The Golden Lion Race Begins Tonight

The 83rd Venice International Film Festival officially opens today, September 2, bringing filmmakers, actors and cinema fans to the Lido for 11 days of premieres, awards and international film culture.

Running from September 2 to September 12, the 2026 Venice Film Festival opens tonight with the world premiere of Ink, directed by Danny Boyle. Starring Jack O'Connell, Guy Pearce and Claire Foy, the film is set against the world of British newspapers in the late 1960s. It follows the events surrounding Rupert Murdoch's acquisition of The Sun and the appointment of Larry Lamb as editor. The film is also competing for the Golden Lion, meaning Boyle's opening-night premiere could immediately become one of the most closely discussed films of the competition.

Opening night will also belong to George Clooney. The actor, director and producer is this year's recipient of the Golden Lion for Lifetime Achievement, one of the most prestigious honors presented by the Venice Film Festival.

International competition, featuring 21 films, will as usual be one of the festival's major focal points as filmmakers compete for the prestigious Golden Lion. Werner Herzog, Hirokazu Kore-eda, Lee Chang-dong, Martin McDonagh and Nanni Moretti are among the best-known names in the lineup, while directors such as Lance Oppenheim and Rachel Szor and Yuval Abraham bring newer perspectives to the competition:

• NAZA by Yuval Abraham and Rachel Szor

• Company by Casey Affleck

• Kami nour (A Bit of Light) by Ali Asgari

• Ritorno a Buenos Aires by Marco Bechis

• Ink by Danny Boyle

• Un bon petit soldat by Stéphane Brizé

• Il fuoco che ti porti dentro (The Fire Within You) by Edoardo De Angelis

• Kvinde Ukendt (Woman Unknown) by May el-Toukhy

• Bucking Fastard by Werner Herzog

• 15/18 (A Place To Heal) by Cédric Kahn

• Dau by Ilya Khrzhanovsky

• Look Back by Hirokazu Kore-eda

• Ga-neung-han sa-rang (Possible Love) by Lee Chang-dong

• Wild Horse Nine by Martin McDonagh

• Succederà questa notte (It Will Happen Tonight) by Nanni Moretti

• Primetime by Lance Oppenheim

• The Echo Chamber by Andrea Pallaoro

• Un peu avant minuit by Nicolas Pariser

• L'estranea by Paolo Strippoli

• Nelson san, anata wa hito wo koroshimashitaka? (Mr. Nelson, Did You Kill People?) by Shinya Tsukamoto

• Bunker by Florian Zeller

The films in the main competition will be judged by a seven-member international jury headed by filmmaker and actress Maggie Gyllenhaal. She will be joined by a diverse group of filmmakers and artists, including Kaouther Ben Hania, Daniel Blumberg, Francesco Casetti, Xavier Giannoli, Shahrbanoo Sadat and Johnnie To.

Although the Golden Lion competition attracts much of the attention, Venice 2026 extends well beyond its 21 competing films.

The festival's Orizzonti section continues its focus on contemporary filmmaking and new cinematic voices, while Venice Spotlight highlights distinctive and innovative projects. Venice Classics turns the spotlight toward cinema history, presenting restored films that allow important works from the past to be rediscovered by new audiences.

So the red carpet is rolling out tonight, the first premieres are arriving and the race for the Golden Lion has officially begun.