[3] The Grand Prix du Festival International du Film, then the fetival's main prize, was jointly awarded to American filmmaker Jerry Schatzberg for Scarecrow and British filmmaker Alan Bridges for The Hireling.

During this edition two new non-competitive sections were added: Étude et documents and Perspectives du Cinéma Français (which was started by the French Film Directors' Society and ran until 1991).

[4] This edition was notorious for the controversy around Alejandro Jodorowsky's The Holy Mountain screening due to the film's depiction of extreme violence.

[5] While British documentary Swastika by Philippe Mora caused disturbance among the audience by showing Adolf Hitler's daily and social life.

[6] The festival opened with Godspell by David Greene,[7] and closed with Lady Sings the Blues by Sidney J.