site.btaDirector Agnieszka Holland to Be Honored with CineLibri Lifetime Achievement Award, Honorary Doctor's Degree from Sofia Academy for Theatre and Film Arts

One of the most prominent figures in contemporary European cinema - director Agnieszka Holland - will be honored with the Lifetime Achievement Award of the CineLibri International Book to Film Festival in Sofia and with an honorary doctor's title the National Academy for Theatre and Film Arts (NATFA) this October, the Colibri publisher announced.

The Polish filmmaker is coming to Bulgaria at the invitation of the organizers of the 11th edition of CineLibri and the second edition of the BOB (Based-On-Books) International Forum, dedicated to the art of literary adaptation for the screen. As part of the festival, the Bulgarian premiere of her latest film - the biographical drama Franz, dedicated to Franz Kafka, will also take place.

Franz is a co-production of the Czechia, Poland, France, Germany, and Turkiye, and will have its world premiere at the 50th anniversary edition of the Toronto International Film Festival. The screenplay was written by Marek Epstein in collaboration with Holland, with Mike Downey as producer. The role of Kafka is played by German actor Idan Weiss. The Sofia screening will take place in the presence of the director and will be followed by a discussion with the audience, the organizers said.

With this year’s CineLibri award, Holland joins the ranks of past honorees such as Ian McEwan, Volker Schlondorff, and Jiri Menzel. The award ceremony will take place on October 24 in Hall 1 of the NDK convention centre.

The Academic Council of NATFA has also decided to award Holland the honorary title of Doctor Honoris Causa and the ceremony will be held on October 27.