Belgian director Luc Dardenne, who directed last year's Palme d'Or-winning feature Rosetta, will this year head the Cannes jury for the short film and Cinefoundation sections.

Other members of the jury include directors Francesca Comencini, Claire Denis and Abderrahmane Sissako and the actress Mira Sorvino.

Dardenne, who shared writing, producing and directing credits on Rosetta with his brother Jean-Pierre, has also written and directed several documentaries including Le Chant Du Rossignol in 1978 and Lecons D'une Universite Volante in 1982. In addition to his own film-making career he runs a screen-writing course at the Brussels Free University.

The Cannes prize-giving tasks were separated between two juries for the first time last year, with one for the main competition and the second covering shorts and the inaugural film-schools section Cinefoundation. The second jury was headed by Jean-Pierre Jeunet and Thomas Vinterberg last year.

The three Cinefoundation award winners will be announced on the evening of Friday May 19. The awards for the short films in competition will be announced Sunday May 21 during the festival's main closing ceremony.