PARIS (AFP) - Hollywood actresses Cate Blanchett, Kristen Stewart and Lea Seydoux will head a starry and majority-female jury at the Cannes film festival next month, the organisers said on Wednesday (April 18).

American writer-director Ava DuVernay of Selma fame and Burundian singer and composer Khadja Nin complete the five women on the nine-person jury that will decide the top Palme d'Or prize.

The annual festival in the French Riviera runs from May 8 to 19 this year. It began as an art house showcase more than 70 years ago and has increasingly attracted more commercial movies and top celebrities to its red carpets.