Venice Chief Barbera on studio retreats, AI, and the stubborn gender gap
Venice festival director Alberto Barbera explains the lineup reflects a temporary retreat by Hollywood studios from festivals, laments that only one of the 20 competition films is directed by a woman, and discusses AI’s place in cinema as a powerful tool to be used under the filmmaker’s control; he emphasizes Venice’s mission to champion independent and world cinema, notes specific reasons why some studio projects weren’t ready this year (including Dune 3, The Social Reckoning, and The Adventures of Cliff Booth), and mentions Luca Guadagnino’s Artificial will not debut this fall due to release timing, while the European grant cut will not derail Venice’s programs.
