The following declaration has been issued by SIAE ahead of the awards ceremony at 5:30 pm on September 2 at the Villa degli Autori:
"With this award, the Italian Society of Authors and Publishers, on the heels of the unanimous acclaim for his latest film The Traitor, wishes to honor Marco Bellocchio in his threefold role as filmmaker, intellectual and cultural figure. Bellocchio is a director who has always left his original and highly personal imprint on the art of cinema. His oeuvre has an international appeal that springs from a political and historical outlook in the best Italian cultural tradition. A lucid observer with a critical spirit, a rebel, a curious traveler and witness to his times, Marco Bellocchio skilfully weds introspection and self-knowledge to the analysis of an entire nation, in an unsparing look at individuals and civil society, with an awareness that unfailingly opposes all kinds of conformism. He receives this award as he reaches a milestone in his career, on the completion of a trilogy devoted to Italian history that already features masterpieces such as Good Morning, Night and Vincere. Yet the honor is also meant to highlight his ongoing commitment to protecting the rights of writers and directors everywhere."

After receiving the award, Marco Bellocchio will take part in a talk with Andrea Purgatori and Giorgio Gosetti about his filmmaking and the theme of betrayal in the Italian historical tradition (as well as on the silver screen) and its inherent ambivalence.

The talk will be open to the public, especially young people, and is a perfect example of the kind of event probing issues related to film and the arts in general that is a hallmark of Giornate degli Autori.

Additionally, as it does every year, SIAE bestows a special award on an Italian film in the Giornate lineup. In 2019, the Prize for Creative Talent goes to Gianfranco Pannone and Ambrogio Sparagna for their original blending of archive footage and experimentation with the film genre and music that reaches surprising heights on their film Scherza con i fanti, a special event at Giornate 2019.