the restoration of international prestige. In an attempt to create a more modern image of the festival, the neo-director created a committee of experts to assist in selecting the works and to increase the diversity of submissions to the festival. In 2004 an independent and parallel film festival, Giornate degli Autori, was created in association with the festival. To celebrate the 70th edition of the festival, in 2013 the new section "Venezia 70 – Future Reloaded" was created. During the recent years, under the direction of Alberto Barbera, the festival established itself as an Oscars launchpad, increasing the presence of American movies and hosting the world premieres of Academy Award-winning films such as Gravity (2013), Birdman (2014), Spotlight (2015), La La Land (2016), The Shape of Water (2017), The Favourite (2018), Roma (2018), Joker (2019), Nomadland (2020) and Dune (2021). In 2017 a new section for virtual-reality (VR) films was introduced. In 2018 Roma by Alfonso Cuarón won the Golden Lion and became the first ever movie produced by Netflix to be awarded in a major film festival. Direction The president of the Venice Biennale represents the festival in front of its financial partner, the public authorities, and the media. He is chosen by the Italian Ministry of Cultural Heritage every 4 years. The current president is Roberto Cicutto, appointed on 27 January 2020. Previously the post has been held for 12 years by Paolo Baratta (2008–2020). The director of the Festival is responsible for coordinating the events and is chosen by the president of the Venice Biennale and its delegates. The current director Alberto Barbera was appointed on 27 December 2011. On 27 October 2020 Barbera's term was renewed for 4 more years until 2024. He previously held the position from 1998 to 2002. Festival programme The Venice Film Festival is organized in various sections: Official Selection - The main event of the festival. In Competition - About 21 films competing for the Golden Lion. Out of Competition - Maximum of 18 important works of the year will be presented but do not compete for the main prize. Orizzonti - The films that represent the latest trends in international cinema by young talents will be presented. Venice Classics - Selection of the finest restoration of classic films will be featured. Sconfini - Maximum of 10 works that typically includes art house and genre films, experimental works, TV series and