British filmmaker Andrea Arnold is set to receive the Golden Coach Award at this year's Directors Fortnight, which runs alongside the Cannes Film Festival. The ceremony will take place on May 15 during the opening ceremony for Directors' Fortnight. The honorary award, handed out by the governing body of the Cannes sidebar the Society of French Directors (SFR), launched in 2002 and is handed out to filmmakers boasting 'innovative qualities, courage and independent-mindedness of his or her work.'
The French guild described Arnold as an 'avid explorer of the fringes of society' and 'a dynamiter of social film codes' who has 'a knack of sounding out the power of bodies and souls.' Arnold's latest film, 'Bird,' is rumored to be in the pipeline for this year's competition roster at the Cannes Film Festival.
'From 'Milk' to 'Red Road,' from 'Wuthering Heights' to 'American Honey,' you scrutinize society from every angle, travelling through times and environments, and you embark us with powerful female characters,' reads the letter from the SFR board, which includes Steve Achlepo, Thomas Bidegain and Cédric Klapisch, among others.
'Your singular take on mise-en-scène, your will to explore reality and give it a new shape in fiction as well as in documentary are a testament to your exacting gaze, both aesthetically and politically,' the statement continues. 'We love the bravery and freedom of your work, your subtle art of contrast in the field of desire and revolt. And we are amazed by your constant ability to reinvent yourself, as if to question your filmmaking every time.'
Recent honorees include Souleymane Cisse, Kelly Reichardt, Frederick Wiseman, John Carpenter and Martin Scorsese.
