Robert De Niro to Chair 2011 Cannes Film Festival Jury

Oscar winning actor Robert De Niro has been appointed as chair of the jury for the 2011 Cannes Film Festival to be held in the Southern French city from 11 to 22 May.

The Cannes Film Festival (French: le Festival de Cannes ), founded in 1946, is one of the world's oldest and most prestigious film festivals and is held annually (usually in May) at the Palais des Festivals et des Congrès, in the resort town of Cannes, in the south of France.

De Niro, now aged 67, will be the third American in four years to head the jury of the world's most prestigious film festival. Director Tim Burton chaired the jury in 2010 and actor/director Sean Penn did so in 2008.

"The Cannes Film Festival is a rare opportunity for me as it is one of the oldest and one of the best in the world," the 67-year-old Oscar-winner said in a statement.

Robert De Niro has twice won the Palme d'Or at previous Cannes festivals:

1976 - Taxi Driver - directed by Martin Scorsese

1986 - The Mission - directed by Roland Joffe

Mr De Niro is no stranger to film festivals, having helped establish the Tribeca Film Festival in his home city of New York ten years ago, and its sister festival in the Gulf region.

"As co-founder of the Tribeca Film Festival and the Doha Tribeca Film Festival, I have an increased appreciation for the jury (which undertakes) an important role in choosing films that are represented in the world of film at its highest level," De Niro said.

"These types of festivals help connect the international film community and have a lasting cultural impact."

De Niro's awards

De Niro won the Academy Award for Best Actor for his portrayal of Jake LaMotta in the 1980 film, Raging Bull. He was also nominated for an Academy Award for his roles in Scorsese's Taxi Driver (1976) and Cape Fear (1991). In addition, he received nominations for his acting in Michael Cimino's The Deer Hunter (1978) and Penny Marshall's Awakenings (1990). De Niro's impressive film career has spanned four decades. His first movie in 1973 was Bang the Drum Slowly and his last, Little Fockers, topped the North American box office over the 2010/2011 holiday period. He has earned four nominations for the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor - Motion Picture Musical or Comedy: New York, New York (1977), Midnight Run (1989), Analyze This (1999) and Meet the Parents (2000).

Son of surrealist painter Robert De Niro Senior

It is not generally known that De Niro has been actively involved in safeguarding and promoting the work of his father, Robert De Niro, Sr, a surrealist painter who died in 1993 at the age of 71 from prostrate cancer. The younger De Niro dedicated his directorial debut, A Bronx Tale, released in the same year to his late father.

Sources:

http://www.sunshinecoastdaily.com.au/story/2011/01/10/de-niro-to-lead-cannes-festival-jury/

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_De_Niro

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0970866/

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2011_Cannes_Film_Festival

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