Jackie Chan to receive special award at Locarno Film Festival
What's the story
Veteran actor Jackie Chan will be awarded the Pardo alla Carriera career achievement award at the 78th Locarno Film Festival.
The award ceremony will be held on August 6, during the festival's run between August 6-August 16.
Not only will Chan receive the award, he will also present his films Project A (1983) and Police Story (1985) as part of a tribute.
A Q&A session is also slated for August 10.
Artistic recognition
Chan 'reinvented martial arts cinema': Locarno Festival
Speaking of Chan's contribution to cinema, Giona A Nazzaro, the Artistic Director of the film festival, praised the action star.
Nazzaro said Chan is a "key figure in contemporary Asian cinema" and his influence has "rewritten the rules of Hollywood cinema."
In the statement, Nazzaro also detailed Chan's journey, from his days at the China Drama Academy to being a stuntman in King Hu's A Touch of Zen.
He said Chan continually "reinvented martial arts cinema."
Unique contribution
'In cinema, there's before Jackie Chan and after Jackie Chan'
Nazzaro also praised Chan's distinctive contribution to cinema, saying, "A pure comic talent, he has absorbed the lessons of Buster Keaton and early cinema as his own."
He further added that Chan has created "masterpieces that have captivated audiences around the world."
"With a sensibility worthy of the classic musical, he shaped an unprecedented poetics of the human body in motion."
"In cinema, there is a before Jackie Chan and an after Jackie Chan."
Past honorees
Locarno Film Festival's history of honoring cinematic icons
The Locarno Film Festival has a legacy of honoring cinematic legends with the Pardo alla Carriera award.
Earlier, the award has been given to Francesco Rosi, Claude Goretta, Bruno Ganz, Harry Belafonte, Peter-Christian Fueter, Sergio Castellitto, Victor Erice, Mario Adorf, Dante Spinotti, Costa-Gavras, Tsai Ming-liang, and Shah Rukh Khan in 2024.
Last year, Alfonso Cuarón was awarded the Lifetime Achievement award at Locarno.