Mati Diop made history at Cannes this year as the first black female filmmaker to screen a feature in competition at the fest, where she took home the Grand Prix for “Atlantics,” her feature directorial debut. Now the French-Senegalese director is set to make history at the Toronto International Film Festival. She’s been named as the inaugural recipient of the fest’s Mary Pickford Award. Named in honor of Pickford, a Toronto native and actor, producer, and Co-Founder of United Artists, the award is supported by MGM and “recognizes an emerging female talent who is making groundbreaking strides in the industry,” a press release details.

“We’re thrilled to honor the incredible Mati Diop as our inaugural Mary Pickford Award recipient, as United Artists marks its centennial year,” said Joana Vicente, Executive Director and Co-Head of TIFF. “She is a vibrant and important new voice within the industry and one to watch closely.”

TIFF Co-Head and Artistic Director Cameron Bailey added, “Mati Diop’s film ‘Atlantics’ is a profound and unsettling work of art. We know this is just the start for such an original and authentic voice, and we’re delighted to celebrate her success at this year’s TIFF Tribute Gala.”

“Atlantics” tells the story of Ada (Mame Bineta Sane), a young woman whose lover has disappeared. Everyone in her village, Dakar, Senegal, believes he is dead, as does Ada, until she receives a strange text message with his signature. The drama will make its North American premiere at TIFF. Diop has previously screened shorts “Atlantiques” and “Big in Vietnam” and the documentary “A Thousand Suns” at the fest.

TIFF runs from September 5-15. Other women-directed films set to screen include Kasi Lemmons’ Harriet Tubman biopic, “Harriet,” Marjane Satrapi’s Marie Curie biopic, “Radioactive,” and Marielle Heller’s “A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood,” a look inside a journalist’s life-changing friendship with Mister Rogers.