Overview
- The Sarajevo Film Festival announced on Thursday that Emily Watson will serve as president of the Feature Film Competition jury and will be honored with the Honorary Heart of Sarajevo.
- Festival director Jovan Marjanović praised Watson as an actress who has left a profound mark on contemporary cinema and noted this appointment marks her return to Sarajevo roughly 20 years after her last visit.
- Watson is a two-time Academy Award nominee with broad recognition that includes Emmy, Golden Globe and BAFTA nominations, an OBE (2015) and the Richard Harris Award at the 2025 BIFAs.
- Her recent credits include starring as Mary Shakespeare in Chloé Zhao’s Hamnet and leading roles on television such as HBO’s Chernobyl and the HBO Max series Dune: Prophecy.
- Watson’s role as jury president will put her at the center of prize decisions when the festival runs Aug. 14–21, 2026, and continues Sarajevo’s practice of spotlighting internationally known artists to raise the festival’s profile.