With great charm and humour, Helen Mirren expressed her gratitude for the award, with which FilmFest Hamburg honours her extraordinary lifetime achievement. “I accept this award with great pride,” said the actress on stage. She appeared particularly moved by a cinematic retrospective of her career, which spans more than six decades: the wonderful thing about her work, she said, is that it endures.

The laudatory speech was delivered by Iris Berben, who highlighted Mirren’s great versatility and the humanity of her characters. Mirren does not simply play queens, detectives or writers, but transforms them into people full of strength, contradictions, humour and vulnerability, said Berben.

Following the award ceremony, FilmFest Hamburg screened Anton Corbijn’s A Talent for Murder, in which Mirren portrays the writer Patricia Highsmith. The film is due to be released in German cinemas on 5 November.

The Douglas Sirk Award has been presented since 1995 to individuals who have made an outstanding contribution to film culture and the film industry. Previous winners include, amongst others, Sandra Hüller, Tilda Swinton, Jodie Foster, Catherine Deneuve, Wim Wenders and Jim Jarmusch.