The Sarajevo Film Festival (SFF) will honour Mexican actor, director and producer Diego Luna at its 32nd edition that will kick off on August 14, as well as Iranian Oscar-winning filmmaker and screenwriter Asghar Farhadi, the SFF said on Monday.
"Through his exceptional body of work, Diego Luna has left a profound mark on contemporary cinema, and it is our great honour to present him with the Honorary Heart of Sarajevo,” SFF Director Jovan Marjanovic said in a statement.
Luna's work across film, television and theatre has been recognised for its creative range, social consciousness and a commitment to expand Latino and Hispanic representation on international stages, the SFF noted. He has been nominated for Golden Globe and Emmy awards for the Disney+ series "Andor" in which he starred and executive-produced.
Luna will present "Ashes," his latest directorial feature which premiered at this year’s Cannes Film Festival, and give a masterclass.
The SFF will also honour Iran's Farhadi, who has received many international accolades including two Academy Awards, a Golden Bear at the Berlin Film Festival and the award for best screenwriter at the Cannes Film Festival, among others. In 2018, Farhadi chaired the SFF jury for the feature film competition; the role that will be taken this year by British actress Emily Watson. This year, a retrospective of Farhadi's work will be presented as part of the festival’s Tribute To programme.
The Sarajevo festival, which was founded towards the end of Bosnia's 1992-1995 war by a group of film enthusiasts, will be opened by "Fatherland," the new film by Oscar-winning director Pawel Pawlikowski, which rounds up his Cold War trilogy.
“It seems like the film suits Sarajevo Film Festival because it's steeped in history and in conflict, in situations which are still within living memory in Bosnia. It feels like a good context to show the film," Pawlikowski said in a statement.
