James Gray honored with Locarno Film Festival career award
James Gray will be honored with the Locarno Film Festival's Pardo alla Carriera lifetime career award on Aug. 9 at the 79th edition of the Swiss event. The U.S. auteur will also present his Cannes-launched thriller "Paper Tiger" at the Piazza Grande outdoor venue, while two earlier Gray titles join the tribute lineup.
Key Takeaways
- Gray receives the Pardo alla Carriera award on Aug. 9 during Locarno's 79th edition, running Aug. 5–15.
- "Paper Tiger" screens at Piazza Grande after its May Cannes launch; it opens the 64th New York Film Festival on Sept. 25.
- Locarno will also screen "We Own the Night" (2007) and "Two Lovers" (2008) as part of the tribute.
- Previous Pardo alla Carriera honorees include Shah Rukh Khan, Jackie Chan, Jane Birkin, and Costa-Gavras.
- Festival leaders praised Gray as one of American cinema's most distinctive voices, rooted in New York's Russian-Jewish community.
What Is the Locarno Pardo alla Carriera Award?
The Pardo alla Carriera is Locarno's lifetime career honor, recognizing filmmakers whose bodies of work have shaped international cinema. Past recipients include Francesco Rosi, Bruno Ganz, Claudia Cardinale, Johnnie To, Harry Belafonte, Jane Birkin, Costa-Gavras, Tsai Ming-liang, Shah Rukh Khan, and Jackie Chan. Gray joins that roster as Locarno celebrates a director whose career spans more than three decades.
For readers tracking festival season news across Streaming & TV Alerts, the Locarno tribute underscores how major European festivals continue to elevate veteran American auteurs alongside new releases.
Which James Gray Films Will Screen at Locarno?
Gray's most recent work, "Paper Tiger," will headline the tribute. The film launched in May from Cannes and will screen at Locarno's Piazza Grande. Set in 1986, it follows brothers Irwin (Miles Teller) and Gary Pearl (Adam Driver). Irwin becomes entangled with the Russian mob after a get-rich-quick scheme to clean up the Gowanus Canal, and former cop Gary is the only one who can get him out of trouble.
"Paper Tiger" will have its North American premiere as the opening night film of the 64th New York Film Festival on Sept. 25. Two additional Gray titles, "We Own the Night" (2007) and "Two Lovers" (2008), will also screen at Locarno as part of the career celebration.
What Did Festival Leaders Say About James Gray?
In an official statement cited by Variety, Locarno noted that Gray won the Silver Lion at Venice for "Little Odessa" (1994) at age 25. The festival praised films including "The Yards" (2000), "We Own the Night," "Two Lovers," and "The Immigrant" (2013), calling Gray one of American cinema's most artistically distinctive voices.
Locarno highlighted Gray's explorations of the American dream, which expanded over the past decade into colonial exploration, space travel, and racial prejudice through "The Lost City of Z" (2016), "Ad Astra" (2019), and "Armageddon Time" (2022). Artistic director Giona A. Nazzaro called Gray "the last great novelist of American cinema" and praised his humanist sensibility and cinephile knowledge.
When Does the 79th Locarno Film Festival Run?
The 79th edition of Locarno will run Aug. 5–15 in Switzerland. Gray's Pardo alla Carriera ceremony is scheduled for Aug. 9, placing the career award at the heart of the festival's second week. Between the Piazza Grande "Paper Tiger" presentation and retrospective screenings, Locarno offers a concentrated look at Gray's evolution from Brighton Beach realism to genre-spanning epic storytelling.