On the occasion of the Hamburg Filmfest (September 23-30), the French director will be honored with the Douglas Sirk Award, given each year to a personality who has rendered outstanding services to film culture.

Now with his latest film, “5x2” showcased at the festival, François Ozon is well known in Germany, with his recent films, “8 Women” and “Swimming Pool” attracting close to 2 million spectators in the country. “5x2” is slated for release on November 18, distributed by Prokino.

In addition to this event, the Hamburg Filmfest is also presenting a rich selection of French films this year, including “Genesis” by Claude Nuridsany and Marie Pérennou (in the presence of its directors; distributed in Germany by Senator Filmverleih), “Le Mur” by Simone Bitton (in the presence of its director; distributed in Germany by Ventura Film), “Comme une image” (“Like an Image”) by Agnès Jaoui (in the presence of Marilou Berry; distributed in Germany by Prokino) , “Podium” by Yann Moix (in the presence of the director and actor Benoît Poelvoorde), “Alexandrie… New York” by Youssef Chahine, “Casablanca Driver” by Maurice Barthélémy and “Or (Mon Tresor)” by Keren Yedaya.

And to top this off, “A Common Thread” by Eléonore Faucher (screened in the presence of the director; distributed in Germany by Delphi Filmverleih), “Aaltra” by Benoît Delepine and Gustave Kervern and “L’Autre” by Benoît Mariage are in the running for the Critics’ Prize at the festival.