Robin Williams will be presented with a career achievement awardat the 40th Chicago International Film festival's annual summer gala on Jul 17.

Organisers plan a retrospective of Williams' work, which includesan Oscar winning turn in Good Will Hunting and acclaimed performances in Dead Poets Society and Good Morning, Vietnam.

"There are only a handful of actors in the history of cinema whohave been able to move seamlessly between drama and comedy," festival founderand artistic director Michael Kutza said in a statement.

"Williams' particular talent is his ability to bring the samelevel of commitment and skill to every performance, whether wildly comic,seriously moving or both.

"We love his films for their diversity and are excited to honourhis immeasurable accomplishments with our festival's career achievement award."

Previous winnersinclude Francois Truffaut, Orson Welles, Sophia Loren, Jack Lemmon, JodieFoster, Michael Douglas and Sigourney Weaver.