Béla Tarr

Awards & Honours

Awards Won

Honours

Rankings

Covers

Records

Béla Tarr's achievements place him among the most revered filmmakers in world cinema. His 1994 epic Sátántangó ranked #24 on the 2022 Sight & Sound Greatest Films of All Time list, one of the highest positions for a film made in the last 50 years. The Turin Horse appeared at #22 on the BBC's 2016 list of the 100 Greatest Films of the 21st Century. Tarr received the Kossuth Prize in 2004, Hungary's highest cultural honor, and the European Film Academy Lifetime Achievement Award in 2021. He was awarded honorary doctorates from the University of Theatre and Film Arts in Budapest, the University of Pécs, and the University of Sarajevo. His work continues to influence a generation of slow cinema practitioners.

AwardsBéla Tarr won numerous awards for his films. He received the Caligari Film Award at the Berlin International Film Festival for both Damnation (1988) and Sátántangó (1994). The Turin Horse (2011) won the Silver Bear Grand Jury Prize at Berlin, along with the FIPRESCI Prize and the Prize of the Ecumenical Jury. He also won multiple Hungarian Film Week awards for Best Director and Best Film. In 2004, he received the Kossuth Prize, Hungary's highest cultural award, and in 2021, the European Film Academy Lifetime Achievement Award.

Honours & Distinctions

Kossuth Prize

Hungarian Government·2004

Hungary's highest cultural award.

Honorary Citizen of Budapest

City of Budapest·2012

Awarded for contributions to Hungarian culture.

Commander's Cross of the Order of Merit of the Republic of Hungary

Hungarian Government·2013

State honor for cultural achievement.

Honorary Doctorate

University of Theatre and Film Arts, Budapest·2012

Honorary degree from his former school.

Honorary Doctorate

University of Pécs·2013

Honorary degree from his hometown university.

Honorary Doctorate

University of Sarajevo·2016

Honorary degree for founding film.factory.

Lifetime Achievement Award

International Film Festival Rotterdam·2017

Awarded for his body of work.

Lifetime Achievement Award

Jerusalem Film Festival·2018

Awarded for his contributions to cinema.

Lifetime Achievement Award

Locarno Film Festival·2019

Awarded for his artistic legacy.

European Film Academy Lifetime Achievement Award

European Film Academy·2021

Highest honor from the European Film Academy.

Rankings & Lists

#36

Greatest Films of All Time

Sight & Sound·2012

#144

Greatest Films of All Time

Sight & Sound·2012

#22

100 Greatest Films of the 21st Century

BBC·2016

#49

100 Greatest Films of the 21st Century

BBC·2016

#19

100 Best Films of the 21st Century

The Guardian·2019

#24

Greatest Films of All Time

Sight & Sound·2022

#73

Greatest Films of All Time

Sight & Sound·2022

Magazine Covers

Film Comment

November/December 2011

The Last Tarr: Béla Tarr's The Turin Horse

Sight & Sound

September 2012

The Greatest Films of All Time (Sátántangó featured)

Filmkultura

2013

Béla Tarr: The Master of Slow Cinema

Cahiers du Cinéma

March 2018

Béla Tarr: L'héritage du cinéma lent

Records & Feats

Longest average shot length in a feature film

Film Technique·1994

Sátántangó has an average shot length of over 11 minutes, with only 39 shots in 7.5 hours.

Highest-ranking Hungarian film on Sight & Sound Greatest Films of All Time

Critical Acclaim·2022

Sátántangó ranked #24 in the 2022 Sight & Sound poll.

First Hungarian director to win the European Film Academy Lifetime Achievement Award

Awards·2021

Tarr received the award in 2021.