The association said the 69-year-old actress, who has appeared in more than 80 movies, was probably the best known face of Slovenian film.

The first major role for Zupančič, also an acclimated theatre actor, came in the 1970 film Oxygen by master director Matjaž Klopčič.

She took the lead role in a number of Klopčič's films to follow, including the immensely popular Cvetje v jeseni (Blossoms in Autumn) from 1973, the Berlin Golden Bear-nominated Vdovstvo Karoline Žašler (The Widowhood of Karolina Žašler) from 1976, and the quintessential Slovenian comedy Moj ata socialistični kulak (My Dad, the Socialist Koulak) from 1987.

The association pointed to Zupančič extremely diverse body of work, noting she was also happy to accept roles in creative low-budget projects.

Before the evening award ceremony at Kinoteka, the 1985 film Christophoros, directed by Andrej Mlakar and starring Zupančič, will be screened at the Ljubljana arthouse cinema. The film was picked by the award winner.

Zupančič has won all the major Slovenian awards for her achievements, including the Prešeren Prize, as well as many accolades in the region of the former Yugoslavia. She also won the Actor of Europe award in 2015. In March she was decorated with the Golden Order for Merits by President Borut Pahor.

The Association of Slovenian Film Directors hands out the Bert Award, named after actor Bert Sotlar (1921-1992), twice a year, alternately to male and female actors. The winners so far were Štefka Drolc, Miha Baloh, Ivanka Mežan and Radko Polič.