The Sarajevo Film Festival, set to take place from 14-21 August, has announced that Mexican filmmaker Michel Franco will receive the Honorary Heart of Sarajevo and a retrospective of his works in the festival’s “Tribute to” programme.

Franco served as president of the jury of the Feature Competition Programme in 2017, when his Cannes Un Certain Regard Jury Prize-winning film April's Daughter screened at the 3,000-seat Open Air Cinema. He is currently in post-production with the highly anticipated Nuevo Orden.

Meanwhile, the festival is pressing on with the plans for a combined on-site and online edition, in accordance with the situation caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Festival director Mirsad Purivatra says: “COVID-19 has affected all aspects of life worldwide, and the Sarajevo Film Festival has thus been required to go through a transformation as well. That means smaller groups, fewer guests, and no receptions or parties as we know them, but as always, lots of high-quality films, great screenings and film talks. Our mission remains the same as it has been since the day our festival was founded in a besieged city – to celebrate life, humanity and the arts. Now, once again, we have an opportunity to use culture to fight adversity – by organising a festival in line with the advice of health experts and behaving responsibly within well-defined guidelines, we can show how social cohesion can be built even when we need to maintain physical distance.”