In his first appearance as the president of this year’s Venice Film Festival competition jury, veteran filmmaker Alexander Payne fielded some heavy questions about everything from the war in Gaza and his personal views on the ongoing conflict to the role of movies today amid a constantly shifting industry.

In fact, questions about Gaza dominated the start of the presser held inside the Lido’s Palazzo del Casinó — a Q&A session that saw Payne joined by festival director Alberto Barbera and fellow jury presidents of alternate sections, including filmmakers Charlotte Wells, Julia Ducournau, and Tommaso Santambrogio — but Payne opted not to weigh in at length.

He first was asked about how the jury will be approaching “what’s happening in the world” with conflicts raging in Ukraine and Gaza, but he deflected by suggesting it was a better question for Barbera as a festival director has “their fingers on the pulse of cinema” and how it reflects culture, society and politics. Then another journalist asked a more pointed question: What are your views on Gaza?

“Quite frankly, I feel unprepared for that question,” Payne explained. “I’m here to judge and talk about cinema. My political views, I’m sure, are the same as many of yours. I have to think about that for a while to give you a measured response.”

Barbera then took the microphone to offer a more detailed response in Italian, adding that the festival has “not hesitated” to say that they are against the “enormous suffering” that is happening in Palestine, particularly with the deaths of civilians and “especially of children.”

The Venice Film Festival’s competition jury finds Payne serving as president with members including Brazilian actress Fernanda Torres, Iranian auteur Mohammad Rasoulof, French director and screenwriter Stéphane Brizé, Italian director and screenwriter Maura Delpero, Palme d’Or winning Romanian director Cristian Mungiu and Chinese actress Zhao Tao.

The 82nd edition of the Venice Film Festival runs Aug. 27-Sept. 6.