Riz Ahmed will be recognised with achievement award at Locarna Film Festival

Riz Ahmed will be recognised for his contribution to movies at the 76th Locarno Film Festival.

According to Variety, the Sound of Metal actor will reportedly be presented with the Excellence Award Davide Campari at the festival.

It is also reported that the opening ceremony will premiere Yann Mounir Demange’s semi-autobiographical short film Dammi, in which British actor Ahmed appeared alongside Isabelle Adjani, Souheila Yacoub, Sandor Funtek and Suzy Bemba.

In a statement shared by Variety, Locarno noted that, besides acting, Ahmed also has a parallel career in music, “making rap another medium for his personal message”.

Therefore, the ceremony will also screen Bassam Tariq’s 2020 rapper drama Mughal Mowgli, in which Ahmed was starred in and also produced as well as co-wrote it.

The other is the short The Long Goodbye which Ahmed co-wrote, produced and starred in, and it was directed in 2021 by Aneil Karia.

“Ahmed is a brilliant and versatile talent in cinema today,” said Locarno artistic director Giona A. Nazzaro, in a statement.

He stated, “Chameleon-like, he can move from blockbuster to auteur movies, equally at ease on stage or TV, rapping with a mike or intervening as executive producer.”

“Already with one Academy Award under his belt, not to mention a pile of other prizes, he is the embodiment of a kind of cinema that is becoming better, more receptive, finally able to listen to new voices. Riz Ahmed is the face of a future finally becoming possible,” added Nazzaro.

Meanwhile, the festival will be held between August 2 and 12.