Ellen Burstyn, 93, was overcome with emotion as she accepted the Golden Lion for Lifetime Achievement at the Venice Film Festival this week, becoming the second honoree of the award at this year's edition after George Clooney received his own lifetime Golden Lion at the festival's opening ceremony.

The Oscar winner, known for roles including "The Exorcist," "Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore" and, more recently, "Interstellar," teared up on stage as the Lido crowd rose for a lengthy ovation, according to Variety. Burstyn capped the honor Tuesday with a public masterclass at the festival's Match Point Arena, led by film critic Giulia D'Agnolo Vallan and livestreamed for fans who couldn't snag one of the 250 available seats.

Six Decades, One Trophy Case

Burstyn's career stretches back to the 1960s, but it was her Oscar-winning turn in 1974's "Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore" and her Oscar-nominated performance as a mother watching her daughter's possession unfold in 1973's "The Exorcist" that cemented her as one of American cinema's defining actresses of the era. She's continued working steadily ever since, most recently drawing a new generation of fans with her supporting role in Christopher Nolan's "Interstellar," according to the Venice Biennale's own announcement of the honor.

SIX DECADES IN FRONT OF THE CAMERA, AND SHE'S STILL NOT DONE

The honorary Golden Lion is separate from the festival's competitive Golden Lion for best picture, which will be awarded at the close of the 83rd Venice International Film Festival on Sept. 12 by a jury led by Maggie Gyllenhaal. Burstyn joins an elite list of past lifetime-achievement honorees at the festival, spanning multiple generations of Hollywood and international cinema.

The Lido has been packed with star power all week as the festival barrels toward its closing weekend, with Sydney Sweeney, Robert Pattinson, Suki Waterhouse and Pamela Anderson among the names turning heads on the red carpet in recent days. But it was Burstyn's tearful, career-spanning moment that industry watchers singled out as the emotional high point of this year's edition — a reminder, as one attendee put it, that Venice's lifetime honors are as much about the audience's memories as the honoree's résumé.

Burstyn has given no indication of slowing down, telling interviewers in the run-up to the ceremony that she still considers herself a working actress rather than a retiree accepting a farewell trophy. Her masterclass Tuesday focused heavily on that same throughline: six decades of continuous work, delivered with the kind of candor that has made her one of the industry's most respected elder stateswomen.