Israel's Ari Folman to open Directors' Fortnight at Cannes

The latest film by Israeli director Ari Folman will open the Directors' Fortnight at the Cannes film festival next month, organisers said on Friday. Folman, whose "The Congress" will be screened on May 16, is no stranger to Cannes. His anti-war film "Waltz with Bashir" was one of the films selected to compete for the top Palme d'Or prize in 2008. Adapted from the sci-fi novel "The Futurological Congress" by Polish author Stanislaw Lem, Folman's latest film is described as part animation and part live action film starring Robin Wright, Paul Giamatti, Jon Hamm, Harvey Keitel, Danny Huston and Frances Fisher. "Waltz with Bashir", an animated documentary, told the story of Folman's bid to unlock his repressed memories of his presence at the 1982 Sabra and Shatila massacres of Palestinian refugees by an Israeli-backed Christian militia. The other films in the Directors' Fortnight will be announced on Tuesday. The Cannes film festival runs from May 15 to 26.