Last night, legendary British filmmaker Ken Loach took home the Palme d’Or for his new film I, Daniel Blake at Cannes Film Festival. Loach is only one of eight filmmakers to win the coveted award twice having won 10 years ago for The Wind that Shakes the Barley.
“We weren’t expecting to come back. We are quietly stunned,” Loach confessed at a press conference after the ceremony. I, Daniel Blake depicts the struggles of a disabled carpenter trying to access benefits within a stifling austerity system.
In his acceptance speech he praised the festival for supporting “cinema to represent the integrity of the people against those who are powerful and mighty... We must give a message of hope, we must say another world is possible and necessary.”
The production of I, Daniel Blake is featured in our upcoming documentary Versus: The life and Films of Ken Loach. Versus is a funny, provocative and revealing account of the life and career of one of Britain’s foremost filmmakers, Ken Loach, as he turns eighty and looks back at over fifty years of filmmaking.
Versus: The Life and Films of Ken Loach comes to UK cinemas on 3 June. On Sunday 5 June we are hosting a special series of Pay-What-You-Can screenings across the UK.