According to the Iranian Cinema Museum’s news service, Maadi will serve alongside Anya Taylor-Joy, Jenna Ortega, Celine Song, Julia Ducournau, Karim Aïnouz, and Hakim Belabbes on the festival’s principal jury. The panel is tasked with judging 14 debut and sophomore feature films competing in the festival’s official selection, which focuses on discovering new voices in world cinema.
Variety notes that Anya Taylor-Joy rose to international fame with The Queen’s Gambit and later starred in Furiosa and Dune: Part Two. At the same time, Jenna Ortega is widely known for the series Wednesday and Beetlejuice. Celine Song is the Oscar-nominated director of Past Lives. French filmmaker Julia Ducournau, winner of Cannes’ Palme d’Or for Titane, returned to competition this year with Alpha. Brazilian director Karim Aïnouz has screened multiple films in Cannes, including Firebrand and Motel Destino, and Moroccan filmmaker Hakim Belabbes is recognized for his personal, memory-driven works such as Threads, Boiling Dream, and Fragments.
Peyman Maadi gained international acclaim for his performance in Asghar Farhadi’s A Separation, winner of the Berlin Golden Bear and the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film. Maadi received the Silver Bear for Best Actor for the role and has previously served on juries at festivals including Shanghai and Sundance.
The Marrakech International Film Festival takes place from 28 November to 6 December.