Fresh from a striking 10 Oscar nominations for Mad Max: Fury Road, director George Miller has been announced as president of the jury for the Cannes Film Festival.

The high-profile honour will see the Australian filmmaker return to the festival where Fury Road screened to acclaim out of competition last year before taking more than $US375 million in worldwide box office.

While unexpected for an action movie released months before Hollywood's other leading contenders, the accolades for Fury Road - and now Miller - have kept piling up during the awards season.

He is nominated for both best film and best director at the Academy Awards on February 28, with members of his crew also up for best cinematography, editing, production design, costume design, make-up and hairstyling, sound mixing, sound editing and visual effects.

Miller has previously won an Oscar for best animated feature for Happy Feet and has been nominated for producing and writing Babe and writing Lorenzo's Oil.

Fury Road also won best film, direction and six other awards at the Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts Awards in December and best film and direction at the AACTA international awards in Los Angeles last weekend.

While fans might have been hoping Miller would be working on a fifth Mad Max movie early this year, he will be heading to France for the 69th festival from May 11 to 22.

As jury president, he follows American filmmakers Joel and Ethan Coen, Jane Campion and Steven Spielberg in the three previous years.

The 70-year-old has served on Cannes competition juries twice: under jury president Ettore Scola​ in 1988 and under David Cronenberg in 1999.

"What an unmitigated delight!" Miller said of the invitation to head the  jury in a statement. "To be there in the middle of this storied festival at the unveiling of cinematic treasures from all over the planet.

"To spend time in passionate discourse with fellow members of the jury. Such an honour. I'll be there with bells on!"