Academy Award and Tony Award nominee Adam Driver will receive the SFFILM Award for Acting (formerly the Peter J. Owens Award) at SFFILM Awards Night, the organization’s annual fundraising celebration honoring achievement in filmmaking craft. This year’s edition of the dinner and awards presentation event takes place Tuesday, December 3 at San Francisco’s Palace of Fine Arts Exhibition Center.
Driver will join the previously announced recipients of the evening’s other awards, Chinonye Chukwu (SFFILM Award for Breakthrough Directing), Marielle Heller (Irving M. Levin Award for Film Direction), and Lulu Wang (Kanbar Award for Storytelling) at the glamorous benefit gala. Supporting the organization’s various year-round work in cultivating the next generation of film artists, particularly through its SFFILM Education and SFFILM Makers initiatives, SFFILM Awards Night is a highlight of the San Francisco social calendar and an important industry stop to leverage the Bay Area’s increasing awards season relevance.
“There are times when a world-class actor takes over the consciousness of the film-loving audience, and 2019 is the year of Adam Driver,” said SFFILM Director of Programming Rachel Rosen. “The range and scope of his work this year is just incredible, from the epic scale of Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker to the nuanced turns in The Report and The Dead Don’t Die, to his remarkable, intimate, heart-breaking performance in Marriage Story, he has clearly established himself as a master of his craft. We couldn’t be more pleased to welcome him to San Francisco to receive this award.”
The SFFILM Award for Acting, previously known as the Peter J. Owens Award for Acting, honors an actor each year whose work exemplifies brilliance, independence, and integrity. Past recipients include Amy Adams (2018), Kate Winslet (2017), Ellen Burstyn (2016), Richard Gere (2015), Jeremy Irons (2014), Harrison Ford (2013), Judy Davis (2012), Terence Stamp (2011), Robert Duvall (2010), Robert Redford (2009), Maria Bello (2008), and Robin Williams (2007).
Adam Driver is an acclaimed performer of film, television, and theater. He can currently be seen in Noah Baumbach’s Marriage Story alongside Scarlett Johansson, in a story that follows a couple’s divorce. Simultaneously, he can be seen in Scott Z. Burns’ The Report, which focuses on the CIA’s use of torture in the aftermath of 9/11. Upcoming he has J.J. Abrams’ Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, which will be released by Disney on December 20.
Last year, Driver co-starred in Spike Lee’s BlacKkKlansman, alongside John David Washington. For his portrayal, he received numerous accolades, including Academy Award, BAFTA, Golden Globe, and Screen Actors Guild nominations in the category of Best Supporting Actor.
Film credits include Jim Jarmusch’s The Dead Don’t Die; Terry Gilliam’s The Man Who Killed Don Quixote; Rian Johnson’s Star Wars: The Last Jedi; Steven Soderbergh’s Logan Lucky; Martin Scorsese’s Silence; Jim Jarmusch’s Paterson; Jeff Nichols’ Midnight Special; J.J. Abrams’ Star Wars: The Force Awakens; Shawn Levy’s This Is Where I Leave You, Noah Baumbach’s While We’re Young and Frances Ha; Saverio Costanzo’s Hungry Hearts, for which he received the Venice International Film Festival’s Volpi Cup; John Curran’s Tracks; Ethan and Joel Coen’s Inside Llewyn Davis; Steven Spielberg’s Lincoln; and Clint Eastwood’s J. Edgar.
Driver is a Juilliard graduate and is a former Marine who was with 1/1 Weapons Company at Camp Pendleton, CA. He is also the co-founder of the non-profit Arts in the Armed Forces.