Writer/director/producer Ava DuVernay will be honored with the Los Angeles Press Club’s Visionary Award for Humanitarian Work. The ceremony will take place at the National Arts & Entertainment Journalism Awards Gala on December 3rd at the Biltmore Hotel, downtown Los Angeles.
The Visionary Award was instituted in 2012 to honor individuals within the Entertainment Industry who use their high-profile status to make the world a better place and to spread information about issues of freedom and social justice. Jane Fonda was the very first recipient, introduced by Robert Redford.
DuVernay is being honored for her efforts to promote inclusion in film production. She has worked to get more women, people of color and the disabled to be represented in movies and on TV.
DuVernay’s career is full of firsts. She is the first Black woman to win the Sundance directing award; she is the first Black woman to be invited to the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences’ Directors Branch; and she is the first Black woman to be nominated for a Best Documentary Feature Academy Award. Full bio here.
She also gives back. DuVernay’s foundation, the Array Alliance, launched a $250,000 funding initiative, called the Array Grants, in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The awards support women and people of color, journalists and filmmakers, as well as creative platforms including screening series and regional film festivals.
“Ava DuVernay has been leading Hollywood to make everyone feel included, both in front of and behind the camera,” said Los Angeles Press Club President Lisa Richwine.
On the same evening, the press club will honor PBS’ Henry Louis Gates, Jr. with the Luminary Award for Career Achievement in Media.
The Gala is dedicated to the memory of Bob Barker, the Club’s very first Legend Award recipient.
The NAEJ event is a fundraiser for this 501c3 charitable organization.
The club established the National Arts and Entertainment Journalism Awards in 2008 to recognize and honor quality journalism in the fastest-growing segment of the modern media revolution. It remains the sole acknowledgment of its kind in the nation and has become a much-anticipated celebration for those covering the Entertainment Industry and its artists.
To buy tickets, sponsor the awards or learn more, visit www.LApressclub.org.
