A first-time filmmaker makes a mark in Cannes competition with a Senegalese drama

By JAKE COYLE
AP Film Writer

CANNES, France (AP) — Most filmmakers in the Cannes Film Festival’s top-rung competition lineup are well-known directors who have been around for decades. One dramatic exception this year is Ramata-Toulaye Sy, a French-Senegalese filmmaker whose first film, “Banel & Adama,” landed among the 21 films competing for the Palme d’Or. The 36-year-old Sy is the sole first-timer in Cannes’ main lineup this year. She is also only the second Black female director to ever compete for the Palme.