The American Film Institute (AFI) announced today that internationally acclaimed filmmaker and Academy Award^®-winning director and screenwriter Bernardo Bertolucci will serve as its Guest Artistic Director at AFI FEST 2012 presented by Audi. Last year’s Guest Artistic Director was Pedro Almodóvar, and David Lynch, an alumnus of the AFI Conservatory, held the role in 2010.

As Guest Artistic Director, Bertolucci has selected four feature films for his special sidebar program at the festival: 42ND STREET (DIR Lloyd Bacon), LA REGLE DU JEU (DIR Jean Renoir), SUNRISE (DIR F.W. Murnau) and VIVRE CA VIE (DIR Jean-Luc Godard). In addition, the festival will present ELECTRIC CHAIR, a behind-the-scenes film about the making of Bertolucci’s new movie, ME AND YOU. Bertolucci has written and directed over 25 films, including THE LAST EMPEROR, LAST TANGO IN PARIS, THE CONFORMIST, THE SHELTERING SKY and LITTLE BUDDHA. He has been honored with two Academy Awards^® for Best Director and Best Writing, Screenplay for THE LAST EMPEROR, he was the recipient of an honorary Palm D’Or at the Cannes Film Festival in 2011 and this December he will be receiving the European Film Academy’s Lifetime Achievement Award. Bertolucci also conducted Master Seminars at the AFI Conservatory about the craft of filmmaking and his particular visual style in 1974 and again in 1979.

“I am very excited and honored to be the Guest Artistic Director of AFI FEST this year,” said Bernardo Bertolucci.

“Bernardo Bertolucci is an artist of uncompromising vision,” said Bob Gazzale, President and CEO of the American Film Institute. “He’s an inspiration to emerging filmmakers at the AFI Conservatory, where he gave his first Master Seminar in 1974, and he continues to inspire artists and audiences around the world. It is an honor for the American Film Institute to celebrate his voice as Artistic Director at AFI FEST.”

“We are so pleased to have an uncompromising master of the moving picture join us as the festival’s Guest Artistic Director this year,“ said Jacqueline Lyanga, Director, AFI FEST. “We’re inspired by the extraordinary way in which he has lived a life of film, brought this intention to his visual style and elevated the art of cinema.”

Leading up to the festival, which takes place November 1 through 8 in Hollywood, CA at the historic Grauman’s Chinese Theatre, the Chinese 6 Theatres, the Egyptian Theatre and the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel, Bertolucci’s films will be presented from October 12 through November 4 by the UCLA Film & Television Archive, American Cinematheque, Luce Cinecitta and Istituto Italiano di Cultura, Los Angeles as part of “Bernardo Bertolucci: A Retrospective,” providing an excellent opportunity for Los Angeles’ movie lovers to revisit the great films of one of cinema’s master artists.

For the fourth consecutive year, AFI FEST will continue its unprecedented offer of free tickets to all screenings, but only the Star Patron Package and Marquee Patron Package will provide reserved seating at the World Premiere opening night gala of HITCHCOCK and the World Premiere closing night gala of LINCOLN. These and other AFI FEST Patron Packages and Passes – which can include access to high-demand films and events – are on sale now at AFI.com/AFIFEST. The American Film Institute is a 501(c)(3) non-profit educational and cultural organization, and Patron Packages are tax-deductible to the full extent of the law.

Free individual tickets to AFI FEST screenings and galas will be available to AFI members on Wednesday, October 24 in a 24-hour advance window before they become available to the general public on October 25. In addition, AFI members at the Two Star level and above receive a 10% discount on all Patron Packages and Passes. Information about AFI Membership is available at AFI.com/membership.

Audi is the festival’s presenting sponsor. Additional sponsors include American Airlines, the official airline of AFI; AT&T; Hewlett-Packard (HP); Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel; Levi’s; Stella Artois; New Amsterdam Vodka; The American Film Market (AFM); and The Chinese Theatre, among many others.

Film stills are available for press use only and can be downloaded at: flickr.com/photos/afifestpublicity/collections.

About Bernardo Bertolucci
Bernardo Bertolucci began his career as an assistant director to Pier Paolo Pasolini on ACCATTONE and directed his first feature film at the age of 21. His second film, BEFORE THE REVOLUTION (1964), was released to great acclaim and he has continued to shape the way the world looks at cinema. His 1970 film THE CONFORMIST with Jean-Louis Trintignant and Stefania Sandrelli premiered in Berlin and received Bertolucci’s first Oscar^® nomination, and his 1972 film LAST TANGO IN PARIS with Marlon Brando, Maria Schneider and Jean-Pierre Léaud received another two Oscar^® nominations. His fame increased with the epic 1900 (1976) with Robert De Niro, Gérard Depardieu and Burt Lancaster and THE LAST EMPEROR (1987), which won a total of nine Oscars^®, three BAFTA Awards, the French César and a special jury award at the inaugural European Film Awards in 1988. Among his later films are THE SHELTERING SKY (1990) with Debra Winger and John Malkovich and THE DREAMERS (2003), which was nominated for the EFA Audience Award and the Spanish Goya. Bertolucci’s latest film ME AND YOU (2012) premiered in the Official Selection, Out of Competition, 2012 Cannes Film Festival.

About the American Film Institute
AFI is America’s promise to preserve the history of the motion picture, to honor the artists and their work and to educate the next generation of storytellers. AFI provides leadership in film, television and digital media and is dedicated to initiatives that engage the past, the present and the future of the moving image arts.

AFI preserves the legacy of America’s film heritage for future generations through the AFI Archive, comprised of rare footage from across the history of the moving image and the AFI Catalog of Feature Films, an authoritative record of American films from 1893 to the present.

AFI honors the artists and their work through a variety of annual programs and special events, including the AFI Life Achievement Award and AFI Awards. Celebrating its 41st year in 2013, the AFI Life Achievement Award has remained the highest honor for a career in film while AFI Awards, the Institute’s almanac for the 21st century, honors the most outstanding motion pictures and television programs of the year. AFI’s 100 Years…100 Movies television events and movie reference lists have introduced and reintroduced classic American movies to millions of film lovers. And as the largest nonprofit exhibitor in the United States, AFI offers film enthusiasts a variety of events throughout the year, including AFI Fest presented by Audi, the Institute’s annual year-end celebration of artistic excellence in cinema; AFI-Discovery Channel Silverdocs, the largest documentary festival in the U.S.; and year-round programming at the AFI Silver Theatre in the Washington, DC area.

AFI educates the next generation of storytellers at its AFI Conservatory, which has been consistently recognized as one of the world’s top film schools, boasting alumni including Darren Aronofsky, Patty Jenkins, Janusz Kamiński, Heidi Levitt, Matthew Libatique, David Lynch, Terrence Malick, Wally Pfister, Robert Richardson, Ed Zwick and so many more. AFI Conservatory offers a two-year Master of Fine Arts degree in six filmmaking disciplines: Cinematography, Directing, Editing, Producing, Production Design and Screenwriting. Aspiring artists learn from the masters in a collaborative, hands-on production environment with an emphasis on storytelling.

For more information about AFI, visit AFI.com