Ava DuVernay will be honoured with the Award of Inspiration accolade at amfAR’s gala during the Venice Film Festival.

The Oscar-nominated filmmaker will be presented with the honour during a black-tie gala and dinner held by the international AIDS research organisation on 3 September.

“We are thrilled to be returning to Venice for what promises to be a festive evening raising funds to advance our lifesaving HIV cure research,” amfAR CEO Kevin Robert Frost said in a statement to Variety on Tuesday. “We’re delighted to be honoring Ava DuVernay with our Award of Inspiration and deeply grateful to our chairs, sponsors and generous supporters for making this evening possible.”

DuVernay shared the announcement on her Instagram Stories and added, “Thank you, @amfar.”

Rita Ora and Leona Lewis will perform at the gala event, which will also feature a live auction of contemporary artworks and one-of-a-kind experiences.

The Selma director will be attending the Italian film festival to unveil her latest film Origin, which stars Aunjanue Ellis, Niecy Nash-Betts, and Jon Bernthal, as part of the official competition. She is the first Black woman ever to have a film in competition at Venice.

Other competition titles include Maestro by Bradley Cooper, The Killer by David Fincher, Poor Things by Yorgos Lanthimos, and Priscilla by Sofia Coppola.

The 80th edition of the Venice Film Festival runs from 30 August to 9 September.

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