Venice Jury President Maggie Gyllenhaal Says Films Are ‘Fundamentally, Unavoidably Political’ and Questions Lack of Female Directors in Competition: ‘There’s a Systemic Problem’

It didn’t take long for politics to take the spotlight at this year’s Venice Film Festival jury press conference. Amid the wars raging in Gaza and Ukraine, as well as the unrest in the United States, jury president Maggie Gyllenhaal was asked whether cinema should be political.

“OK,” Gyllenhaal said with a laugh. “May as well get into it.”

The filmmaker of “The Bride” and “The Lost Daughter” directly addressed the question by sharing her belief that movies are “fundamentally, unavoidably political.”

“Look, we could say, how are we possibly here talking about movies right now when the world is in a state of emergency?” she said. “To me, the answer has something to do with empathy. I think that film allows an opening into an opportunity to find empathy inside of ourselves.”

She added that every subject and filmmaker should have the ability to be heard. “I think we can challenge ourselves to hear stories about the most corrupt, most perverse people because it opens up the opportunity to find empathy for those people,” she says. “I am here open. I am here curious.”