Legendary French actress Isabelle Huppert with be honored at the Santa Barbara International Film Festival this year, where she will receive the Montecito Award for her role in the controversial film “Elle,” and for being “a person in the entertainment industry who has made a great contribution to film.”
“She’s one of the greatest actors ever, and her legacy to cinema is unparalleled,” stated SBIFF Executive Director Roger Durling. “Any film that includes Ms. Huppert is without a doubt immediately worth watching. She elevates any work — she’s elevated cinema. It’s overdue to celebrate this giant.”
Huppert’s career has spanned decades and continents. She has 15 César Award nominations, the French equivalent of the Academy Awards, and a win for her performance in 1995’s “La Céremonie.” She has won Best Actress at the Cannes Film Festival twice, and is an Officer of both the National Order of Merit and the Legion of Honour. She’s starred in two well-received films this year: Mia Hansen-Løve’s “Things to Come” and Paul Verhoeven’s controversial “Elle.”
Huppert was just nominated for a Golden Globe Award this morning for Best Actress in a Drama for her “Elle.” The psychological thriller tells the story of a successful, professional woman who is raped in her home. “Being attacked in her home by an unknown assailant changes Michèle’s life forever,” the film’s official description details. “When she resolutely tracks the man down, they are both drawn into a curious and thrilling game-a game that may, at any moment, spiral out of control.”
Huppert has been honored by AFI Fest this year and has had a retrospective devoted to her films put on at the Metrograph in NYC. The Montecito Award will be presented to her at a ceremony on Wednesday, February 8, 2017. Previous female recipients include Jennifer Aniston, Oprah Winfrey, Julianne Moore, Kate Winslet, and Naomi Watts.
