Preeminent Actor, director and producer Robert De Niro, two-time Academy Award® winner, five-time Academy Award® nominee and Golden Globe® winner, will receive the first Honorary Heart of Sarajevo - Lifetime Achievement Award for his extraordinary contribution to the art of film at Opening Night of the 22nd edition of Sarajevo Film Festival taking place from the 12th to the 20th of August.  

"We are honored to have Robert De Niro as the first recipient of the Honorary Heart of Sarajevo – Lifetime Achievement Award," said Mirsad Purivatra, Director of the Sarajevo Film Festival.  “Ever since we met ten years ago at the Tribeca Film Festival, we were hopeful that Robert De Niro would be able to come to Sarajevo. That day has come and as a film professional and a great lover of film, I am sure that when I say this, I am speaking for both the audience and film professionals too - we are truly excited!”. 

In honor of its 40th Anniversary, De Niro will present Martin Scorsese’s restored “Taxi Driver,” in which he starred. The film will be screened as part of the prestigious Open Air Program, the festival’s largest screening venue, where De Niro will also receive the Honorary Heart of Sarajevo in front of an audience of 3,000 film enthusiasts.