(Berlin) Martin Scorsese will be honored for his body of work at the Berlin International Film Festival in February, organizers announced Thursday.
The 81-year-old American director, whose extensive body of work ranges from decades-old classics like Taxi Driver and Raging Bull to this year’s The American Note, will receive an “Honorary Golden Bear” on February 20, the the most prestigious award at the Berlinale.
“Martin Scorsese is an unrivaled role model for all those who view cinema as the art of shaping a story in a way that is both utterly personal and universal,” said festival leaders Mariette Rissenbeek and Carlo Chatrian. In a press release, they described the American filmmaker as “a good friend of the festival”.
The organizers also stressed that Martin Scorsese “is also very committed to cinematic heritage”, recalling his support for extensive restoration work with the Film Foundation.
Scorsese won the Academy Award for Best Director in 2007 for The Departed. His Taxi Driver won the Palme d’Or at Cannes in 1976.
The Honorary Golden Bear, created in 1982, is usually awarded to an actress or actor, but a few filmmakers have also received it, notably Oliver Stone (1990), Francesco Rosi (2008), Hanna Schygulla (2010 ), Ken Loach (2014), Wim Wenders (2015) and Steven Spielberg (2023).
The Berlinale, the first of the major European film festivals of the year, will take place from February 15 to 25. Actress Lupita Nyong’o will chair the jury.
This will be the last edition of the festival under the direction of the Rissenbeek-Chatrian duo. Germany’s culture minister announced last week that Tricia Tuttle, former director of the London Film Festival, would take over in Berlin in April.
