The 71st annual Cannes Film Festival took place from 8 to 19 May 2018. Australian actress Cate Blanchett served as jury president for the main competition. Japanese filmmaker Hirokazu Kore-eda won the Palme d'Or, the festival's top prize, for his drama film Shoplifters, marking Japan's first win after more than twenty years.

The official festival poster features Jean-Paul Belmondo and Anna Karina from Jean-Luc Godard's 1965 film Pierrot le Fou. It is the second time the festival poster was inspired by Godard's film after his 1963 film Contempt at the 2016 festival. According to festival's official statement, the poster is inspired by and paid tribute to the work of French photographer Georges Pierre.

The festival opened with Everybody Knows by Asghar Farhadi, and closed with The Man Who Killed Don Quixote by Terry Gilliam.

The following films were selected to compete for the Palme d'Or:

The following films were selected to compete in the Un Certain Regard section:

The following films were selected to be screened out of competition:

The following films were selected be shown in the special screenings section:

The full line-up for the Cannes Classics section was announced on 23 April 2018.