Chloe Zhao made history at a Venice Film Festival that was already quite historic, as one of the first major festivals to hold in-person screenings since the COVID-19 pandemic's outbreak worldwide. The Eternals director became the first woman in a decade to win the festival's top prize, taking the prestigious Golden Lion for her film Nomadland.

The drama stars Frances McDormand as a widow in a Nevada mining town devastated in the wake of the Great Recession, who decides to embrace life on the road. The film, which premiered at Venice and the Toronto International Film Festival on the same day, is only the fifth movie directed by a woman to win the Golden Lion, and the first since Sofia Coppola's Somewhere in 2010. Nearly half of this year's main competition titles at Venice were helmed by women, a major step forward for the festival in terms of representation.

In stark contrast to last year's winner, Joker, Nomadland has earned unanimous critical praise so far, including from EW's Leah Greenblatt, who called it "a film that feels both necessary and sublime." Meanwhile at Venice, Vanessa Kirby claimed the Best Actress prize for Pieces of a Woman, edging out McDormand's acclaimed performance. New Order, from Mexican director Michel Franco, took the runner-up Silver Lion Grand Jury Prize. This year's jury, including president Cate Blanchett, handed out the prizes in a half-empty theater, with many winners accepting their awards virtually in light of the pandemic.

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Director Chloé Zhao's #Nomadland wins top prize at the 2020 Venice Film Festival, moving the film into a pole position for the 2021 #Oscars. More on the film and other festival winners, at the link in bio.⁠ ⁠ 📸: @joepug

A post shared by Hollywood Reporter (@hollywoodreporter) on Sep 12, 2020 at 7:40pm PDT

The festival instituted major alterations in the name of health and safety this year, including temperature checks and outdoor screenings limited to half capacity, while requiring social distancing and mask-wearing. While Venice is traditionally a major launchpad for Oscar season, it remains to be seen what this year's awards season will look like as many theatrical releases remain in limbo.