Overview

• Martin Scorsese was honored with a lifetime achievement award at the 71st Taormina Film Festival on June 12 in Sicily’s Ancient Greek Theatre.
• He emphasized his Sicilian heritage, tracing family origins to Ciminna and Polizzi Generosa and crediting Roberto Rossellini’s Paisà with inspiring his filmmaking.
• In his acceptance speech, Scorsese invoked recent US Immigration and Customs Enforcement raids in Los Angeles to underscore challenges faced by immigrants.
• He is working on Sicilian-centered projects, including a marine archaeology documentary and a feature-length film titled “Aldeas – A New Story” featuring Pope Francis’s final on-camera interview.
• Scorsese paid tribute to fellow Sicilian-American director Frank Capra and reflected on cinema’s role in preserving and celebrating cultural heritage.