Seymour Cassel Lends Name to Oldenburg Festival's Actor's Prize

COLOGNE, Germany - Veteran performer Seymour Cassel will lend his name to a new actor's award at the Oldenburg Film Festival, Germany's equivalent of Sundance.

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The Seymour Cassel award will honor an actor selected from the films nominated for Oldenburg's German Independence Award: Best German Film section. The festival's international jury will pick the winner. Cassel will attend the 19th Oldenburg Festival to present the inaugural award.

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For many, Cassel has been the face of American indie cinema for more than 50 years, from his work with John Cassavetes, including his Oscar-nominated performance as Chet in Cassavates' Faces (1968), to roles in Wes Anderson films such as Rushmore (1998) and The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou (2004).

Oldenburg has announced the first films in its 2012 line-up, which include Bobcat Goldtwaith’s new satire God Bless America; the action-drama Violet & Daisy directed by Precious screenwriter Geoffrey Fletcher and The Fourth Dimension, a triptych of short films from arthouse directors Harmony Korine, Aleksei Fedorchenko and Jan Kwiecinski, all starring Val Kilmer.

The 19th Oldenburg International Film Festival runs Oct.12-16.