The American director was awarded by Italian horror filmmaker Dario Argento, who is know for films such as Suspiria and Deep Red.
The 58-year-old attended the event in the Italian capital to collect the award with his wife, singer Daniela Pick.
“The fact that 30 years later I’d be here in Rome and they’d give me a Lifetime Achievement Award ... that’s pretty special,” Tarantino said.
Throughout his 30-year career, Tarantino has written and directed nine hits, including Inglourious Basterds, Jackie Brown and, most recently, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood.
He has won two Oscars for the Best Original Screenplay, for Pulp Fiction in 1995 and for Django Unchained in 2013.
Tarantino paid tribute to late great composer Ennio Morricone and told the story of how his Oscar-winning soundtrack to The Hateful Eight came about.
The 16th edition of the Rome Film Fest opened on October 14 with Michael Showalter’s The Eyes of Tammy Faye and will run until Sunday.
Fellow director Tim Burton will also receive a Lifetime Achievement Award on Saturday.
The festival offers an action-packed program of premieres, including 23 films ranging from 23 countries, including Saudi Arabia, the Dominican Republic and Kosovo.
It will close its doors with Eternals by Oscar-winning director, Chloé Zhao.
The event, whose artistic director is once again Antonio Monda, is held in compliance with Italy’s COVID-19 protocols; guests must present a “green pass”, wear a mask and respect social distancing measures.
