Two-time Tony Award winner, actress Judith Light will receive the Excellence in Acting Award at the Provincetown International Film Festival on Saturday, June 15 in conversation at Provincetown Town Hall.
Light stars with Alec Baldwin and Mandy Patinkin in BEFORE YOU KNOW IT which premiered at Sundance and was picked up by distributor 1091. The film will close this year’s festival, with director Hannah Pearl Utt in attendance for Q&A.
Light is known for her extensive body of television, film, and stage work. In 2012 and 2013, Light won two consecutive Tony and Drama Desk awards for her performances in Other Desert Cities and The Assembled Parties; these two performances dubbed her the first actress in nearly two decades to win consecutive Tonys. Last year, her role in Ryan Murphy’s The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story garnered her an Emmy nomination and a Critics Choice nomination.This fall she stars with Bette Midler and Ben Platt in Ryan Murphy’s Netflix series The Politician and in the musical finale of Transparent, Amazon Prime’s Golden Globe–winning series, created by Jill Soloway, for which she received a Golden Globe nomination and multiple Emmy and Critics’ Choice nominations.
“It’s a thrill to welcome Judith Light to the Festival and honor her with our Excellence in Acting award,” said Andrew Peterson, PIFF’s Director of Programming. “Not only does she have an unparalleled body of work—she just keeps getting better. With each new project, as with our closing night selection Before You Know it, she surprises and delights us with her command of craft.”
In celebration of the 100-year history of cinema in Provincetown, the Film Society has partnered with Twenty Summers to present the 1919 film DIFFERENT FROM THE OTHERS at the historic Hawthorne Barn. Arguably the earliest surviving cinematic work about LGBTQ people, the film was directed by Richard Oswald and co-written by Magnus Hirschfield, the famed psychologist who founded the German homosexual emancipation movement in 1897, DIFFERENT FROM THE OTHERS is believed to be the only film of a group of gay friendly movies during Germany’s Weimar Era that escaped destruction by the Nazis.
Composer Billy Hough and Arranger Sue Goldberg will accompany the silent film with an original arrangement composed specifically for the film. Brendan Lucas, the Legacy Project Manager for the Outfest UCLA Legacy project will introduce the film.
The festival has also expanded its Next Wave Award program to recognize all of its young emerging filmmakers and artists who’ve participated in festival programs and demonstrate promise and ambition in the media arts. Next Wave filmmakers include young filmmakers with short or feature films in the festival; filmmakers exploring other disciplines as a means to enhance their artistic prowess (books, visual arts, installation pieces); and youth mentorship award recipients.
Installation pieces by Next Wave Filmmakers will screen at AMP Gallery during the festival including: SELF-CREATION by Shelby Dillon, 13 CHEWING GUM & ORAL HYGIENE by David Macke, and SEE ME AS directed by the late Tim McCarthy with Pepe Julian Onziema and Deus Kiriisa. Additionally, the festival has announced the Tim McCarthy LGBTQ International Scholarship Program honors the legacy of longtime friend and festival archivist whose passion for storytelling was equal to his dedication and support for social justice. This year’s recipients are Pepe Julian Onziema and Deus Kiriisa from Uganda whom Tim met working with Sexual Minorities Uganda (SMUG).
Filmmaker Yichi Chen will be honored with this year the Anthony Lawson LGBTQ Mentorship Award. Chen is a graduate student at Emerson College whose films THE OUTSIDERS and WE NEED TO TALK ABOUT THE RING highlight and examine the experiences of the LGBTQ community in both Taiwan and the U.S.
The Evan T. Lawson Freedom of Expression Award will be awarded to renowned author, screenwriter, and film producer Casey Sherman whose vast body of work represents the highest ideals of creativity and execution. Casey will receive his award at the annual Evan Lawson Brunch where he will also appear in conversation with former FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe..
The Provincetown International Film Festival runs June 12 – 16, 2019 in Provincetown, MA.