HIFF40 presented by Halekulani (November 5-29) is honored to announce this year’s honorees:
Halekulani Career Achievement Award:
Ann Hui: The winner of three Golden Horse awards and six Hong Kong Film Awards (HKFA) for best director, Ann Hui is one of the most talented filmmakers of her generation. She is known for her films about social issues in Hong Kong including three films that we are screening from her filmography–BOAT PEOPLE (1982), SONG OF THE EXILE (1990) and A SIMPLE LIFE (2011). For HIFF40, it is with great pleasure to bestow Hui with this year’s recipient of the Halekulani Golden Maile for Career Achievement. Director Hui is also this year’s Hong Kong Filmmaker in Profile in the SPOTLIGHT ON HONG KONG presented by the Hong Kong Economic & Trade Office in San Francisco.
Halekulani Maverick Award:
Rachel Brosnahan: Best known in her Emmy and Golden Globe winning performance as Midge Maisel in the Amazon Prime hit series THE MARVELOUS MRS. MAISEL, Rachel Brosnahan has graced the stage and major event shows in the height of “Peak TV.” From her Emmy nominated recurring role in Netflix’s HOUSE OF CARDS to her series lead role in the critically-acclaimed MANHATTAN on WGN, Brosnahan she started at the famed Steppenwolf Theatre in 2009. By 2016, she played Desdemona in OTHELLO alongside David Oyelowo and Daniel Craig. Brosnahan’s career leap in feature films as a lead is Julia Hart’s I’M YOUR WOMAN (screening at HIFF40), a gritty ’70s crime drama that she also serves as producer. HIFF40 is honored to present the Halekulani Maverick Award to Rachel Brosnahan.
Dave Filoni: Dave Filoni is an American animation television director, writer and producer, who started his career started his career on such shows as KING OF THE HILL and AVATAR: THE LAST AIRBENDER. He realized a lifelong dream in 2005 when he was selected by George Lucas to help build Lucasfilm’s animation studio from the ground up and create the company’s first series – STAR WARS: THE CLONE WARS. Over a span of seven seasons, the Emmy Award winning and fan-favorite series pushed the boundaries of television animation, receiving acclaim not only for its technical achievements, but its complex and compelling storylines. Filoni’s follow-up series, the Emmy® nominated STAR WARS REBELS, similarly received universal praise for building upon the Star Wars saga. Filoni recently finished production on the 2nd season of the Emmy award winning Disney + series THE MANDALORIAN, serving as executive producer, episodic director and writer. Millions of fans consider Filoni the rightful heir to the Star Wars Universe, as storyteller, historian, and direct line to George Lucas’s original vision. Hence, HIFF40 is honored to bestow the Halekulani Maverick Award to Dave Filoni.
Steven Yeun: Best known for his roles as Glenn Rhee in the hit television series THE WALKING DEAD, where he co-starred for six seasons, Steven Yeun has crafted a versatile career that vacillates between pop mainstream entertainment the Cannes red carpet. From co-starring in the Sundance hit SORRY TO BOTHER YOU and Netflix’s OKJA from Bong Joon-ho (in a role written for him), to his National Society of Film Critics nominated role as Ben in Lee Chang-dong’s BURNING, as a morally ambiguous playboy, Yeun can be categorized as a global citizen of cinema. In his latest, MINARI, which is the HIFF40 Opening Night Film, Yeun stretches his acting chops in a lovely performance as a Korean immigrant father in pursuit of his American dream. The film world premiered at Sundance where it won both the Jury Grand Prize and the Audience Award. The sky is the limit for this true maverick!
Halekulani New Vanguard Award:
Lana Condor: Over the last few years Lana Condor has burst onto the scene as one of the most in-demand leading ladies in the entertainment industry, making her star turn in the rom-com film TO ALL THE BOYS I’VE LOVED BEFORE, which became a global sensation for Netflix in the summer of 2018. Condor broke the mold as the first Asian American leading lady in a YA romantic comedy. In addition to her co-starring turns in X-MEN APOCALYPSE, THE DEADLY CLASS and ALITA: BATTLE ANGEL, as well as her charity work and social media presence to promote girls education and civic engagement, HIFF is honored to bestow our first New Vanguard Award to actress and activist Lana Condor.
Pacific Islanders in Communications Trailblazer Award:
Keala Settle: Born in Laie, Keala Settle catapulted onto the Broadway stage with her powerful voice and presence in major hits WAITRESS, LES MISERABLES, and her Tony nominated portrayal of Norma Valverde in HANDS ON A HARDBODY. In 2017, she would make a global impact in THE GREATEST SHOWMAN, alongside Hugh Jackman, Zac Efron, and Zendaya. The song “This Is Me” from the film, won the 2018 Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song, and was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Original Song, where she performed to hundreds of millions of viewers. For 2020, HIFF and PIC have the great pleasure to honor our first “Trailblazer” from Hawai’i, Broadway singer and film actress Keala Settle.
Daniel K Inouye Institute Ambassador:
Phillipa Soo: Phillipa Soo is best known for originating the role of Eliza Schuyler Hamilton in Broadway’s critically acclaimed HAMILTON, garnering her numerous industry awards and a Tony Award nomination. She can currently be seen in the film version of HAMILTON, on Disney+. This fall, Soo will voice a lead role in Netflix’s animated film OVER THE MOON She can also be seen in Sony’s THE BROKE HEART’S GALLERY and in Disney+’s THE ONE AND ONLY IVAN. She made her feature film debut in HERE AND NOW.
HIFF40 Legacy Award:
Jason Scott Lee: Hawai’i’s own Jason Scott Lee bursted into the Hollywood scene as Bruce Lee in the 1993 martial arts film DRAGON: THE BRUCE LEE STORY and Mowgli in Disney’s 1994 live action adaptation of THE JUNGLE BOOK. His HIFF debut was in the award winning MAP OF THE HUMAN HEART directed by Kiwi Vincent Ward. Lee is the Hawai‘i actor success story, and he would garner an illustrious acting career for over two decades. Becoming mid-pacific, he would set his sights to Asia and co-star in Netflix’s CROUCHING TIGER, HIDDEN DRAGON: SWORD OF DESTINY and the Kevin Costner produced RAPA NUI. He would make a return to his roots, in animated form, in the Disney hit LILO & STITCH and return to the Mouse House as the big bad in the recent live-action remake MULAN.
With the film festival being a hybrid event (virtual and select live in-person screenings), this year’s honorees will be honored online and participate in live-streamed moderated conversations. Most of these conversations will be open to the general public, including Q&A sessions with these film luminaries. Plus, an added bonus, they are all free!
To read more about this year’s HIFF40 Honorees, as well as their scheduled HIFF Talk Story sessions during the Festival, head over to the HIFF Awards page.
Here are the HIFF40 Honorees!
