Head of the jury Julianne Moore and fellow jurors, “A Separation” actor Leila Hatami and filmmakers Audrey Diwan, Mariano Cohn, Leonardo Di Costanzo and Rodrigo Sorogoyen, were present as was “Thor: Love and Thunder” actor Tessa Thompson, who is serving on the festival’s Horizons strand jury.

The evening, titled “Cinema Danieli – An Unforgettable Story,” on the terrace of the plush Hotel Danieli, which turns 200 this year, has become a festival tradition dating back 13 years.

It was introduced by Claudio Staderini, director of the Danieli, who described the hotel as a shooting and residential choice of many of the biggest movie stars in the world.

“We are happy to be here without masks, without COVID – it’s a situation under control,” Barbera said. “We have 11 days in front of us of screenings, events, red carpets, parties, there is very high expectation about the festival.”

“We are impressed at the lineup of the film festival,” said Variety co-editor-in-chief Ramin Setoodeh. “This is the official launch of the Oscar season for a reason. We have so many movie stars coming to Venice and we are excited to be covering the ins and outs of the festival.”

The party was attended by most of the jury members across the festival strands and the festival’s top management.

Attendees included Lady Bacardi, Isabel Coixet, Antonio Campos, Laura Bispuri, Marta Bencich, Rosalie Varda, Claudia Capodiferro, Luca Carta, Giulia Rosmarini, Angela Savoldi, Giulia D’agnolo Vallan, Evelyn O’Neill, Valentina Greggio, Ana Rocha de Sousa, Carmela Cotrone, Margarita Garcia Roayo, Francesca Montorio, Michela Campagnolo, Giulio Base, Tiziana Rocca, Edouard Waintrop, Jan Matuszynski, Claudia Gioia and Raffaele Cinotti.