On Tuesday, the Santa Barbara International Film Festival announced that it will be presenting the Kirk Douglas Award to Robert De Niro on December 8 at the Bacara resort as part of its annual winter fundraiser.
Widely considered one of the greatest living actors in show business, De Niro has shined in such landmark films as Raging Bull, Taxi Driver, the Godfather trilogy, and Goodfellas, and is also receiving many accolades for his latest effort in director David O. Russell’s comedy-drama Silver Linings Playbook.
The honor — which in year’s past has gone to Michael Douglas, Harrison Ford, Quentin Tarantino, Ed Harris, John Travolta, and Kirk Douglas himself — comes with a gala dinner and tribute from the elder Douglas, who praised De Niro in a press release for both his acting and his establishing of the Tribeca Film Festival in the wake of 9/11.
See sbiff.org for tickets and event info.