David Di Donatello For Best Foreign Film

The category is specifically for films not competing for European honours. No awards were granted during the 1960 and 1961 editions, from 1965 to 1971, and in 1981. Starting from the 2019 edition, the award also includes films that previously would have belonged to the category of Best Film in the European Union.

Winners are indicated in bold.

1950s-1960s

1958 The Prince and the Showgirl, directed by Laurence Olivier
1959 Gigi, directed by Vincente Minnelli
1960 No Award
1961 Ben Hur, directed by William Wyler
1962 Judgment at Nuremberg, directed by Stanley Kramer
1963 The Longest Day, produced by Darryl F. Zanuck
1964 Lawrence of Arabia, directed by David Lean
1965 My Fair Lady, directed by George Cukor
1966 The Agony and the Ecstasy, directed by Carol Reed
1967 Doctor Zhivago, directed by David Lean
1968 Guess Who's Coming to Dinner, directed by Stanley Kramer
1969 2001: A Space Odyssey, directed by Stanley Kubrick

1970s

1970 The Lion in Winter, directed by Anthony Harvey
1971 Ryan's Daughter, directed by David Lean
1972 The French Connection, directed by William Friedkin
1973 The Godfather, directed by Francis Ford Coppola
1974 Jesus Christ Superstar, directed by Norman Jewison
1975 The Towering Inferno, directed by Irwin Allen
1976 Nashville, directed by Robert Altman
1977 Marathon Man, directed by John Schlesinger
1978 Close Encounters of the Third Kind, directed by Steven Spielberg
1979 The Wishing Tree (ნატვრის ხე / Natvris khe), directed by Tengiz Abuladze

1980s

1980

• Kramer vs. Kramer, directed by Robert Benton

1981

• No Award

1982

• Mephisto, directed by István Szabó
  • Marianne and Juliane (Die bleierne Zeit), directed by Margarethe von Trotta
  • Reds, directed by Warren Beatty

1983

• Gandhi, directed by Richard Attenborough
  • The Way (Yol), directed by Yılmaz Güney
  • Victor/Victoria, directed by Blake Edwards
  • Missing, directed by Costa-Gavras

1984

• Fanny and Alexander, directed by Ingmar Bergman
  • Terms of Endearment, directed by James L. Brooks
  • Zelig, directed by Woody Allen

1985

• Amadeus, directed by Miloš Forman
  • The Killing Fields, directed by Roland Joffé
  • Paris, Texas, directed by Wim Wenders

1986

• Out of Africa, directed by Sydney Pollack
  • Another Time, Another Place, directed by Michael Radford
  • Ran (乱), directed by Akira Kurosawa

1987

• A Room with a View, directed by James Ivory
  • The Official Story (La historia oficial), directed by Luis Puenzo
  • The Mission, directed by Roland Joffé

1988

• Au revoir les enfants, directed by Louis Malle
  • The Dead, directed by John Huston
  • Full Metal Jacket, directed by Stanley Kubrick

1989

• Rain Man, directed by Barry Levinson
  • Mississippi Burning, directed by Alan Parker
  • Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown (Mujeres al borde de un ataque de nervios), directed by Pedro Almodóvar

1990s

1990

• Dead Poets Society, directed by Peter Weir
  • Crimes and Misdemeanors, directed by Woody Allen
  • May Fools (Milou en mai), directed by Louis Malle
  • Reunion, directed by Jerry Schatzberg
  • Life and Nothing But (La vie et rien d'autre), directed by Bertrand Tavernier

1991

• Cyrano de Bergerac, directed by Jean-Paul Rappeneau (ex aequo)
  Hamlet, directed by Franco Zeffirelli (ex aequo)
  • Dances with Wolves, directed by Kevin Costner
  • Nikita, directed by Luc Besson
  • Goodfellas, directed by Martin Scorsese

1992

• Raise the Red Lantern (Dà Hóng Dēnglóng Gāogāo Guà / 大紅燈籠高高掛), directed by Zhang Yimou
  • Thelma & Louise, directed by Ridley Scott
  • Shadows and Fog, directed by Woody Allen

1993

• A Heart in Winter (Un coeur en hiver), directed by Claude Sautet
  • Howards End, directed by James Ivory
  • The Crying Game, directed by Neil Jordan

1994

• In the Name of the Father, directed by Jim Sheridan
  • The Remains of the Day, directed by James Ivory
  • Schindler's List, directed by Steven Spielberg

1995

• Pulp Fiction, directed by Quentin Tarantino
  • Forrest Gump, directed by Robert Zemeckis
  • Burnt by the Sun (Утомлённые солнцем / Utomlyonnye solntsem), directed by Nikita Mikhalkov

1996

• Nelly and Mr. Arnaud (Nelly et Monsieur Arnaud), directed by Claude Sautet
  • Mighty Aphrodite, directed by Woody Allen
  • Smoke, directed by Wayne Wang

1997

• Ridicule, directed by Patrice Leconte

1998

• The Full Monty, directed by Peter Cattaneo
  • Amistad, directed by Steven Spielberg
  • The Thief (Vor), directed by Pavel Chukhray

1999

• Train of Life (Train de vie), directed by Radu Mihaileanu
  • Shakespeare in Love, directed by John Madden
  • Central Station (Central do Brasil), directed by Walter Salles

2000s

2000

• All About My Mother (Todo sobre mi madre), directed by Pedro Almodóvar
  • American Beauty, directed by Sam Mendes
  • East Is East, directed by Damien O'Donnell

2001

• The Taste of Others (Le goût des autres), directed by Agnès Jaoui
  • Billy Elliot, directed by Stephen Daldry
  • Chocolat, directed by Lasse Hallström
  • In the Mood for Love (花樣年華 / Fa yeung nin wa), directed by Wong Kar-wai

2002

• The Man Who Wasn't There, directed by Joel Coen and Ethan Coen
  • Amélie (Le fabuleux destin d'Amélie Poulain), directed by Jean-Pierre Jeunet
  • No Man's Land (Ničija zemlja), directed by Danis Tanović

2003

• The Pianist, directed by Roman Polanski
  • Chicago, directed by Rob Marshall
  • Talk to Her (Hable con ella), directed by Pedro Almodóvar
  • The Hours, directed by Stephen Daldry
  • The Man on the Train (L'homme du train), directed by Patrice Leconte

2004

• The Barbarian Invasions (Les Invasions barbares), directed by Denys Arcand
  • Big Fish, directed by Tim Burton
  • Lost in Translation, directed by Sofia Coppola
  • Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World, directed by Peter Weir
  • Mystic River, directed by Clint Eastwood

2005

• Million Dollar Baby, directed by Clint Eastwood
  • 2046, directed by Wong Kar-wai
  • 3-Iron (빈집 / Binjip), directed by Kim Ki-duk
  • Hotel Rwanda, directed by Terry George
  • Ray, directed by Taylor Hackford

2006

• Crash, directed by Paul Haggis
  • A History of Violence, directed by David Cronenberg
  • Good Night, and Good Luck., directed by George Clooney
  • Brokeback Mountain, directed by Ang Lee
  • Tsotsi, directed by Gavin Hood

2007

• Babel, directed by Alejandro González Iñárritu
  • Letters from Iwo Jima, directed by Clint Eastwood
  • Little Miss Sunshine, directed by Jonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris
  • The Pursuit of Happyness, directed by Gabriele Muccino
  • The Departed, directed by Martin Scorsese

2008

• No Country for Old Men, directed by Joel Coen and Ethan Coen
  • Across the Universe, directed by Julie Taymor
  • Into the Wild, directed by Sean Penn
  • In the Valley of Elah, directed by Paul Haggis
  • There Will Be Blood, directed by Paul Thomas Anderson

2009

• Gran Torino, directed by Clint Eastwood
  • Milk, directed by Gus Van Sant
  • The Visitor, directed by Tom McCarthy
  • The Wrestler, directed by Darren Aronofsky
  • WALL-E, directed by Andrew Stanton

2010s

2010

• Inglourious Basterds, directed by Quentin Tarantino
  • A Serious Man, directed by Joel Coen and Ethan Coen
  • Avatar, directed by James Cameron
  • Invictus, directed by Clint Eastwood
  • Up in the Air, directed by Jason Reitman

2011

• Hereafter, directed by Clint Eastwood
  • Black Swan, directed by Darren Aronofsky
  • Inception, directed by Christopher Nolan
  • Incendies, directed by Denis Villeneuve
  • The Social Network, directed by David Fincher

2012

• A Separation (جدایی نادر از سیمین / Jodaí-e Nadér az Simín), directed by Asghar Farhadi
  • Drive, directed by Nicolas Winding Refn
  • Hugo, directed by Martin Scorsese
  • The Ides of March, directed by George Clooney
  • The Tree of Life, directed by Terrence Malick

2013

• Django Unchained, directed by Quentin Tarantino
  • Argo, directed by Ben Affleck
  • Silver Linings Playbook, directed by David O. Russell
  • Lincoln, directed by Steven Spielberg
  • Life of Pi, directed by Ang Lee

2014

• The Grand Budapest Hotel, directed by Wes Anderson
  • 12 Years a Slave, directed by Steve McQueen
  • American Hustle, directed by David O. Russell
  • Blue Jasmine, directed by Woody Allen
  • The Wolf of Wall Street, directed by Martin Scorsese

2015

• Birdman, directed by Alejandro González Iñárritu
  • American Sniper, directed by Clint Eastwood
  • Boyhood, directed by Richard Linklater
  • The Salt of the Earth, directed by Wim Wenders
  • Mommy, directed by Xavier Dolan

2016

• Bridge of Spies, directed by Steven Spielberg
  • Carol, directed by Todd Haynes
  • Inside Out, directed by Pete Docter
  • Remember, directed by Atom Egoyan
  • Spotlight, directed by Thomas McCarthy

2017

• Nocturnal Animals, directed by Tom Ford
  • Captain Fantastic, directed by Matt Ross
  • Lion, directed by Garth Davis
  • Paterson, directed by Jim Jarmusch
  • Sully, directed by Clint Eastwood

2018

• Dunkirk, directed by Christopher Nolan
  • La La Land, directed by Damien Chazelle
  • The Insult (قضية رقم ٢٣, / Qadiyya raqm 23), directed by Ziad Doueiri
  • Loveless (Нелюбовь / Nelyubov), directed by Andrey Zvyagintsev
  • Manchester by the Sea, directed by Kenneth Lonergan

2019

• Roma, directed by Alfonso Cuarón
  • Bohemian Rhapsody, directed by Bryan Singer
  • Cold War (Zimna wojna), directed by Paweł Pawlikowski
  • Phantom Thread, directed by Paul Thomas Anderson
  • Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri, directed by Martin McDonagh

2020s

2020

• Parasite (기생충 / Gisaengchung), directed by Bong Joon-ho
  • Green Book, directed by Peter Farrelly
  • Joker, directed by Todd Phillips
  • An Officer and a Spy (J'accuse), directed by Roman Polanski
  • Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, directed by Quentin Tarantino

2021

• 1917, directed by Sam Mendes
  • Jojo Rabbit, directed by Taika Waititi
  • Les Misérables, directed by Ladj Ly
  • Richard Jewell, directed by Clint Eastwood
  • Sorry We Missed You, directed by Ken Loach

2022

• Belfast, directed by Kenneth Branagh
  • Don't Look Up, directed by Adam McKay
  • Drive My Car (ドライブ・マイ・カー / Doraibu mai kā), directed by Ryusuke Hamaguchi
  • Dune, directed by Denis Villeneuve
  • The Power of the Dog, directed by Jane Campion

2023

• The Fabelmans, directed by Steven Spielberg
  • Bones and All, directed by Luca Guadagnino
  • Elvis, directed by Baz Luhrmann
  • Licorice Pizza, directed by Paul Thomas Anderson
  • Triangle of Sadness, directed by Ruben Östlund

2024

• Anatomie d'une chute, directed by Justine Triet
  • As bestas, directed by Rodrigo Sorogoyen
  • Kuolleet lehdet, directed by Aki Kaurismäki
  • Killers of the Flower Moon, directed by Martin Scorsese
  • Oppenheimer, directed by Christopher Nolan