Sylvester Stallone is receiving the prestigious Santa Barbara International Film Festival’s (SBIFF) Montecito Award at the historic Santa Barbara Arlington Theatre on Thursday February 9, 2016 at 8:00 PM. Stallone will be honored for his critically acclaimed and Oscar nominated role in Ryan Coogler’s emotionally contoured boxing film Creed.
The Montecito Award is named after one of the most beautiful and stylish areas in Santa Barbara and is given to a person in the entertainment industry who has made a great contribution to film. Past recipients include Jennifer Aniston, Oprah Winfrey, Daniel Day-Lewis, Geoffrey Rush, Julianne Moore, Kate Winslet, Javier Bardem, Bill Condon, and Naomi Watts. Hennessy Paradis Imperial is presenting the award. Click here for tickets.
SBIFF Executive Director Roger Durling had this to say about this year’s recipient:
“Sylvester Stallone’s performance in Creed has reminded us of what a true talent he is and what a joy it is to share in his successes as the many beloved characters he has created. Since he first hit the silver screen as Rocky Balboa nearly four decades ago, he has been a force in the industry both on film and behind the scenes. He is a true legend in our field, and it is our privilege to present him with the Montecito Award, and to continue to honor his legacy.”
Stallone first established worldwide recognition as an actor and filmmaker when he starred in 1976’s “Rocky,” from his own screenplay. Both a critical and box office hit, the film garnered 10 Academy Award nominations including Stallone for Best Actor and Best Original Screenplay. Most recently, Stallone received an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor for “Creed,” becoming only the sixth actor in Academy history to be nominated for playing the same role in two different films.
Stallone’s many film credits include the “Rocky” and “Rambo” films, “Copland,” “Tango & Cash,” “F.I.S.T.,” “Victory” and “Nighthawks.”
In addition to his extensive film career, Stallone is an accomplished artist, completing paintings on canvas as well as sculpture work. He has had impressive exhibitions at Art Basil, The Russian State Museum and, most recently, at the Nice Museum of Contemporary Art in France.
The festival previously honored Jane Fonda (Youth) with its Kirk Douglas Award for Excellence in Film and will honor Johnny Depp (Black Mass) with the Maltin Modern Master Award; Michael Keaton, Mark Ruffalo and Rachel McAdams (Spotlight) with the American Riviera Award; and Alicia Vikander (The Danish Girl, Ex Machina), Géza Röhrig (Son of Saul), Elizabeth Banks and Paul Dano (Love & Mercy), Joel Edgerton (Black Mass), O’Shea Jackson Jr. (Straight Outta Compton) and Jacob Tremblay (Room), with its Virtuosos Award.
The Opening night film is Paramount Pictures in conjunction with On Animation Studio’s U.S. premiere of “The Little Prince”.
“The Little Prince” is based on Antoine de Saint-Exupery’s classic tale Le Petit Prince. Writers Irena Brignull and Bob Persichetti have created an original narrative interfused with elements of the novel.
If air travel is required for your attendance, Alaska Airlines, the official airline for the 31st Santa Barbara International Film Festival, is offering 10% discounts on airfare between Santa Barbara, Los Angeles or Burbank, California and any of Alaska Airlines departure cities (excluding Hawaii, Mexico, Costa Rica and Prudhoe Bay) from February 2nd through February 16th, 2016. Book by February 16, 2016. Click here. Discounts are automatically applied. Restrictions apply. See site for details. Stay tuned for more recent developments and for the latest updates!
