FIPRESCI 90 Platinum Award: Costa-Gavras

Costa-Gavras. At the Bari International Film Festival (Italy, March 21-28, 2015), FIPRESCI celebrated its 90th anniversary with a series of masterclasses and award ceremonies dedicated to Alan Parker, Jean-Jacques Annaud, Ettore Scola, Andrzej Wajda, Edgar Reitz, Margarethe von Trotta and Nanni Moretti.

And to Costa-Gavras.

Motivation. “Tonight, the award for the 90th Anniversary of FIPRESCI is assigned to another great European film director, whose cinematic opus was mostly dedicated to political and social commitment:

Academy Award winner Costa-Gavras.

A film director who broke the mould and whom we are even more pleased to award here at Bif&st 2015, because he is dedicated to another among the founding fathers of European political cinema: Francesco Rosi.

Through stories full of honesty and free of compromises, Costa-Gavras analyzed and exposed the apparatus and distortions revolving around power, granting us fierce emotions.

Films such as “Z”, “The Confession”, “Music Box”, “Missing”, “Mad City”, “Amen” and “The Axe” – to name just a few titles of a career spanning over 40 years – are the greatest proof of the foresight and strength of this great director, whom we wish to honor for his courage and willingness to truthfully explore politics and power.”

Photo: FIPRESCI General Secretary Klaus Eder presents the “FIPRESCI 90 Platinum Award” at the Bari Petruzzelli Theater to Costa-Gavras.

See http://www.fipresci.org/festival-reports/2015/bari