The 69th annual Cannes Film Festival was held from 11 to 22 May 2016. Australian director George Miller was the President of the Jury for the main competition. French actor Laurent Lafitte was the host for the opening and closing ceremonies. On 15 March it was announced that Japanese director Naomi Kawase would serve as the Cinéfondation and Short Film Jury president. American director Woody Allen's film Café Society opened the festival.
The Palme d'Or was awarded to the British film I, Daniel Blake directed by Ken Loach, which also served as closing film of the festival. At a press conference, Loach said that he was "quietly stunned" to win.
The films competing in the main competition section for the Palme d'Or were announced at a press conference on 14 April 2016: The Salesman, directed by Asghar Farhadi was added to the competition lineup on 22 April 2016.
The films competing in the Un Certain Regard section were announced at a press conference on 14 April 2016: Clash, directed by Mohamed Diab, has been announced as the opening film for the Un Certain Regard section. Hell or High Water, directed by David Mackenzie was added to the Un Certain Regard lineup on 22 April 2016.
The following films were selected to screen out of competition:
Midnight screenings
Special screenings
Out of 5,008 entries, the following films were selected to compete for the Short Film Palme d'Or.
The Cinéfondation section focuses on films made by students at film schools. The following 18 entries (14 fiction films and 4 animation films) were selected out of 2,300 submissions. More than one-third of the films selected represent schools participating in Cinéfondation for the first time. It is also the first time that a film representing Bosnian and Venezuelan film schools have been selected. More than half of the films selected were directed by women.
The full selection for the International Critics' Week section was announced on 18 April 2016, at the section's website. In Bed with Victoria, directed by Justine Triet was selected as the opening film for the International Critics' Week section, while the short films Bonne Figure, directed by Sandrine Kiberlain, En Moi, directed by Laetitia Casta, and Kitty, directed by Chloë Sevigny were selected as its closing films.
Feature films
Special screenings
Short films
The full selection for the Directors' Fortnight section was announced on 19 April 2016, at the section's website. Sweet Dreams, directed by Marco Bellocchio was selected as the opening film for the Directors' Fortnight section and Dog Eat Dog, directed by Paul Schrader was selected as the closing film for the Directors' Fortnight section.
Feature films
Short films
ACID, an association of French and foreign film directors, demonstrates its support for nine films each year, seeking to provide support from filmmakers to other filmmakers. The full ACID selection was announced on 19 April 2016, at the section's website.
The full line-up for the Cannes Classics section was announced on 20 April 2016.
Restorations
Documentaries
Main competition
George Miller, Australian film director (President)
Arnaud Desplechin, French film director
Kirsten Dunst, American actress
Valeria Golino, Italian actress and film director
Mads Mikkelsen, Danish actor
László Nemes, Hungarian film director
Vanessa Paradis, French actress and singer
Katayoon Shahabi, Iranian film producer
Donald Sutherland, Canadian actor
Marthe Keller, Swiss actress (President)
Jessica Hausner, Austrian film director
Diego Luna, Mexican actor and film director
Ruben Östlund, Swedish film director
Céline Sallette, French actress
Cinéfondation and short films
Naomi Kawase, Japanese film director (President)
Marie-Josée Croze, Franco-Canadian actress
Jean-Marie Larrieu, French film director
Radu Muntean, Romanian film director
Santiago Loza, Argentine film director and playwright
Catherine Corsini, French film director and actress (President)
Jean-Christophe Berjon, French film critic
Alexander Rodnyansky, Ukrainian film producer
Isabelle Frilley, French CEO of Titra Film
Jean-Marie Dreujou, French cinematographer
Valérie Donzelli, French film director and actress (President)
Alice Winocour, French film director
Nadav Lapid, Israeli film director
David Robert Mitchell, American film director
Santiago Mitre, Argentine film director
Gianfranco Rosi, Italian documentary film director (President)
Anne Aghion, French-American documentary film director
Natacha Régnier, Belgian actress
Thierry Garrel, French artistic consultant and director of documentaries for Arte TV
Amir Labaki, Brazilian film critic and curator
Olivier Ducastel and Jacques Martineau, French film directors (Presidents)
Emilie Brisavoine, French film director and actress
João Federici, Brazilian artistic director of Festival MixBrasil
Marie Sauvion, French film journalist
In Competition
Palme d'Or – I, Daniel Blake by Ken Loach
Grand Prix – It's Only the End of the World by Xavier Dolan
Best Director
Cristian Mungiu for Graduation
Olivier Assayas for Personal Shopper
Best Screenplay – Asghar Farhadi for The Salesman
Best Actress – Jaclyn Jose for Ma' Rosa
Best Actor – Shahab Hosseini for The Salesman
Jury Prize – American Honey by Andrea Arnold
Un Certain Regard
Un Certain Regard Award – The Happiest Day in the Life of Olli Mäki by Juho Kuosmanen
Un Certain Regard Jury Prize – Harmonium by Kōji Fukada
Un Certain Regard Award for Best Director – Matt Ross for Captain Fantastic
Un Certain Regard Award for Best Screenplay – Delphine Coulin and Muriel Coulin for The Stopover
Un Certain Regard Special Prize - The Red Turtle by Michael Dudok de Wit
Cinéfondation
First Prize – Anna by Or Sinai
Second Prize – In the Hills by Hamid Ahmadi
Third Prize
The Noise of Licking by Nadja Andrasev
The Guilt, Probably by Michael Labarca
Golden Camera
Caméra d'Or – Divines by Houda Benyamina
Short Films
Short Film Palme d'Or – Timecode by Juanjo Giménez
Special Mention – The Girl Who Danced with the Devil by João Paulo Miranda Maria
International Critics' Week
Nespresso Grand Prize – Mimosas by Oliver Laxe
France 4 Visionary Award – Album by Mehmet Can Mertoğlu
SACD Award – Diamond Island by Davy Chou
Leica Cine Discovery Prize for Short Film – Prenjak by Wregas Bhanuteja
Canal+ Award – Birth of a Leader by Antoine de Bary
Gan Foundation Support for Distribution Award – One Week and a Day by Asaph Polonsky
Directors' Fortnight
Art Cinema Award – Wolf and Sheep by Shahrbanoo Sadat
SACD Award – The Together Project by Sólveig Anspach
SACD special mention - Divines by Houda Benyamina
Europa Cinemas Label Award – Mercenary by Sacha Wolff
Illy Prize for Short Film – Chasse Royal by Lise Akoka and Romane Gueret
Illy special mention – The Beast by Miroslav Sikavica
FIPRESCI Prize
In Competition – Toni Erdmann by Maren Ade
Un Certain Regard – Dogs by Bogdan Mirică
Parallel Sections – Raw by Julia Ducournau (International Critics' Week)
Ecumenical Jury
Prize of the Ecumenical Jury – It's Only the End of the World by Xavier Dolan
Commendations:
I, Daniel Blake by Ken Loach
American Honey by Andrea Arnold
L'Œil d'or Jury
L'Œil d'or – Cinema Novo by Eryk Rocha
Special Mention – The Cinema Travelers by Shirley Abraham and Amit Madheshiya
Queer Palm Jury
Queer Palm Award – The Lives of Thérèse by Sébastien Lifshitz
Short Film Queer Palm – Gabber Lover by Anna Cazenave Cambet
Palm Dog Jury
Palm Dog Award – Nellie for Paterson
Grand Jury Prize – Jacques for In Bed with Victoria
Palm Dog Manitarian Award – Ken Loach for showcasing a three-legged dog named Shea in I, Daniel Blake
Prix François Chalais
François Chalais Prize – The Student by Kirill Serebrennikov
Vulcan Award of the Technical Artist
Vulcan Award – Ryu Seong-hie for The Handmaiden (art direction)
Cannes Soundtrack Award
Cliff Martinez for The Neon Demon
Honorary Palme d'Or – Jean-Pierre Léaud
