Actor; US actor Jenna Ortega, star of the series Wednesday and the film Beetlejuice Beetlejuice by Tim Burton; Canadian filmmaker Celine Song, director of the highly acclaimed Past Lives; and Anglo-Argentinian actress Anya Taylor-Joy, who rose to fame in The Queen’s Gambit and further established herself in Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga and Dune: Part Two.
By bringing together artists from a variety of complementary creative fields, the Marrakech International Film Festival reaffirms its commitment to promoting the circulation of ideas and aesthetics, as well as creating a space for dialogue among cultures and generations of cinema.
The award winners will be announced at the closing ceremony on Saturday December 6th 2025.