1955 Cannes Film Festival
The 8th Cannes Film Festival was held from 26 April to 10 May 1955. The Golden Palm went to the US film Marty by Delbert Mann. The festival opened with Du rififi chez les hommes by Jules Dassin and closed with Carmen Jones by Otto Preminger.
Until the 1954 Festival, the whimsical way various prizes were being awarded had drawn much criticism. In answer to this, from 1955 onwards, the Jury was composed of foreign celebrities from the film industry. In 1955, the first Palme d'Or was awarded, as the highest prize of the Festival.
Jury
The following people were appointed as the Jury of the 1955 competition:Feature films
- Marcel Pagnol Jury President
- Marcel Achard
- Juan Antonio Bardem
- A. Dignimont
- Jacques-Pierre Frogerais
- Leopold Lindtberg
- Anatole Litvak
- Isa Miranda
- Leonard Mosley
- Jean Nery
- Sergei Yutkevich
- Jacques Doniol-Valcroze
- Herman van der Horst
- Marcel Ichac
- Karl Korn
- Jean Perdrix
Feature film competition
- Bad Day at Black Rock by John Sturges
- Biraj Bahu by Bimal Roy
- A Big Family by Iosif Kheifits
- Black Dossier by André Cayatte
- Boot Polish by Prakash Arora
- Carmen Jones by Otto Preminger
- The Crucified Lovers by Kenji Mizoguchi
- The Country Girl by George Seaton
- Det brenner i natt! by Arne Skouen
- Dog's Heads by Martin Frič
- East of Eden by Elia Kazan
- The End of the Affair by Edward Dmytryk
- Un extraño en la escalera by Tulio Demicheli
- The Gold of Naples by Vittorio De Sica
- Heroes of Shipka by Sergei Vasilyev
- Hill 24 Doesn't Answer by Thorold Dickinson
- Jedda by Charles Chauvel
- A Kid for Two Farthings by Carol Reed
- Life or Death by Kamal El Sheikh
- Liliomfi by Károly Makk
- Lost Continent by Leonardo Bonzi, Mario Craveri, Enrico Gras, Angelo Francesco Lavagnino and Giorgio Moser
- by Helmut Käutner
- Marty by Delbert Mann
- The Miracle of Marcelino by Ladislao Vajda
- Die Mücke by Walter Reisch
- Onna no koyomi by Seiji Hisamatsu
- Rififi by Jules Dassin
- Romeo and Juliet by Lev Arnshtam and Leonid Lavrovsky
- Roots by Benito Alazraki
- Samba Fantástico by Jean Manzon and René Persin
- Senhime by Keigo Kimura
- The Sign of Venus by Dino Risi
- Stella by Michael Cacoyannis
Films out of competition
- Italia K2 by Marcello Balbi
- Les trésors de la Mer Rouge by Michel Rocca
Short film competition
- 2'21"6 Butterfly Stroke: Dolphin-Kick by T. Mijata
- A esperanca e' eterna by Marcos Margulies
- Aggtelek by Ágoston Kollányi
- Arte popular Portuguesa by João Mendes
- Black on White by John Read
- Blinkity Blank by Norman McLaren
- Bow Bells by Anthony Simmons
- Bronsalder by Lars Krantz
- Bush Doctor by Jean P. Palardy
- Cyrk by Włodzimierz Haupe
- De sable et de feu by Jean Jabely
- Den standhaftige Tinnsoldat by Ivo Caprino
- Der Schatz des Abendlandes by Ernst Stephan Niessner, Edmund Von Hammer
- Dobreho vojak svejk by Jiri Trnka
- Dock by Emile Degelin
- Guardians of the Soil by David Millin
- Host by Thor Arnijot Udvang, Carsten Munch
- Images préhistoriques by Arcady & Thomas L. Rowe
- In cantec si dans by Ion Bostan
- Isole di fuoco by Vittorio De Seta
- Jakten over sporene by Erik Borge
- L'homme dans la lumière by René Lucot
- La ciudad blanca by Waldo Cerruto
- La grande pèche by Henri Fabiani
- Le conte de ma vie by Jørgen Roos
- Les jardiniers d'Allah by Michel Clarence
- Niedzielny poranek by Andrzej Munk
- Nos forets by Auguste Kern
- Op de spitsen by Rudi Hornecker
- Opici cisar by Jan Lacko
- Island of Sakhalin by Vassili Katanian, Eldar Ryazanov
- Pierre Romain desfossez by Gérard De Boe
- Pulsschlag der Zeit by René Boeniger
- Symphony of Life by T.A. Abraham
- The Golden River by Pittamandalam Venktatachalapathy Pathy
- The Story of Light by Joop Geesink
- Tickets Please by Emil Nofal
- Trois coquillages de Tunisie by Roger Mauge
- When Magoo Flew by Pete Burness
- Zolotaya antilopa by Lev Atamanov
Awards
Official awards
The following films and people received the 1955 awards:- Palme d'Or: Marty by Delbert Mann
- Best Director:
- *Jules Dassin for Rififi
- *Sergei Vasilyev for Heroes of Shipka
- Tribute: Hill 24 Doesn't Answer by Thorold Dickinson
- Best Acting Award:
- *Spencer Tracy for Bad Day at Black Rock
- * The entire male and female cast of A Big Family for their performances
- Jury Special Prize: Lost Continent by Leonardo Bonzi, Mario Craveri, Enrico Gras, Angelo Francesco Lavagnino and Giorgio Moser
- Best Dramatic Film: East of Eden by Elia Kazan
- Best Lyrical Film: Romeo and Juliet by Lev Arnshtam and Leonid Lavrovsky
- Distinction to two children:
- *Kumari Naaz for her child actress performance in Boot Polish
- *Pablito Calvo for his child actor performance in Marcelino pan y vino
- Short Film Palme d'Or: Blinkity Blank by Norman McLaren
- Special Distinction: Zolotaya Antilopa by Lev Atamanov
- Best Short Documentary: Isole di fuoco by Vittorio De Seta
- Prix du reportage filmé: La grande pêche by Henri Fabiani
Independent awards
- Death of a Cyclist by Juan Antonio Bardem
- Roots by Benito Alazraki
- Marty by Delbert Mann
- Special Mention: The Miracle of Marcelino by Ladislao Vajda
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