Roberto Benigni to Receive Golden Lion for Lifetime Achievement at Venice Film Festival

At the 78th Venice International Film Festival, scheduled from September 1 to 11, 2021, Italian actor and director Roberto Benigni will receive the Golden Lion for Lifetime Achievement. This honor coincides with the 700th anniversary of Dante Alighieri's passing. Benigni, who won an Oscar for Life Is Beautiful (1997), shared his overwhelming happiness upon receiving the news. Festival director Alberto Barbera highlighted Benigni's remarkable versatility. His career took off in the early 1970s, making his film debut in Berlinguer ti voglio bene (1977) and directing Tu mi turbi (1983). Life Is Beautiful garnered three Oscars in 1999 and remains the most-viewed Italian film globally. He has also earned multiple accolades, including the David di Donatello and César d'Honneur, and established Melampo Cinematografica in 1991.