The 9th Cannes Film Festival awarded the Palme d'Or to The Silent World and formally abolished Cold War-era censorship rules from its selection process.
Key Facts
- Edition
- 9th Cannes Film Festival
- Dates
- 23 April – 10 May 1956
- Palme d'Or winner
- The Silent World (Cousteau & Malle)
- Jury President
- Maurice Lehmann
- Opening film
- Marie Antoinette Queen of France (Delannoy)
- Closing film
- The Roof (Vittorio De Sica)
Location
Cause → Event → Consequence
Cold War tensions had led Cannes to adopt a rule allowing films to be withdrawn under certain conditions, largely to accommodate political sensitivities around American financial support. This rule was widely criticized within festival leadership as a form of censorship and had been a divisive issue since its introduction, displacing Eastern Bloc participants who felt Americans received preferential treatment.
The 9th Cannes Film Festival ran from 23 April to 10 May 1956, with Maurice Lehmann serving as jury president. The Palme d'Or was awarded to The Silent World, directed by Jacques-Yves Cousteau and Louis Malle. The festival opened with Jean Delannoy's Marie Antoinette Queen of France and closed with Vittorio De Sica's The Roof.
In 1956, festival organizers formally decided to eliminate all censorship provisions from the film selection process, ending the conditional withdrawal rule that had been in effect until 1955. This decision represented a move toward editorial independence, distancing the festival from Cold War political interference and reinforcing its identity as a platform for international cinema free from external political pressure.
Work
The Silent World
The Silent World won the Palme d'Or at the 9th Cannes Film Festival, and the festival itself marked a turning point by formally abolishing Cold War-era censorship rules from its selection process.