Actress Hanna Schygulla, best-known for her extensive collaboration with the late German director Rainer Werner Fassbinder, accepted the German Film Academy's lifetime achievement award at the German Film Awards ceremony in Berlin on Friday.
Schygulla, 80, starred in Fassbinder films including "The Marriage of Maria Braun" (1979) and "Berlin Alexanderplatz" (1980). She also worked with other acclaimed European directors including Wim Wenders, Jean-Luc Godard, Carlos Saura and Fatih Akin.
"So much honour. I used to not like the word at all. But now I feel that it does me good too," Schygulla said.
In a pensive acceptance speech, which she had hand-written on various pieces of paper, Schygulla examined the concept of being an icon.
Schygulla is considered a major star of post-war German independent cinema.
When the producers had music played to signal that it was time for Schygulla to leave the stage, she lingered, telling the audience that as an icon, she also likes to do things in an out-of-the-ordinary manner.
The award-winning actress was born in 1943 and lives in Paris and Berlin. She began working with Fassbinder in the 1960s, and their collaboration shaped German cinema and launched her to international acclaim.
Schygulla can currently be seen in a supporting role in the Oscar-winning comedy "Poor Things" by director Giorgos Lanthimos.
The German Film Award is the most prestigious award for German film.
Schygulla is one of the founding members of the German Film Academy.
