Alexander Payne Named President of 82nd Venice Film Festival

Alexander Payne has been named president of the international jury of the 82nd Venice Film Festival, heading the group who decides winners of the Golden Lion for best film, the two Silver Lions (one for film, one directing), the Volpi Cup for best actor and actress and several other awards. The festival takes place Aug. 27 – Sept. 6, 2025. "It's an enormous honor and joy to serve on the jury at Venice," Payne said via statement. "Although I share a filmmaker's ambivalence about comparing films against one another, I revere the Venice Film Festival's nearly 100-year history of . . .