Cannes Winners Added to Sydney Film Festival 2014 Program

The day before kick-off, the Sydney Film Festival has gone and added another five films to its program — five juicy numbers that picked up awards and got critics talking at Cannes.

That includes the big prize winner, Winter Sleep, which took out the Palme d'Or. From Once Upon a Time in Anatolia director Nuri Bilge Ceylan, the film is set in Cappadocia and follows the journey of a former actor with an inflated sense of self (what never). The fifth film from 25-year-old Xavier Dolan, Mommy, is also in the new crop, making it his second film at the SFF along with Tom at the Farm. On top of Dolan's usual aesthetic verdancy, Mommy has attracted attention for its 1:1 aspect ratio, a la Instagram.

Then there's Danish werewolf romance When Animals Dream, which has been likened to clean-lined horror Let the Right One In; the Ecumenical Jury Prize Winner Timbuktu, which looks at the increasingly absurd rules imposed on a village governed by religious fundamentalists; and Special Jury Prize Winner The Salt of the Earth, where Wim Wenders examines the life and legacy of Brazilian artist Sebastiao Salgado (famous for his Hieronymous Bosch-like images of the Brazilian gold mine Serra Pelada).

Unfortunately not making the boat trip over from Cannes is Ryan Gosling's directorial debut, Lost River. The film got so totally ripped apart by critics and audiences, we now especially can't wait to see it.

For the full SFF program, check out the festival website. Or have a read of our top film picks of the festival and our guide to the SFF Hub.