Oscar-winning actor Casey Affleck is set to receive the Festival President’s Award at this year’s 52nd Karlovy Vary International Film Festival, the festival announced Monday. The award is a special honor given by the Czech festival to an actor, director or producer who is considered to have contributed in a fundamental way to the development of contemporary world cinema.
Affleck, who won the Academy Award this year for his leading role in Kenneth Lonergan’s “Manchester by the Sea,” will introduce a screening of David Lowery’s “A Ghost Story” at the festival, in which he stars.
“We regard Casey Affleck as one of the most intriguing actors in contemporary American film,” said Jiří Bartoška, president of the festival. “We are very glad [he] is accepting the Karlovy Vary President’s Award and will present ‘A Ghost Story’ at our 52nd edition.”
“A Ghost Story” re-teams Affleck with Lowery and co-star Rooney Mara following their 2013 collaboration “Ain’t Them Bodies Saints,” which also played at Karlovy Vary. The new film saw its world premiere at the Sundance Film Festival in January. Lowery and producers Toby Halbrooks and James M. Johnston will also be on hand to present the film at Karlovy Vary.
Affleck and Lowery recently reunited for a third time on “Old Man and the Gun,” which co-stars Robert Redford and Sissy Spacek and recently completed production. Affleck is also currently in post-production on his latest directorial feature, “Light of My Life,” which he also wrote and stars in.
“A Ghost Story” is set for US release through A24 on July 7.