Jane Campion to be presented with Cannes director honour

Campion won an Oscar for the screenplay for The Piano

New Zealand filmmaker Jane Campion is to be presented with the Carrosse d'Or from the Society of Film Directors at next month's Cannes Film Festival.

The director is the only woman to have won the coveted Palme d'Or - or best film prize - for her movie The Piano.

Campion will be at the festival as president of the Cinefondation and short film jury.

Launched in 2002, past winners of the Carrosse d'Or - or Golden Coach - include actor Clint Eastwood.

Last year's winner was Turkish director Nuri Bilge Ceylan - whose film Once Upon a Time in Anatolia was selected as Turkey's official submission for the best foreign language film Oscar.

In 2011, the jailed Iranian director Jafar Panahi won the award.

Panahi, who also won the Camera d'Or at Cannes in 1995 for The White Balloon, was convicted in Iran of making propaganda against the ruling regime and jailed for six years.

Campion's first short film, Peel, won the short film prize at Cannes in 1986.

In 1993 The Piano won the Palme d'Or with actress Holly Hunter named best actress. The film earned Campion a best director nomination at the Oscars and she won the Academy Award for best original screenplay.

She also worked with Kate Winslet on the 1999 film Holy Smoke and Meg Ryan in the 2003 erotic thriller In the Cut.

Her film Bright Star, which starred Skyfall star Ben Whishaw as the poet John Keats, also showed at Cannes in 2009.

It has also been announced that French actress Audrey Tautou will host this year's opening and closing ceremonies on 15 and 26 May.