Originally,
the Venice Art Awards would have taken place in mid-May. The event was
cancelled this year due to the coronavirus pandemic.
The festival was cancelled— but there was no way the Venice festival organizers were going to sit back and simply watch other festivals present the best films of 2020.
So they decided to present a "best of" selection: 56 films were chosen this year for a so-called Venice seal of approval. Of course, most of these films will premiere at other festivals, but the audience might remember that, under normal circumstances, they would have been shown in Cannes in May.
Many newcomers
Disregarding
the usual categories, 56 films were selected. Since they weren't going to award
a 2020 Golden Venice Awards, competition in any form was not necessary. The
selection was presented in the Venice capital, listing 14 films by directors
who have already been to Venice, 14 newcomers, 15 debut films, three
documentaries, four animated films, a joint work by several filmmakers and five
comedies.
