After Jodie Foster in 2021, Oscar-winning actor Forest Whitaker will be the guest of honor at the opening ceremony of the 75th Cannes Film Festival (May 17-28, 2022)broadcast live by France Télévisions and Brut.
Just like Jeanne Moreau, Bernardo Bertolucci, Manoel de Oliveira, Jean-Pierre Léaud, Agnès Varda or even Alain Delon, he will receive an honorary Palme d’or, which “salutes a brilliant artistic career and a rare personality as well as a discreet but assertive commitment to the great humanitarian actions of our time”.
oscar winner @ForestWhitaker will receive an Honorary Palme d’or at #Cannes2022 during the Opening Ceremony on May 17. This award pays tribute to a sparkling artistic journey and a rare personality with a strong humanitarian commitment.
@connectWPDI
► https://t.co/eP7vHMUreD pic.twitter.com/DoEb6HtlEh— Cannes Film Festival (@Festival_Cannes) May 5, 2022
On this occasion, For the Sake of Peace (In the name of peace), directed by Christophe Castagne and Thomas Sametin and produced by Forest Whitaker, will be screened on Wednesday May 18, 2022 in a special screening.
A great actor
Forest Whitaker is a legend that impresses the film, the spectators, the decision-makers of government authorities. His artistic destiny and aura were fully revealed when he first came to the Cannes Film Festival in 1988, where he embodied the genius Charlie Parker, a visionary jazzman who raised the saxophone to a new level of expression. Clint Eastwood then offers him his first big role, even if he had already stood out with Martin Scorsese in The color of moneyOliver Stone in Platoon or Barry Levinson in Good Morning, Viet Nam.
At 27, he received the Interpretation Prize for this bird of anthology. The whole world discovers an actor of phenomenal power, in tune with a sensitivity that undeniably imposes a form of grace, a block of emotion that conveys all human fragility in voice and gaze. “By welcoming Forest Whitaker to Cannes, I was able to meet and admire an artist with immense charisma and a luminous presence.declares Thierry Frémaux, General Delegate. His filmography is both dazzling and fully accomplished.” he adds.
34 years ago, coming to Cannes for the first time changed my life and confirmed to me that devoting myself to seeking different relationships with humanity through cinema was the right decision. It’s always a privilege to come back for this beautiful festival, to exhibit my work but also to be inspired by the greatest artists of this world. I am incredibly honored to be celebrated as part of the Festival’s 75th anniversary.
Forest WhitakerHonorary Palme d’Or at the 75th Cannes Film Festival
A man of conviction
By awarding an honorary Palme d’or to Forest Whitaker, the Cannes Film Festival also wishes to salute the actor’s humanist convictions. “I was also able to closely observe his convictions as a man, the attention he pays to the younger generation and his faith in a better world, to which he himself contributes – and concretely, through his commitment – to improving . Rare are the artists who find such a beautiful balance. Forest manages to do so and leads by example”, emphasizes Thierry Frémeaux.
“It is a tradition for the Cannes Film Festival to honor those who have made its history and Forest Whitaker is one of them, adds Pierre Lescure, president of the Cannes Film Festival. He is this young actor that Clint Eastwood discovered in bird and this man who widens his vision of the world to offer it to those who suffer and to those who fight”, he adds.
In 2012, the artist founded the Whitaker Peace & Development Initiative (WPDI), an NGO that operates in Uganda, South Sudan, Mexico, South Africa, Cameroon, Chad and Gabon and even in Los Angeles. Working for peace and economic resilience in territories marked by armed conflict and violence, WPDI has, in 10 years, reached more than one and a half million people, thanks to a network of more than 2,500 young leaders. and 14 learning centers.
An impressive filmography
Forest Whitaker returned six times in the official selection including four in competition after bird, with A Rage in Harlem (The Queen of Apples) by Bill Duke, Body Snatchers by Abel Ferrara and the unclassifiable Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai by Jim Jarmusch.
The Crying Game, Smoke, Panic Room, Phone Game, The Last King of Scotland (Oscar and Golden Globe for Best Actor), At the End of the Night, Rage in the Belly, Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, the Marvel Black Panther, The Butler, Respect : these few films speak of his eclecticism and his love of the splits. Finally, let’s quote Zulu by Jérôme Salle which was screened at the Closing of the 2013 Festival.
His acting filmography was soon joined by a work of director and producer. Forest Whitaker signs four feature films (Strapped, Where are the men?, So goes life, Stars in your eyes) and notably produces the overwhelming Fruitvale Stationthe first film by Ryan Coogler presented at In some perspectivethe euphoric Dope or more recently The songs my brothers taught me by Chloe Zhao.