Walter Salles will receive the International Filmmaker Award atthe 16th Annual Palm Springs International Film Festival (PSIFF) in honour of TheMotorcycle Diaries andhis contributions to Latin American filmmaking in the fields of directing,producing and mentoring.

Salles will collect theaward under the auspices of the festival's Cine Latino showcase and gala. ThePSIFF is scheduled to run from Jan 6-17.

The Motorcycle Diaries received its world premiere at Sundance 2004 and stars GaelGarcia Bernal as a young Che Guevara on a trip across South America with hisbest friend in the 1950s. Rodrigo De La Serna also stars.

Salles previous credits include Foreign Land, Central Station and Behind The Sun.

He is currently producing Cidade Baixa, the first film by his former assistantdirector Sergio Machado, and Andrucha Waddington's The House Of Sand.

His nextdirectorial outing is the remake of Asian horror hit Dark Water starring Jennifer Connelly.