04/08/2025 - The Bosnian festival will celebrate the US actor and his contribution to the film industry

Actor Willem Dafoe (© 2023 Fabrizio de Gennaro per Cineuropa - fadege.it, @fadege.it)

After Italian filmmaker Paolo Sorrentino (see the news), Swedish actor Stellan Skarsgård (see the news) and English actor Ray Winstone (see the news), the 31st Sarajevo Film Festival has announced that US actor Willem Dafoe will be honoured with the Honorary Heart of Sarajevo Award.

“Willem Dafoe returns to the Sarajevo Film Festival after 25 years, and it is a great honour and pleasure for us to present him with the Honorary Heart of Sarajevo. His body of work is something to which every actor aspires. Every time he steps in front of the camera, he demonstrates that he is a true master of his craft. Whether starring in a Hollywood blockbuster or a low-budget independent film, his characters are always complex, emotional and unforgettable,” says Jovan Marjanović, director of the Sarajevo Film Festival.

Dafoe has been recognised with four Academy Award nominations: Best Leading Actor for his role as Vincent van Gogh in At Eternity's Gate [+see also:
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film profile] (also a Golden Globe nomination), as well as Best Actor in a Supporting Role for Platoon, Shadow of the Vampire (for which he also received Golden Globe and Screen Actors Guild nominations) and The Florida Project (also Golden Globe and Screen Actors Guild nominations). Dafoe is also the recipient of two Independent Spirit Awards, the Venice Film Festival Volpi Cup and a Berlinale Honorary Golden Bear for Lifetime Achievement. That adventurous spirit continues this year with Miguel Angel Jimenéz’s The Birthday Party, Kent Jones’ Late Fame, Gastón Solnicki’s The Souffleur, Nadia Latif’s The Man in My Basement and Jennifer Peedom’s Tenzing, and he will soon film Bárbara Paz’s Cuddle as well as Robert Eggers’ Werwulf, marking his fourth collaboration with the director, which will be followed by his adaptation of A Christmas Carol for Warner Bros. Most recently, Dafoe was named the artistic director of the theatre department for the Venice Biennale’s 2025 and 2026 seasons.

The Honorary Heart of Sarajevo, established in 2005, recognises individuals who have made exceptional contributions to cinema and supported the development of the film industry.