The 30th annual Palm Springs International Film Festival (PSIFF) will present Bradley Cooper with the Director of the Year Award for A Star is Born at its annual Film Awards Gala. The Film Awards Gala, hosted by Mary Hart and Entertainment Tonight, and presented by American Express, will be held on Thursday, January 3 at the Palm Springs Convention Center. The Festival runs January 3-14.
“Bradley Cooper makes a stunning directorial debut with A Star is Born,” said Festival Chairman Harold Matzner. “Cooper captures authentic performances in this moving film that has emotionally resonated with audiences everywhere and is sure to be celebrated as one of the best pictures of the year. It is our honor to present the Director of the Year Award to Bradley Cooper.”
Cooper joins previously announced honorees Glenn Close, Alfonso Cuarón, Rami Malek, Melissa McCarthy and Green Book. Past recipients of the Director of the Year Award include Stephen Daldry, Alejandro G. Iñárritu, Steve McQueen, Alexander Payne, Sean Penn, Jason Reitman, David O. Russell and Robert Zemeckis. Cooper received the festival’s Desert Palm Achievement Award in 2013 for Silver Linings Playbook and the Ensemble Cast Award in 2014 for American Hustle.
In A Star Is Born, Bradley Cooper and Lady Gaga fuse their considerable talents to depict the raw and passionate tale of Jack and Ally, two artistic souls coming together, on stage and in life. Theirs is a complex journey through the beauty and the heartbreak of a relationship struggling to survive. Four-time Oscar nominee Cooper (American Sniper, American Hustle, Silver Linings Playbook), makes his directorial debut, starring alongside multiple award-winning, Oscar-nominated music superstar Gaga in her first leading role in a major motion picture and acclaimed actor Sam Elliott. From Warner Bros. Pictures, Live Nation Productions and Metro Goldwyn Mayer Pictures, the film also stars Andrew Dice Clay with Dave Chappelle.
Four-time Oscar nominee, Bradley Cooper recently made his directorial debut with the critically acclaimed Warner Bros. film A Star is Born, which he also stars in, co-wrote and produced. Additional film credits include: Oscar-nominated films American Sniper, American Hustle, and Silver Linings Playbook; Derek Cianfrance’s acclaimed The Place Beyond the Pines; The Hangover Trilogy; Limitless; Guardians of the Galaxy; War Dogs; David O. Russell’s Joy; Burnt; Wedding Crashers and Wet Hot American Summer. Television credits include: Wet Hot American Summer: first Day of Camp, Alias, Nip/Tuck, Kitchen Confidential, Jack & Bobby and Sex and the City.