2015 SAN DIEGO FILM FESTIVAL ANNOUNCES CELEBRITY ATTENDEE'S

SAN DIEGO FILM FESTIVAL BRINGS AMAZING FILMS TO TOWN!

Gala Presentations Include Go With Me, I Smile Back, Youth, Meadowland,
Diablo, He Named Me Malala and Ashby-

The San Diego Film Festival (SDFF), produced by the San Diego Film Foundation, announced today its Night of the Stars Tribute award recipients. The special event will take place on October 1, 2015 at the Museum of Contemporary Arts in La Jolla, CA. Now in its 14th year, the San Diego Film Festival will run from September 30th through October 4th in San Diego, CA. The most up to date festival program is available at www.sdfilmfest.com.

Adrien Brody will attend this year’s Tribute event to receive the Cinema Vanguard Award, which recognizes an actor with the tenacity to forge new ground within their craft. Brody won the Academy Award for Best Actor for his role in Roman Polanski’sThe Pianist and is to date the youngest person to have received the Oscar in that category. His portrayal of Harry Houdini in the miniseries “Houdini” is his latest work to be recognized by the Emmy’s, while last year he saw success as part of the esteemed ensemble cast of The Grand Budapest Hotel, which won the 2015 Golden Globe for “Best Picture, Musical or Comedy” and was a 2015 Academy Award “Best Picture” nominee. Brody’s previous credits include King Kong, The Darjeeling Limited, Dragon Blade, Summer of Sam, Midnight in Paris, Predators, The Brother’s Bloom and King of the Hill. Following the success of the aforementioned projects, Brody has multiple films on the horizon including Septembers of Shiraz opposite Salma Hayek, and Emperor, chronicling the reign of Emperor Charles V.

Academy Award winner and advocate Geena Davis will be attending the Tribute to receive the inaugural Reframed Humanitarian Award. This prestigious award was created in partnership with Academy Award winner Susan Sarandon and filmmaker Thomas Morgan ( Waiting for Mamu) of Reframed Pictures, to recognize an outstanding individual who dedicates their time and efforts to fighting indifference, intolerance and injustice through film. As the founder of the Geena Davis Institute on Gender in Media, she has exemplified this deed with her tireless work on gender equality, transforming the way girls and young women see themselves and the world, through the examples they see in film. As one of Hollywood’s most respected actors, she has appeared in countess roles that became cultural landmarks, including Tootsie,Beetlejuice, Thelma & Louise, The Fly, Stuart Little, A League of Their Own, The Accidental Tourist and ABC’s “Commander in Chief”.

Brit Marling will be attending the Tribute to receive the Auteur Award, which is presented to a multi-talented actor who brings unique personal visions to their craft. As an actress, writer and producer, Marling has successfully flexed her creative muscles across both film and television. She will soon be seen starring in Daniel Barber’s The Keeping Room alongside Hailee Steinfeld, Muna Otaru and Sam Worthington and is currently co-producing, co-writing and starring in the upcoming Netflix series “The OA”. Marling has previously starred in Another Earth, I Origin, The East, Sound of My Voice,Arbitrage and the UK series “Babylon”.

Created in honor of beloved director Chris Brinker ( Bad Country, Boondock Saints), this award is given to a first time director not afraid to push the envelope in the cinematic world. The recipient of the 2015 Chris Brinker Award will be chosen by the Festival programming team from this year’s 2015 San Diego Film Festival submissions.

SDFF is proud to screen a diverse range of narrative, documentary, spotlight and short films. Screenings will be held at the Reading Theater in Downtown San Diego’s Gaslamp Quarter and ArcLight Cinemas in La Jolla. The complete list of 2015 San Diego Film Festival titles including descriptions are available at sdfilmfest.com.

Passes are currently on sale to VIP members and the general public. In addition to screenings and events, passes provide access to the official festival lounge and parties where pass holders interact with Festival filmmakers and professionals in the film community. Individual tickets will go on sale beginning September 9 th. For more information regarding passes/tickets, press accreditation, industry passes, or sponsorship opportunities, please visit sdfilmfest.com.