SBIFF: The Tributes

With only three days left in the 27th Santa Barbara International Film Festival, the party is still fully raging as Hollywood and television stars continue to arrive for the Film Festival’s tributes. This past week, fans lined the barricades and the media all stood alongside the Red Carpet as the recipients of the Outstanding Performer of the Year, Modern Master, and the Riviera Awards arrived on site.

The evening’s celebration consists of a professionally produced film montage of the honoree’s body of work, a live on-stage interview hosted by an acclaimed film personality and ultimately the presentation of the award and the honoree’s acceptance speech.

Viola Davis was presented on Friday with Outstanding Performer of the Year, which is an award created to honor the actor or actress whose role in a film has exceeded greatness. Viola Davis stood out from the rest with powerful performances in 2011 including her portrayal of Aibileen Clark in “The Help.” Past recipients include actors such as James Franco, Penelope Cruz, and Angelina Jolie.

On Saturday, the Red Carpet rolled out for the Modern Master Award recipient, Christopher Plummer. This award was created in 1995 and is considered the highest honor the Santa Barbara International Film Festival can bestow. It honors an individual who has enriched our culture through accomplishments in the motion picture industry. Plummer’s most recent work includes “The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo” where he plays the character of Henrik Vanger alongside Daniel Craig and Academy Award Nominee, Rooney Mara. Fellow actor, Billy Zane, was also in attendance. Past recipients of this award include: Christopher Nolan, James Cameron, Clint Eastwood, Cate Blanchett, Will Smith, George Clooney and Peter Jackson.

The stars shone brightly Monday night as Director Martin Scorsese arrived at the famed Arlington Theater to receive this year’s American Riviera Award. Actor Ben Kingsley, who had worked with Scorsese on “Shutter Island”, arrived in style to form part of this coveted affair. The American Riviera Award is given to recipients for outstanding achievement in American film. As with all of the tributes, a montage, which included clips of Scorsese’s work throughout the decades, was shown. A Q&A on-stage-interview with Scorsese provided the audience with many amusing moments as they got to know one of America’s most influential film directors on a more intimate level. Past recipients: Annette Bening, Sandra Bullock, Mickey Rourke, Tommy Lee Jones, Forest Whitaker and Philip Seymour Hoffman.

The Virtuosos Award and the Cinema Vanguard Award will be presented later this week.