French-Moroccan writer and novelist Leïla Slimani will serve on the jury of the 78th Cannes Film Festival, scheduled to take place from May 13 to 24, organizers announced Monday. The jury will award the Palme d'Or (Golden Palm) to one of the 21 films in competition, following last year's win by Sean Baker's Anora, selected by Greta Gerwig's jury, according to a festival press release. This year's jury will be chaired by French actress Juliette Binoche and includes American actress and filmmaker Halle Berry, Indian director and screenwriter Payal Kapadia, and Italian actress Alba Rohrwacher. Also joining the jury are Congolese director and producer Dieudo Hamadi, South Korean director and screenwriter Hong Sangsoo, Mexican filmmaker Carlos Reygadas, and American actor Jeremy Strong. The winners will be announced during the festival's closing ceremony on May 24. Leïla Slimani published her debut novel, In the Garden of the Ogre, in 2014, which was critically acclaimed and nominated for the Prix de Flore. She later won several literary prizes, including the prestigious Prix Goncourt in 2016.
