US film director James Gray will be the president of the jury of the 17th Marrakech International Film Festival, to be held from November 30 to December 8, 2018, organizers said in a press release. "The Marrakech Film Festival is truly a very special place where the language of cinema unites people from all over the map. It's a tremendous honor to be named President of the Jury and to be returning to this great festival for a third time," James Gray said in a statement. James Gray made his directorial debut in 1994 at the age of 25 with 'Little Odessa', a widely acclaimed film which received the Silver Lion at the Venice Film Festival. That same year, he received nominations from the Independent Spirit Awards for Best First Feature and Best First Screenplay. His past films also include 'The Yards', 'We Own The Night', 'Two Lovers' and 'The Immigrant'. Gray's film 'The Lost City Of Z' had its world premiere at the closing night selection of the 2016 New York Film Festival and was released in theaters by Amazon Studios in April 2017. His latest film, 'Ad Astra', which he also co-wrote, stars Brad Pitt and is set to be released in theaters in early 2019. Born in New York City, Gray grew up in Queens and attended the University of Southern California School of Cinema-Television.
