After the official announcement of the 2025 Cannes Film Festival lineup last week, the lineup for the parallel Cannes Critics’ Week has now been announced. The 64th edition of Cannes Critics’ Week is set to spotlight a compelling mix of debut and sophomore films from emerging talents worldwide. Over 1,000 feature submissions and 2,340 short films were submitted for selection. Taking place May 14th–22nd, the sidebar—renowned for launching some of cinema’s most lauded auteurs—includes seven competition films, four special screenings, and 13 short films (to be announced April 17th).
Among the standouts is “Left-Handed Girl,” the solo debut from Taiwanese director Shih-Ching Tsou. Tsou is a longtime collaborator of Academy Award-winner Sean Baker, who also co-wrote and edited the film. Set in Taipei, it traces the struggles of a single mother and her two daughters as they navigate life’s challenges on the fringes.
Thai director Ratchapoom Boonbunchachoke delivers a surreal take on motherhood with “A Useful Ghost.” In the film, a woman is reincarnated as a vacuum cleaner. Mai Davika Hoorne, one of Thailand’s brightest screen talents, stars.
Pauline Loquès’ “Nino” stars Théodore Pellerin as a young man adrift after misplacing his apartment keys. Spanish filmmaker Guillermo Galoe makes his feature debut with “Sleepless City,” a portrait of friendship shot in the marginalized community of La Cañada Real.
Belgium’s Alexe Poukine returns with “Kika,” which features Manon Clavel as a social worker who unexpectedly faces pregnancy after a personal tragedy.
From Chechnya, Deni Oumar Pitsaev brings a deeply personal documentary, “Imago,” chronicling his attempt to build a modernist house in a Georgian valley steeped in tradition and tension near the Chechnya border.
The Netherlands returns to Critics’ Week for the first time in over two decades with “Reedland,” the debut film from Sven Bresser. This brooding crime drama follows a reed cutter tormented by guilt after discovering a teenager’s body, setting off a disturbing psychological descent.
“Adam’s Interest” is the sophomore effort by Laura Wandel of Belgium, who previously stunned audiences with her film “Playground.” Starring Anamaria Vartolomei and Léa Drucker, the film is set in a pediatric ward and follows a mother, her malnourished son, and a nurse as their lives intersect under emotional strain.
French filmmaker Martin Jauvat returns to Cannes with “Baise en Ville,” a charming road movie in which an aimless man (played by Jauvat himself) ambles through the city in search of a job to fund driving lessons. William Lebghil and Emmanuelle Bercot round out the cast.
“Love Letters,” the first feature from Alice Douard, is a heartfelt comedy about two married women preparing to become parents—one through pregnancy, the other through adoption. The film stars Ella Rumpf and Monia Chokri and balances humor with themes of love, uncertainty, and transformation.
The section wraps with a rare animated entry: “Dandelion’s Odyssey” by Japanese director Momoko Seto. This visually arresting film follows four dandelions that survive a nuclear catastrophe and embark on a quest to find a place to root. It’s the first animated title in Critics’ Week since “I Lost My Body” (2019), which earned an Oscar nomination for Best Animated Feature.
Critics’ Week has a storied history of fostering filmmakers who later gained global acclaim. Ken Loach’s “Kes” debuted here in 1970, while recent Palme d’Or winners Justine Triet and Julia Ducournau got their start in the section with “Victoria” and “Raw,” respectively.
Heading this year’s jury is acclaimed Spanish director Rodrigo Sorogoyen (“The Beasts“), joined by Daniel Kaluuya, Oscar-winning actor of “Get Out” and “Judas and the Black Messiah;” Moroccan journalist Jihane Bougrine; cinematographer Josée Deshaies (“Passages” & “The Beast“); and Indonesian producer Yulia Evina Bhara. They’ll award the AMI Paris Grand Prix, the Leitz Cine Discovery Prize for short films, the French Touch Jury Prize, and the Louis Roederer Foundation Rising Star Award.
COMPETITION
Imago – Dir. Déni Oumar Pitsaev
Kika – Dir. Alexe Poukine
Left-Handed Girl – Dir. Shih-Ching Tsou
Nino – Dir. Pauline Loquès
Reedland – Dir. Sven Bresser
Sleepless City – Dir. Guillermo Galoe
A Useful Ghost – Dir. Ratchapoom Boonbunchachoke
SPECIAL SCREENINGS
Adam’s Interest – Dir. Laura Wandel (OPENING FILM)
Baise en ville – Dir. Martin Jauvat
Love Letters – Dir. Alice Douard
Dandelion’s Odyssey – Dir. Momoko Seto (CLOSING FILM)
The full lineup for the 2024 Cannes Film Festival can be seen here. The festival runs from May 14th until May 25th.
Are you excited for the 2025 Cannes Film Festival? What do you think of the Critics’ Week lineup? Are you planning to attend the festival this year? Which films are you most looking forward to seeing? You can check out our reactions to the lineup here. Please let us know in the comments section below or on our X account.
