The Key West Film Festival announced screen legend Chris Cooper and Elegance Bratton, director of The Inspection as the recipients of its 2022 Golden Key Awards.

The Golden Key Award for Career Excellence goes to Chris Cooper, who won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor in the seminal Florida film, Adaptation. To celebrate the 20th Anniversary of the release of the film, Cooper will attend in person and participate in a conversation with David Fear, Senior film editor of Rollingstone.com. Prior to the film, the festival will also present the World Premiere of the short film Nuts, directed by Cooper and starring both he and his wife, Marianne Leone. Susan Orlean, author of the novel The Wild Orchid on which the film was based, will present the award to Mr. Cooper via a pre-recorded speech at the Saturday night Awards Ceremony.

Past recipients of the award include Burt Reynolds, Marisa Tomei, Kimberly Peirce, Tom Skerritt, Lois Smith, Paul Verhoeven and Alan Cumming.

The Golden Key for Breakthrough Filmmaker, recognizing a director whose films will be seen widely in the future – will be given to Elegance Bratton, whose film The Inspection will be screened at the festival. The Inspection, his narrative fiction debut, world premiered as the opening night film of the Toronto International Film Festival Discovery section and closes the New York Film Festival 2022. Last year’s inaugural recipient of this award was Clint Bentley, director of Jockey.

Following the screening, Bratton will join Eugene Hernandez, the newly appointed director of the Sundance Film Festival, for a pre-recorded conversation and award presentation.

Michael Tuckman, Director of Programming of the Key West Film Festival commented: “Chris Cooper’s resume over the last five decades is itself a chapter in film history. To be able to honor him, in conjunction with a screening of perhaps the most definitive Florida film ever made, is an honor beyond words, and we are thrilled that he and Marianne will be able to join us. The Inspection is a true showcase of cinema both breaking boundaries and claiming one’s voice, and the work behind the camera from Mr. Bratton establishes an artist who will drive cinema for years to come.”