Iranian-French performer Golshifteh Farahani accepted Locarno Film Festival’s Excellence Award Davide Campari on Wednesday night during the 78th edition’s opening ceremony in Switzerland, a celebration that set a reflective tone for the ten-day event. The honor, presented on the Piazza Grande, recognizes careers that shape contemporary cinema; recent laureates include Mélanie Laurent and Ethan Hawke.
In an emotional address Farahani called cinema “a refuge in this dark world,” dedicating the prize to “everyone searching for light,” and evoking the destruction still unfolding in Gaza. Festival artistic director Giona A. Nazzaro praised her “charismatic and multifaceted” work, saying her performances “leave a deep mark on the eyes and hearts of film lovers.”
The Tehran-born actor first broke through at 14 in Dariush Mehrjui’s The Pear Tree and later appeared in titles ranging from Ridley Scott’s Body of Lies to Jim Jarmusch’s Paterson. Exiled since 2008 after clashing with Iranian authorities, she has often spoken about art as a safe space amid repression, arguing that “we stitch back what they tear apart.”
Farahani will screen Julia Ducournau’s Cannes competition title Alpha for Locarno audiences and join a public conversation on August 8. The festival, running August 6–16, will also salute Emma Thompson with the Leopard Club Award and host premieres on its landmark outdoor screen as part of a program designed to spotlight risk-taking storytellers.
