Xuanhua and Tilda Swinton Receive Venice Film Festival Lifetime Achievement Award

Selected as the Recipient of the 'Honorary Golden Lion Award'

Director Xuanhua (left) coaching acting in the movie 'Simply Life'

Director Xie Anhua (73) of the film "Women in Their Forties" and actress Tilda Swinton (59) will receive honorary awards at the 77th Venice International Film Festival.

The festival organizing committee announced on the 20th (local time) that the two filmmakers have been selected as recipients of the "Honorary Golden Lion" award. Director Xie Anhua is a pioneer of the Hong Kong New Wave. She has built her own cinematic world by emphasizing a unique style and artistry, resisting the trends of commercialism. Her representative works include "The Black Rose" (1987), "Women in Their Forties" (1995), "Half a Life" (1997), and "The Simple Life" (2011). The film "The Golden Era," which she directed in 2014, was also screened as the closing film of this festival. The committee described her as "one of the most respected directors in Asia today."

Tilda Swinton, who appeared in the movie 'Okja'

Co-recipient Swinton debuted in 1986 with "Caravaggio" and has appeared in about seventy films across various genres. She gained high popularity in Korea for starring in director Bong Joon-ho's films "Snowpiercer" (2013) and "Okja" (2017). She won the Volpi Cup for Best Actress at this festival in 1991 for "Edward II."

This year's Venice Film Festival will be held from September 2 to 12. It attracts attention as the first major global film event since the COVID-19 pandemic. However, due to the impact of COVID-19, the number of official section invited films is expected to be lower than in previous years. The official competition lineup will be announced on the 28th.