FIPRESCI Celebrates its 100th Anniversary at the Venice Film Festival

With Awards to Artistic Director Alberto Barbera and Award-Winning Filmmaker Tsai Ming-liang

The International Federation of Film Critics will celebrate its 100^th Anniversary at the Venice Film Festival with two initiatives: a cocktail reception on August 29 at 5 pm at Casa IWonder, where Artistic Director Alberto Barbera will receive FIPRESCI’s 100 Special Award for his support and contribution to the art of film criticism, and on September 3 at 11:15 am at Sala Corinto, with a special introduction of 1994 Golden Lion’s winner Vive L’Amour (Àiqíng wànsuì) at Venezia Classici, where its director Tsai Ming-liang will receive FIPRESCI’s 100 Lifetime Achievement Award.

One hundred years ago, film critics from Paris and Brussels founded a Professional Association of the Film Press. Soon after, Belgian journalists took the initiative in making contact with others in foreign countries. Today, a hundred years later, FIPRESCI prides itself in uniting colleagues from more than 80 countries worldwide, safeguarding the freedom and ethics of film criticism and encouraging the exchange of ideas and experiences, thereby creating, outside all ideological and political distinctions, a new foundation for a permanent dialogue with cinema at its core.

Entering the new centennial, FIPRESCI is going through fundamental changes. On January 1st, 2025, Klaus Eder, known and loved by many, resigned from the position of General Secretary that he held for 38 years. When he stepped into this role, FIPRESCI had its jury established at 12 international festivals. Today, our federation has its representatives at more than 80 festivals worldwide, and this number is constantly growing. By discovering new destinations, we’re broadening opportunities for colleagues in different parts of the world, and most importantly we are continuing dialogue through watching great cinema.

This September we are proud to celebrate our Federation by recognizing the unique contribution to film criticism of two professionals in different but interrelated fields: Alberto Barbera, born a film critic and risen to Artistic Director of the Venice Film Festival, and Tsai Ming-liang, award-winning filmmaker. Both have significantly contributed to cultivating and refining our understanding and appreciation of cinema’s uniqueness as both an art form and a cultural and sociological vantage point. As critics, they gave us plenty of food for thought, and we are proud to honour both on the occasion of our biggest birthday (so far).

For further information:
Paola Casella and Elena Rubashevska, Vice Presidents FIPRESCI
info@fipresci.org

©FIPRESCI 2025