Danish-Egyptian Director May el-Toukhy Claims Venice Golden Lion for 'Woman Unknown'

Danish-Egyptian director May el-Toukhy has captured the prestigious Golden Lion at the Venice Film Festival for her drama Woman Unknown, which tells the story of a woman concealing her past in Denmark following the Second World War. The film's lead, Mathilde Arcel, was also honored with the Volpi Cup for Best Actress during Saturday’s closing ceremony.

The winning films were selected by a jury led by Maggie Gyllenhaal, alongside members including Tunisian filmmaker Kaouther Ben Hania and Afghan director Shahrbanoo Sadat. Upon accepting her award, May el-Toukhy remarked, “And what kept me going was the urgent need to illuminate the unknown women of our common history, to make them known.”

In the film, Mathilde Arcel portrays Marie, a housemaid preparing to marry her wealthy employer while hiding a wartime relationship with a German soldier. This production—a collaboration between Denmark, Sweden, and Latvia—follows her struggle to protect her future during a time when women accused of fraternizing with occupying soldiers faced severe public punishment.

Born in Copenhagen to a Danish mother and an Egyptian father, May el-Toukhy previously directed Long Story Short and Queen of Hearts. The latter secured the audience award at the Sundance Film Festival's World Cinema Dramatic competition in 2019. She was one of several Arab filmmakers featured in this year's Venice lineup.

Her triumph arrived amid discussions regarding the low representation of women directors in the main competition, as Woman Unknown stood as the only entry directed solely by a woman. Meanwhile, Israeli filmmaker Rachel Szor co-directed the late festival addition Naza with Yuval Abraham. Addressing this gender imbalance during a press conference, May el-Toukhy stated, “I think it’s very, very much a structural problem that I myself have lots of experience with,” pointing to obstacles ranging from securing funding for a debut film to obtaining proper budgets and career opportunities later on.

In other festival awards, Lebanese-Moroccan filmmaker Shaden Safieddine Tazi earned the Orizzonti Award for Best Short Film for A Few Moments of Happiness. The documentary follows a Lebanese filmmaker in Paris monitoring the conflict in Lebanon through her phone, utilizing screen recordings and family audio messages to depict the experience of witnessing events from afar.

Additionally, the Gaza documentary Naza received a remarkable 25-minute standing ovation and was awarded the special jury prize in the main competition. The film explores Israeli military operations in Gaza through testimonies from military and intelligence personnel. South Korean director Lee Chang-dong won the Silver Lion grand jury prize for Possible Love, and Ilya Khrzhanovsky took home the directing award for Dau. Furthermore, John Malkovich was named best actor for Martin McDonagh’s Wild Horse Nine, while Stephane Brize, Coralie Amedeo, and Olivier Gorce won best screenplay for A Good Little Soldier.