Venice Film Festival to honor Werner Herzog with its lifetime achievement award

Venice Film Festival is set to confer filmmaker Werner Herzog with the award Golden Lion for Lifetime Achievement this year. The festival is set to take place from August 27 to September 06.

Speaking about the recognition, Herzog stated, "I feel deeply honored to receive a Lifetime Achievement Honorary Golden Lion by the Venice Biennale. I have always tried to be a Good Soldier of Cinema, and this feels like a medal for my work. However, I have not gone into retirement. I work as always."

Herzog is best known for his 1972 film Aguirre, the Wrath of God, which follows Spanish conquistadors' maddening search for El Dorado, the mythical city of gold. According to reports, Herzog put his lead actor Klaus Kinski at gunpoint to complete the shoot of the 1972 film, something which the filmmaker denied.

Herzog has two projects in the pipeline: Bucking Fastard, his comeback film as a director, starring real-life siblings Rooney and Kate Mara, and his first animation film The Twilight World based on his eponymous book. Herzog will also serve as a narrator for The Twilight World, besides doing a voice role in filmmaker Bong Joon Ho’s next animated feature, The Valley.