Kate Winslet honoured with Lifetime Achievement Award at Munich Film Festival

Oscar-winning actress Kate Winslet was honored with the CineMerit lifetime achievement award at the Munich International Film Festival on Tuesday night. She received a standing ovation from the crowd at Munich's Deutsches Theater, and introduced the European premiere of her latest film, Ellen Kuras' biopic Lee, in which she plays war photographer Lee Miller.

Winslet was presented with the award by her young German co-star from The Reader, David Kross. Kross recalled meeting Winslet when he was just 17 years old and praised her for her mentorship and support.

Winslet spoke passionately about her work on Lee, a project she has been working on for nearly a decade. She emphasized the challenges of making films as a woman and getting films made about women. She also detailed the film's long journey to the screen and the exhausting effort it took to get made.

Lee producer Kate Solomon praised Winslet for capturing Miller's empathy, which she said was the key element the photographer brought to her work. Solomon also noted that Miller's work transformed war photography, shifting the focus to civilians and the human cost of war.

Roadside Attractions and Vertical will release Lee in U.S. theaters this September. The 2024 Munich Film Festival runs through July 7.