The annual international festival, to be held on the glitzy island of Lido from Sept 1-11, will be headed by Jury President Bong Joon Ho, the South Korean director whose “Parasite” won an Oscar for best film in 2019.

Zhao, who was born in China but lives and works in the United States, collected Venice’s top prize last year, when “Nomadland” took home a Golden Lion for best film before going on to win a slew of awards at the Oscars this year, including best director and best picture.

Venice’s six-person jury also includes directors Saverio Costanzo from Italy and Romania’s Alexander Nanau, British actress and singer Cynthia Erivo, Belgian-French actress Virginie Efira and Canadian actress Sarah Gadon.

The Venice Film Festival is the world’s oldest and among the most prestigious, rivalling Cannes and Berlin.