The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced the recipients of honorary Oscars at the 2017 Governors Awards this afternoon and the selections covered a wide spectrum of the industry.
This year’s honorees included filmmakers Charles Burnett and Agnes Varda, actor Donald Sutherland and cinematographer Owen Roizman.
In a statement, new Academy president John Bailey remarked, “This year’s Governors Awards reflect the breadth of international, independent and mainstream filmmaking, and are tributes to four great artists whose work embodies the diversity of our shared humanity.”
Burnett is a pioneer in African American film having written and directed the classics “Killer of Sheep” and “To Sleep With Anger” the latter of which might feature the best work of Danny Glover’s career. Dividing his time between film and television, Burnett has been honored by the Berlin Film Festival, the Sundance Film Festival, the New York Film Critics Circle and AFI.
Sutherland has been a working actor for over 55 years and has appeared in some of the most iconic movies of all-time. His credits include“The Dirty Dozen,” “M*A*S*H,” “Klute,” “Ordinary People,” “JFK,” “Without Limits,” “A Time to Kill,” “Space Cowboys,” “Cold Mountain,” “Pride and Prejudice” (2005) and the four “Hunger Games” films. Already a Canadian icon, Sutherland has two Golden Globe Awards (out of seven nominations) and won an Emmy for his role in 1995’s “Citizen X.” He’s always been on the short list of great actors who should have earned at least an Academy Award nomination, but haven’t. He was awarded the Officer of the Order of Canada in 1978 and France bestowed on him the Commandeur of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres honor in 2012.
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The 89-year-old Varda has been hailed as one of the greatest French filmmakers of all time and called the “Mother of the French New Wave” as her 1956 film “La Pointe Courte” is considered an inspiration for the movement. Her other notable works include “Cleo from 5 to 7,” “Le Bonheur,” “One Sings, the Other Doesn’t,” “Vagabond,” “Jacquot,” “The Gleaners and I” and her autobiographical documentary “The Beaches of Agnès.” Her most recent film, “Faces Places,” earned rave reviews at the 2017 Cannes Film Festival and is currently playing the circuit of the major fall film festivals.
Roizman is a five-time Oscar nominee for “The French Connection,” “The Exorcist,” “Network,” “Tootsie” and “Wyatt Earp” (1994). His other notable works include “Absence of Malice,” “The Heartbreak Kid” and “The Addams Family.” He earned an Emmy nomination as the cinematographer of the landmark TV Special “Liza with a Z” in 1973. The 80-year-old Roizman also represented the cinematography branch on the Board of Governors from 2002 to 2011.
The 2017 class will be celebrated in a private ceremony on Nov. 11 at the Ray Dolby Ballroom at Hollywood and Highland.
