1961 Cannes Film Festival 1961 Cannes Film Festival The 14th Cannes Film Festival was held from 3 to 18 May 1961. The Palme d'Or went to the "Une aussi longue absence", directed by Henri Colpi and "Viridiana", directed by Luis Buñuel. The festival opened with "Che gioia vivere", directed by René Clément. The festival also screened Shirley Clarke's debut film "The Connection" due to the efforts of the French Syndicate of Cinema Critics. The success of the film caused the festival to create International Critics' Week the following year. The following people were appointed as the Jury of the 1961 competition: Feature films Short
1954 Cannes Film Festival 1954 Cannes Film Festival The 7th Cannes Film Festival was held from 25 March to 9 April 1954. With Jean Cocteau as President of the Jury, the Grand Prix went to the "Gate of Hell" by Teinosuke Kinugasa. The festival opened with "Le Grand Jeu" by Robert Siodmak. This was the last festival with a predominantly French Jury. As the festival was becoming more and more a pole of showbiz attraction, scandals and romances of stars were appearing in the press. In 1954, the Simone Silva affair during the Cannes Festival ended up in the distuction of her career as