The 2025 Venice Film Festival has wrapped up, and the awards were handed out at the closing ceremony hosted by Emanuela Faneli. She reminded everyone of the honorary awardees, including Werner Herzog, Gus Van Sant, and Julian Schnabel. The festival highlighted some of the biggest names in the industry, including Emma Stone, George Clooney, Julia Roberts, and Dwayne Johnson.
In the main competition, Jim Jarmusch’s Father Mother Sister Brother won the Golden Lion for Best Film. The Grand Jury Prize went to The Voice of Hind Rajab by Kaouther Ben Hania. Benny Safdie won the Silver Lion for Best Director for The Smashing Machine, while Below the Clouds by Gianfranco Rossi earned the Special Jury Prize. Valérie Donzelli and Gilles Marchand won Best Screenplay for À pied d’œuvre (At Work). Xin Zhilei received the Volpi Cup for Best Actress for The Sun Rises on Us All, and Toni Servillo won Best Actor for La Grazia. Luna Welder took home the Marcello Mastroianni Award for Best Young Actor for Silent Friend, and the Armani Beauty Audience Award went to Calle Malaga by Maryam Touzani. The Luigi De Laurentis Award for Best Debut Film was given to Short Summer by Nastia Korkia.
In the Horizons section, David Pablos’ En el camino (On the Road) won Best Film, and Anuparna Roy took Best Director for Songs of Forgotten Trees. Akio Fujimoto’s Harà Watan (Lost Land) received the Special Jury Prize. Benedetta Porcaroli won Best Actress for Il Rapimento di Arabella (The Kidnapping of Arabella), and Giacomo Covi won Best Actor for Un Anno di Scuola (A Year of School). Ana Cristina Barragán won Best Screenplay for Hiedra (The Ivy), and Lovisa Sirén’s Without Kelly was named Best Short Film.
In Venice Classics, Mata Hari by Joe Beshenkovsky and James A. Smith won Best Documentary on Cinema, and Bashu, the Little Stranger by Bahram Beizai was named Best Restored Film. Venice Immersive awarded the Grand Prize to The Clouds Are Two Thousand Meters Up by Singing Chen, and the Special Jury Prize went to Less Than 5gr of Saffron by Négar Motevalymeidanshah.
The festival celebrated a mix of established filmmakers and new voices, showcasing films from around the world and highlighting the creativity and diversity of modern cinema.
