[4] Italian filmmaker Roberto Rossellini served as jury president for the main competition.

Italian filmmakers Paolo and Vittorio Taviani won the Palme d'Or, the festival's top prize, for their drama film Padre Padrone.

A new non-competitive section, Le Passé composé, was held only at this edition, focusing on compilations.

This section, along with Les Yeux fertiles and L'Air du temps of the previous two years, were later integrated into the Un Certain Regard in 1978.

[5][6] The festival opened with The Bishop's Bedroom by Dino Risi,[7][8] and closed with Slap Shot by George Roy Hill.