The 78th Venice International Film Festival opened on Wednesday with a rich line-up and the return of Hollywood stars who had largely deserted it last year due to the COVID-19 pandemic, as cinema looks forward to shaking off the crisis triggered by the health emergency.

Organizers hope a strict coronavirus protocol will help keep the 11-day movie marathon trouble free. Theaters are operating at half capacity and a wall is blocking the view to the red carpet to stop crowds from gathering outside the main venue, Palazzo del Cinema, to get an autograph. Face masks and a health passport – or a negative COVID-19 test – are required to attend screenings.

"Everybody everywhere is eager to come back, to reopen, to restart, to release the films that stayed on the shelf for a year and a half or maybe two years," said festival director Alberto Barbera.

He said that most of the world premieres to be screened at the festival were already sold out, and promised that there would be no shortage of celebrities – even though fans will not be able to get anywhere near them.

Altogether 21 films are vying for the prestigious prize of Golden Lion, including Spanish director Pedro Almodovar's "Parallel Mothers," Jane Campion's "The Power of the Dog," starring Benedict Cumberbatch, and Maggie Gyllenhaal's debut feature "The Lost Daughter," based on an Elena Ferrante novel and starring Olivia Colman and Dakota Johnson.

Meanwhile, Ridley Scott's medieval drama "The Last Duel," which stars Matt Damon, Ben Affleck and Adam Driver, and Denis Villeneuve's adaptation of the science fiction classic "Dune," featuring up-and-coming star Chalamet and Zendaya, will screen out of competition. 

This year's jury will be headed by South Korean director Bong Joon-ho, best known as the director of the 2019 black comedy thriller "Parasite."

(With input from Reuters)