Meg Ryan is set to receive the Honorary Heart of Sarajevo Award at the 30th Sarajevo Film Festival in recognition of her contribution to the film industry.
The star will also present a special screening of her 1998 romantic comedy You’ve Got Mail, co-starring Tom Hanks, at the Coca-Cola Open Air Cinema, the same venue where the film was first screened 25 years ago at the fest’s 5th event.
Ryan will also hold a masterclass moderated by Bosnian director Danis Tanović, best known for his Oscar-winning film No Man’s Land. Ryan’s latest work, 2023’s What Happens Later, will also screen at the festival. The Bleecker Street Media film, which features Ryan alongside David Duchovny, is directed and written by the When Harry Met Sally star. It is her second directorial project.
“Meg Ryan had our hearts at hello!” said Jovan Marjanović, director of the Sarajevo Film Festival. “Not only has she charmed us all with her unforgettable performances, but she has also proven her prowess behind the camera as a director and screenwriter. It is our honor to present her with the Heart of Sarajevo.”
Ryan’s earned critical acclaim for her performance in Rob Reiner and Nora Ephron’s When Harry Met Sally, before partnering again with Ephron for Sleepless in Seattle, picking up a number of Golden Globe nominations.
Acclaim has also come to Ryan for her distinctive dramatic portraits, including her role opposite Denzel Washington as the first military woman nominated for a Medal of Honor in Courage Under Fire, directed by Ed Zwick, and her portrayal of an alcohol addict in Luis Mandoki’s When a Man Loves a Woman, opposite Andy Garcia. For her performance opposite Kiefer Sutherland in the Sundance Institute’s Promised Land, she earned an Independent Spirit Award nomination.