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Julia Ducournau becomes the second woman to win a Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival (Photo: Stephane Cardinale - Corbis/Corbis via Getty Images)
There's plenty of show-stopping moments at the recently-concluded Cannes Film Festival whether it's the stylish outfits, glittering jewellery pieces or the exciting movie lineup. But there's nothing more historic than French filmmaker, Julia Ducournau making history as the only second female director to take home the Palme d'Or in the festival's 74-year history.
The jury presided by Spike Lee—who also makes history as the first Black man to head the Cannes jury—awarded the top prize to Ducournau's noir thriller, Titane. The closing ceremony itself was memorable as Lee accidentally announced the Palme d'Or winner early on.
The award-winning movie has been described as "the most shocking film of 2021" by the BBC for its depictions of sex, violence and body horror, making it a bold choice for the top prize—as is holding the film festival during the pandemic.
But perhaps Titane's shocking theme might not come as a surprise since Ducournau also helmed the movie Raw (2016), another film that falls under the body horror genre and one that also premiered at the Cannes Film Festival in 2016.
It's also worth noting that Raw, Ducournau's first feature film is what catapulted her to the spotlight. Ducournau's prior film, Grave (2016) is also another shocker that falls into the genre.
With Ducournau now with a Palme d'Or, she joins New Zealand writer-director Jane Campion—who won for her period drama, The Piano in 1993—as the two only female directors to win the top prize.
See also: Cannes 2021: Hong Kong Movie "All The Crows In The World" Wins Short Film Palme D'Or
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Watch the trailer for "Titane"
