Barbra Streisand scooped an honorary Palme d’Or at the prestigious Cannes Film Festival – but was unable to collect the award in person because of a knee injury.
The veteran music and film star became the third recipient of the honorary Palme d’Or – after Peter Jackson and John Travolta – a lifetime achievement award that celebrates the winners’ extraordinary careers.
Streisand had already announced that she would not be able to attend Saturday’s ceremony on advice from her doctors, so French actor Isabelle Huppert picked up the Golden Palm on the star’s behalf.
Although she could not attend the event in person, the multi-award winning singer, actor and director addressed the ceremony by video link.
Streisand, whose career spans seven decades, recounted to the audience her first experiences watching films as a teenager: “I was mesmerised by those images on the screen,” she said. “They were so powerful that they are still in my head. I wanted to be an actress and live in those other more interesting worlds.”
She continued: “I didn’t realise at the time, but I was thinking like a director; trying to figure out how to tell the story - and I had stories I wanted to tell.”
Streisand, 84, has directed three films, Yentl in 1983 for which she won a Golden Globe, The Prince of Tides in 1991, and The Mirror Has Two Faces in 1996.
Looking back on Yentl and the beginning of her directing career, she said: “I was a woman, which was an obstacle to people.
“Even worse, [I] was an actress who wanted to direct. So every studio turned me down. And for 15 years the project was on the verge of collapsing. But I had to make this movie.”
Streisand has appeared in nearly two dozen films, including Funny Girl in 1968, The Way We Were in 1973, and A Star Is Born in 1976.
She concluded her address saying: “In this crazy, volatile world that seems more fractured every day, it’s reassuring to see the compelling movies at this festival, by artists from many countries. Film has that magical ability to unite us, opening our hearts and minds.”
In a nod to the host country, she added: “I’m so proud to be part of this community, so merci beaucoup and vive la cinéma!”
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