The 62nd Cannes Film Festival was held from 13 May to 24 May 2009. French actress Isabelle Huppert was the President of the Jury. Twenty films from thirteen countries were selected to compete for the Palme d'Or. The awards were announced on 23 May. The film The White Ribbon (Das weiße Band), directed by Michael Haneke won the Palme d'Or.
The festival opened with Pixar's film Up, directed by Pete Docter and Bob Peterson. This marked the first time that an animated film or a film in 3-D opened the festival. The festival closed with Coco Chanel & Igor Stravinsky directed by Jan Kounen.
American director Clint Eastwood became the second recipient of the Honorary Palme d'Or, an award given to directors who had established a significant body of work without ever winning a competitive Palme d'Or.
Juries
Main competition
The following people were appointed as the Jury for the feature films of the 2009 Official Selection: Isabelle Huppert, French actress - Jury President Asia Argento, Italian actress Nuri Bilge Ceylan, Turkish filmmaker Lee Chang-dong, South Korean director James Gray, American director Hanif Kureishi, British screenwriter Shu Qi, Taiwanese actress Robin Wright, American actress Sharmila Tagore, Indian actress
Un Certain Regard
Paolo Sorrentino, Italian filmmaker - Jury President
Uma Da Cunha, Indian casting director and production consultant
Julie Gayet, French actress and film producer) Piers Handling, Canadian director and CEO of TIFF Marit Kapla, Swedish culture journalist
Caméra d'Or
Roschdy Zem, French actor and filmmaker - Jury President
Diane Baratier, French cinematographer
Olivier Chiavassa, member of the fédération des Industries Techniques
Sandrine Ray, French director
Charles Tesson, French critic
Edouard Waintrop, Festival Fribourg
Cinéfondation and short films
John Boorman, English director - Jury President
Bertrand Bonello, French director
Férid Boughedir, Tunisian director
Leonor Silveira, Portuguese actress
Zhang Ziyi, Chinese actress and model
Official selection
In Competition
The following feature films competed for the Palme d'Or:
Un Certain Regard
The following films were selected for the competition of Un Certain Regard:
Out of Competition
The following films were selected to be screened out of competition:
Special Screenings
The following films were selected for the Special Screenings:
Cinéfondation
The following short films were selected for the competition of Cinéfondation:
Short film competition
The following short films competed for the Short Film Palme d'Or:
Cannes Classics
The Festival Cannes Classics places the spotlight on documentaries about cinema and restored masterworks from the past.
Cinéma de la Plage
The Cinéma de la Plage is a part of the Official Selection. The outdoors screenings at the beach cinema of Cannes are open to the public.
Parallel sections
Critics' Week
The following films were screened for the 48th Critics' Week (48e Semaine de la Critique):
Feature film competition
Adieu Gary by Nassim Amaouche (France) Altiplano by Peter Brosens, Jessica Woodworth (Belgium, Germany, Netherlands) Huacho by Alejandro Fernández Almendras (Chile, France, Germany) Lost Persons Area by Caroline Strubbe (Belgium) Mal día para pescar by Álvaro Brechner (Uruguay, Spain) Ordinary People by Vladimir Perisic (Serbia, France, Switzerland) Whisper with the Wind (Sirta la gal ba) by Shahram Alidi (Iraq)
Short film competition
It's Free for Girls (C’est gratuit pour les filles) by Marie Amachoukeli, Claire Burger (France) Logorama by François Alaux, Hervé de Crécy, Ludovic Houplain (H5) (France) Noche adentro by Pablo Lamar (Paraguay, Argentina) Runaway by Cordell Barker (Canada) Seeds of the Fall (Slitage) by Patrik Eklund (Sweden) Together by Eicke Bettinga (Germany, United Kingdom) Tulum (La Virée) by Dalibor Matanic (Croatia)
Special screenings
Hierro by Gabe Ibáñez (Spain) Lascars (Round da Way) by Albert Pereira-Lazaro, Emmanuel Klotz (France) The Ordinary People (Rien de personnel) by Mathias Gokalp (France)
Short films
1989 by Camilo Matiz (Colombia) 6 Hours by Seong-hyeok Moon (South Korea) La Baie du renard by Grégoire Colin (France) Elo by Vera Egito (Brazil) Espalhadas pelo Ar (Spread Through the Air) by Vera Egito (Brazil) Faiblesses by Nicolas Giraud (France) Les Miettes (Crumbs) by Pierre Pinaud (France)