Cannes Film Festival President Iris Knobloch Re-Elected for Second Term

Iris Knobloch, the respected former boss of Warner Bros. France and Germany who became the first female president of the Cannes Film Festival in 2022, has been re-elected by the festival’s board for another three-year mandate.

The German-born, Paris-based executive will continue working alongside Cannes Film Festival‘s longtime general delegate and artistic director Thierry Fremaux, who remains in charge of the official selection.

Knobloch was elected by the board of directors of the Association Française du Festival International du Film, which brings together public authorities and film industry professionals. She succeeded Pierre Lescure as Cannes president.

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“I am profoundly honored to once again receive the trust of our Board of Directors. I take great pride in the success of the past two editions and I am excited to continue this journey alongside our General Delegate Thierry Frémaux and our dedicated teams in the years to come,” Knobloch said in a statement.

“Safeguarding the Festival’s artistic excellence, championing creative freedom and upholding the Festival’s humanistic values will be the priorities guiding my efforts. I will continue to protect the independence of the selection process, relentlessly support emerging talents, and ensure that Cannes remains a place where cinematic creativity and technological innovation intersect and enrich one another.”

Knobloch stepped down from WarnerMedia in June 2021 after a 25-year tenure in a variety of leadership roles in New York, Los Angeles, London and Paris. During her time at Warner Bros. France, She championed daring and ambitious filmmakers, notably Michel Hazanavicius whose silent, black-and-white film “The Artist” which competed at Cannes and went on to become the French film to win the Academy Award for best picture. After leaving the studio, the trailblazing executive launched a $300-million European special purpose acquisition company with backers including Francois-Henri Pinault, the French billionaire businessman who runs the luxury brand Kering, an official sponsor of Cannes Film Festival since 2015.

Since the arrival of Knobloch at Cannes, the festival has maintained its stance towards streamers whose movies are welcomed in competition as long as they can be released in French theaters. While this policy, created in 2017, has prompted Netflix to desert Cannes and bring their movies to either Venice or Toronto, it has allowed Cannes to showcase more diverse lineups with indie gems curated by Fremaux and his selection committee.

This year, the festival is playing a bigger-than-ever role in the awards season with several Cannes selections in the Oscar race, notably Jacques Audiard’s “Emilia Perez,” Coralie Fargeat’s “The Substance” and Sean Baker’s “Anora.”

The 78th edition of the Cannes Film Festival will take place May 13-24. The official selection will be unveiled around mid-April.