On Sept. 6, 2025 in Venice, Italy, veteran indie director Jim Jarmusch won the festival’s top honor, the Golden Lion, for his quietly comic family triptych Father Mother Sister Brother, starring Adam Driver, Vicky Krieps and Cate Blanchett.
Key Takeaways
- Jim Jarmusch’s Father Mother Sister Brother received the Golden Lion at the 2025 Venice Film Festival.
- Kaouther Ben Hania’s Gaza docudrama The Voice of Hind Rajab earned the Silver Lion and a 22-minute standing ovation.
- Benny Safdie won best director for The Smashing Machine, a Mark Kerr biopic starring Dwayne Johnson and Emily Blunt.
- Xin Zhilei was named best actress for Cai Shangjun’s The Sun Rises on Us All; Toni Servillo won best actor for Paolo Sorrentino’s La Grazia.
- Winners and speeches repeatedly highlighted humanitarian crises in Gaza and Ukraine.
- The main-jury president was Alexander Payne; the international panel produced a diverse slate of winners.
Verified Facts
Jim Jarmusch’s triptych, which examines relationships among adult siblings and their parents, was awarded the Golden Lion at the festival’s awards ceremony on Saturday, Sept. 6, 2025. The film’s cast includes Adam Driver, Vicky Krieps and Cate Blanchett. Jarmusch described the prize as an “unexpected honor” and said he continues to learn with each film.
Kaouther Ben Hania’s The Voice of Hind Rajab won the Silver Lion. The Gaza-set docudrama reconstructs an attempt to rescue a 6-year-old girl from a bullet-riddled call in Gaza City in January 2024 and incorporates the real audio of her call to the Palestine Red Crescent Society. The film received a 22-minute standing ovation at its premiere; Ben Hania dedicated the award to the Red Crescent and rescue workers.
The main competition jury, chaired by Alexander Payne, awarded best director to Benny Safdie for The Smashing Machine, a biopic of MMA fighter Mark Kerr starring Dwayne Johnson and Emily Blunt. Safdie thanked his subject and cast in brief remarks.
Acting honors went to Xin Zhilei (best actress) for Cai Shangjun’s The Sun Rises on Us All, and Toni Servillo (best actor) for Paolo Sorrentino’s La Grazia. Valérie Donzelli and Gilles Marchand received best screenplay for the French drama At Work. The special jury prize was given to Gianfranco Rosi for Below the Clouds, and Luna Wedler won the Marcello Mastroianni Award for a young actor for Silent Friend.
Context & Impact
The Venice winners reflect both aesthetic diversity and a festival agenda attentive to current crises. Several filmmakers used their platform to call attention to the humanitarian situation in Gaza; others referenced the war in Ukraine.
Venice’s track record as an early awards-season bellwether means some films here may re-enter awards conversations through the fall and winter, though festival prizes do not guarantee later nominations or wins.
Festival organizers also paid tribute to the late designer Giorgio Armani during the ceremony; Armani died earlier that week and received a standing ovation from the audience.
Industry observers noted that some high-profile festival premieres—ranging from Kathryn Bigelow’s thriller to Guillermo del Toro’s Frankenstein—did not dominate the awards, but remain potential contenders in the wider awards season.
“All of us here who make films are not motivated by competition. But I truly appreciate this unexpected honor.”
Jim Jarmusch
“Enough is enough.”
Kaouther Ben Hania
Explainer
Unconfirmed
- Long-term awards trajectories: whether any 2025 Venice winners will secure major Oscar nominations remains to be seen and is speculative.
- Box-office and streaming deals for the winning films are still developing and not yet finalized publicly.
Bottom Line
Jarmusch’s Golden Lion win highlights Venice’s continued role in rewarding diverse, auteur-driven cinema while festival podiums also amplified urgent humanitarian messages. The awards may shift attention for several films heading into awards season, but outcomes beyond Venice remain open.