Sawt Falasteen - Scorsese to pick up honorary gong at Berlin film fest

The 74th annual event, Europe's first major cinema showcase of the year, said Scorsese, as "one of the most influential filmmakers in the world of cinema", would be handed the Honorary Golden Bear prize at a gala ceremony in the German capital on February 20.

"For anyone who considers cinema as the art of shaping a story in such a way that is both completely personal and universal, Martin Scorsese is an unmatched role model," festival chiefs Mariette Rissenbeek and Carlo Chatrian said in a statement.

"His films have accompanied our history as spectators and human beings, his characters have lived and grown within us, his view of history and mankind has helped us to understand and question who we are and where we come from."

They added it "is a great pleasure to welcome once more a good friend of the festival and offer him our most prestigious prize".

Beyond his own award-winning films such as "Taxi Driver", "Raging Bull" and "The Wolf of Wall Street", the festival praised Scorsese's efforts to restore and distribute classic motion pictures.

This year the festival awarded fellow Oscar-winning director Steven Spielberg its Honorary Golden Bear.

The Berlinale, running February 15-25, ranks along with Cannes and Venice among Europe's top film festivals.

Z.Ramadan--SF-PST