Viggo Mortensen to get prize at Czech film festival

PRAGUE, Czech Republic - Actor Viggo Mortensen, perhaps best known for playing Aragorn in "The Lord of the Rings" films, will receive an award at the Czech film festival in Karlovy Vary, organizers said Wednesday.

The 65-year-old US actor and director will be presented with the Festival President's Award at the June 28 opening ceremony, festival president Jiri Bartoska told reporters.

Mortensen "will present 'The Dead Don't Hurt' at the festival, a film which he directed and in which he played one of the main roles", added Bartoska, who is a popular Czech actor.

Other guests at Karlovy Vary will include "Closer" and "Sin City" star Clive Owen, as well as "Erin Brockovich" and "Traffic" director Steven Soderbergh.

Soderbergh will present his films and "Kafka" (1991) and a re-edited version "Mr Kneff", set in the Czech capital and dedicated to the Prague-born writer Franz Kafka.

Both Owen and Soderbergh will receive the Festival President's Award, as will German actor and director Daniel Bruehl, known for roles in "Inglourious Basterds" and "Rush".

Oscar-winning British actor Geoffrey Rush, known for "Shine", "The King's Speech" and "Pirates of the Caribbean", will be a member of the festival jury.

The 58th edition of the festival in the western Czech spa city of Karlovy Vary will run from June 28 to July 6.

Last year, the festival registered more than 123,000 cinemagoers. — Agence France-Presse