Paul Verhoeven, Isabelle Adjani to receive career tributes at Marrakech

PanARMENIAN.Net - The 16th Marrakech Film Festival, which runs Dec. 2-10, will include career tributes to helmers Paul Verhoeven and Shinya Tsukamoto and thesps Isabelle Adjani and Abderrahim Tounsi, Variety reports.

Since its inception in 2001, one of the main objectives of the Marrakech fest has been to serve as a crossroads of world cinema, which is once again reflected in this year’s choice of homages, complemented by a country tribute to Russian cinema.

In addition to his tribute, Dutch director Verhoeven will also give a master class during the event, in which he will talk about his extensive career between Europe and the U.S, including his Isabelle Huppert-starrer “Elle”, which is France’s foreign-language Oscar entry. Huppert served as jury president at the 2014 Marrakech Fest.

A radical and innovative Japanese director and actor, Tsukamoto recently starred in Martin Scorsese’s “Silence” and is one of Quentin Tarantino’s favorite helmers.

Adjani has won France’s best actress César Award on five occasions and was also made a Chevalier of the Legion of Honour in 2010, and a Commander of the Order of Arts and Letters in 2014. Adjani’s father was from the Maghreb region – Algeria – and she has lensed several pics in Morocco, included “Ishtar” in which she co-starred with Dustin Hoffman.

Abderrahim Tounsi (aka “Abderraouf”) is one of Morocco’s best-known comedians, whose long career spans film and TV. In 2011, he was named best Moroccan humorist of the 20th century by the Nuits de l’Humour Arabe foundation in Antwerp.

The festival will unveil its full lineup on Nov. 22.