This year's Stockholm Lifetime Achievement Award goes to one of our most challenging and respected filmmakers. During an exclusive seminar, after the premiere of her latest film Bastards, she will recieve the Bronze Horse and meet the audience.

Jury statement: ”Claire Denis refuses to close her eyes to the creative and destructive force unleashed by human weaknesses.  A bold explorer of postcolonial Africa and the dark corners of modern society, who invites the audience to an exposed universe that is beautiful and raw. This year's Lifetime Achievement Award goes to a filmmaker who continues to seek what others turn away from, always fearless and with a rare eye for visual poetry”.    

The French director Claire Denis made her feature debut in 1988 with Chocolat and followed up with a number of acclaimed films, such as Nénette and Boni (1996), Beau Travail (1999), 35 Shots of Rum (2008) and White Material. With more than 20 productions during 25 years, Claire Denis is now one of the leading directors in contemporary cinema and will be the first female director ever to receive the Stockholm Lifetime Achievement Award.

Claire Denis’ latest film Bastards (Les Salauds, 2013) is a powerful and complex film that revolves around a revenge theme. Vincent Lindon and Chiara Mastroianni play leading roles. The cinematography by her frequent collaborator Agnès Godard is a definite highlight of the film, forming an extraordinary portrait of Paris’ dark elements.

Face2Face and premiere of Bastards, Thursday Nov 7 at 6:00 pm at Skandia theatre. Swedish Distributor of Bastards: TriArt Film.

The Stockholm Lifetime Achievement Award is presented annually to honor and acknowledge a longstanding career and an outstanding achievement in cinema. The prestigious award, in the shape of a 7,3kg (16 lb) Bronze Horse is the heaviest film award in the world. It is also a paraphrase on a national design icon, the Swedish Dala horse, and was created by artist Fredrik Swärd. The price has previously been awarded to directors such as Jean-Luc Godard, Quentin Tarantino, David Cronenberg, David Lynch and Oliver Stone.