The 73rd edition of the San Sebastian International Film Festival in northern Spain experienced one of its highlights on Friday night with the presentation of the Donostia Award to Jennifer Lawrence.
At the age of 35, the American actress became the youngest performer to receive this recognition for her career, which already includes an Oscar, a Golden Globe and enormous public support for a long series of films that have marked an entire generation.
“Our freedom of speech is under attack in the United States.”
“It’s a huge honour,” the actress told a pre-ceremony press conference, where she also reflected on the state of culture in her country: “Our freedom of speech is under attack in America, including in the world of film, where we realise that we are all connected and need empathy and freedom.”
Lawrence presented her latest film, ‘Kill Me Love’, which represents a turning point in her career and in which she participates as a producer, at the event. The performer encouraged young filmmakers to keep fighting for their dreams: “Learn, go to casting tests, keep trying. But above all, watching films is very important”.
When asked about the role of women in Hollywood, Lawrence noted that creators such as Greta Gerwig, a renowned actress and independent film director, “have shown that when we are given the opportunity, the world benefits, because more stories are told and there are more perspectives.
Oscar winner for ‘The Bright Side of Things’ in 2012, Lawrence has starred in acclaimed titles such as ‘The Great American Swindle’, ‘Don’t Look Up’, ‘Joy’ and ‘The Hunger Games’ trilogy.
In addition, with her production company Excellent Cadaver she has promoted projects such as ‘Causeway’, ‘Sin malos rollos’ and documentaries of social impact such as ‘Zurawski v. Texas’ or ‘Bread & Roses’, which was distinguished with a Peabody Award.
The actress joins a long list of personalities who have received the Donostia Award, such as Penélope Cruz, Julia Roberts and Viggo Mortensen. In San Sebastian, her award crowned a festival marked by political gestures, especially in relation to the war in Gaza.
A festival marked by protests in support of Palestine
The strong political tone that was to mark this year’s San Sebastian Festival was already present at the opening of the event, on 19 September, when some 2,000 people gathered outside the Kursaal to express their support for the Palestinian people.
“Free Palestine” was the slogan chanted as the guests paraded down the red carpet. Inside, presenters Silvia Abril, Toni Acosta and Itziar Ituño condemned “the genocide carried out by Israel in Palestine” and called for a round of applause “to be heard even in Palestine”.
On the same day, Pedro and Agustín Almodóvar wore stickers with the slogan “Genocide Stop” and shouted “Long live free Palestine” during the Donostia award ceremony for producer Esther García. The honoree herself recalled that “films are tools to make the world a more beautiful and fairer place” and urged to “fight to stop the genocide in Gaza now”.
The protests multiplied throughout the week. On 21 September, Juliette Binoche called from the stage for “an end to the massacre in Palestine”, while Iranian filmmaker Jafar Panahi denounced the insensitivity of international politics.
Last Tuesday, directors such as José María Goenaga and Aitor Arregi, in competition with ‘Maspalomas’, defended the embargo on Israel: “It is time to take a clear position”, said Goenaga. The following day, the director of ‘Los Tigres’, Alberto Rodríguez, was categorical: “The continuation of the genocide in Gaza is a disgrace. We are all accomplices if we don’t act”.
Also on Wednesday, in a gesture reminiscent of Javier Bardem’s keffiyah at the Emmy Awards, Eduard Fernández took to the stage wearing a Palestinian headscarf during the National Film Award ceremony. He read out the names of the children who died in Gaza and warned: “Some will say ‘what a pain in the ass’, but we can’t stop saying it to preserve our dignity”.
San Sebastian, in this edition, has shown that cinema not only celebrates careers such as that of Jennifer Lawrence, but also becomes a loudspeaker for common causes, above all in the world of the seventh art.