German director Marc Forster will be awarded the Social Cinema Award 2009 at this year’s Ischia Global Fest, which runs July 12-19.

Forster is being recognised for his artistic contribution to inter-cultural dialog and ethnic diversity for his work on 2007’s The Kite Runner. The film based on the bestselling novel by Khaled Hosseini.

The award will be given during the Social Cinema Forum, which dedicated to children’s rights and will be held in during the seventh edition of the festival. It takes place on the island of Ischia in Italy.

Past honorees include Oliver Stone, Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu, Steven Zaillian, Bille August and Vanessa Redgrave.