The Zurich International Film Festival will honor English composer Rachel Portman with its career achievement award at its 2022 edition.
Portman will receive the honor in Zurich on Sept. 29, during the festival’s 10th annual international film music competition, for which she will preside over the competition jury.
Portman made history in 1996 when she became the first female composer to win an Oscar for best original score, taking the Academy Award for her music to Douglas McGrath’s period drama Emma starring Gwyneth Paltrow and Ewan McGregor. She also received best original score Oscar nominations for her work on Lasse Hallström’s The Cider House Rules and Chocolat. Her music for Dee Rees’ HBO biopic Bessie, starring Queen Latifah as legendary blues singer Bessie Smith, won Portman an Emmy for best original dramatic score for a limited series, movie or a special. She is also a two-time BAFTA nominee, for her work on Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit and The Woman in Black.
In her career, Portman has worked with the likes of Mike Leigh (Life Is Sweet), Jonathan Demme (The Manchurian Candidate, Beloved), Lynne Ramsay (Ratcatcher), Mike Newell (Mona Lisa Smile), Robert Redford (The Legend of Bagger Vance), Lone Sherfig (Their Finest), Wayne Wang (The Joy Luck Club) and Jeremiah Chechik (Benny and Joon).
Portman’s first original score was for Michael Hoffman’s feature debut Privileged in 1982. Her Hollywood breakthrough came with the score to Beeban Kidron’s 1992 drama Used People.
In a statement unveiling her lifetime achievement prize, the Zurich Film Festival’s artistic director Christian Jungen called Portman “a truly extraordinary and inspiring composer.”
Portman said she felt “most humbled to be chosen for such a prestigious award,” adding it was a “privilege” to serve as head of the international film music jury.
In addition to her film work, Portman has written an opera of Saint Exupery’s Little Prince for the Houston Grand Opera, an oratorio of The Water Diviner’s Tale for the BBC Proms, and the piece The First Morning of The World for Joyce Di Donato’s Eden project.
Zurich’s international film music competition will see young composers score original music for the same short film. The 2022 title is Barney Cokeliss’ short The Foundling. Three of the submitted scores will be nominated and performed live in Zurich by conductor Frank Strobel and the Tonhalle Orchestra Zurich for the competition jury.
The Zurich International Film Festival runs from Sept. 22 to Oct. 2.
