Türkiye’s Merve Dizdar won best actress at the Cannes Film Festival with "About Dry Grasses," ("Kuru Otlar Üstune").

The drama focuses on a young teacher who hopes to be appointed to the Turkish metropolis Istanbul after his mandatory assignment at a small village in eastern Türkiye. The film, jointly produced by the Turkish public broadcaster TRT and ARTE France, premiered Friday. The more than three-hour film stars Deniz Celiloğlu, Merve Dizdar, Musab Ekici and Ece Bağcı.

The award for best director went to Vietnamese-born French film director and screenwriter Tran Anh Hung for the "Pot-au-Feu" ("La Passion De Dodin Bouffant"). Set in 1885, the film depicts a romance between a cook and the gourmet she works for.

French director Justine Triet has won the Palme d'Or for "Anatomy of a Fall" ("L'anatomie d'une chute").

A total of 19 films were selected to run for the prestigious award Palme d’Or at the 76th Cannes Film Festival, which kicked off Tuesday.

The award for best screenplay went to Japanese Yuji Sakamoto for "Kaibutsu" ("Monster"), directed by Hirokazu Kore-eda.

The Cannes Film Festival is annually held in Cannes, France, which previews new films of all genres, including documentaries, from around the world.