Cannes 2022: Saim Sadiq's Joyland wins Jury Prize in Un Certain Regard section

Saim Sadiq's first feature film Joyland won the Jury Prize in the Un Certain Regard section of the competition at the 75th Cannes Film Festival.

The Pakistani film is the first to compete at the festival. It was also awarded the Cannes 'Queer Palm' prize for Best LGBTIQ+,  "queer" or feminist-themed movie.

Sadiq's feature, starring Rasti Farooq, Alina Khan, Sarwat Gilani, Salmaan Peerzada, Sohail Sameer, Sania Saeed and Ali Junejo, is set in Lahore and follows the Rana family who is expecting the birth of a boy to continue their family line. Instead, the “youngest son secretly joins an erotic dance theatre and falls for an ambitious trans starlet. Their impossible love story slowly illuminates the entire Rana family’s desire for a sexual rebellion”.

Les Pires (The Worst Ones) by Lise Akoka and Romane Gueret was awarded the Un Certain Regard Prize. The Best Director Prize went to Alexandru Belc for Metronom. The Best Performance Prize was jointly awarded to Corsage's Vicky Krieps and Harka's Adam Bessa. The Best Screenplay Prize went to Mediterranean Fever by Maha Haj, while the Coup de Coeur Prize went to Rodeo by Lola Quivoron.

This year, the Un Certain Regard section comprised 20 features, seven of which were first films also competing for the Caméra d'Or. The jury was led by actress-filmmaker Valeria Golino and included director Debra Granik, actress Joanna Kulig, actor-singer Benjamin Biolay and actor Edgar Ramirez.