SBIFF to Honor Ben Affleck
Director, Producer, and Actor Will Be Given Modern Master Award for Work on Argo
The Santa Barbara International Film Festival will honor Ben Affleck this season with its most prestigious tribute, announced SBIFF Executive Director Roger Durling. Affleck will be recognized with the Modern Master Award for his directing, producing, and acting work on Argo, a critically acclaimed film based on the efforts to rescue six Americans during the 1979 Iran hostage crisis. The tribute ceremony will take place on Saturday, January 26, at the Arlington Theatre.
“Affleck has come into his own as a multi-dimensional artist with Argo,” said Durling in a press release. “He embodies what the Modern Master Award is all about, and we’re thrilled to honor him this year.” Affleck joins an impressive list of past SBIFF Modern Master recipients, including Michael Douglas, Jodie Foster, Sir Anthony Hopkins, Diane Keaton, Sean Penn, Jeff Bridges, Peter Jackson, George Clooney, Will Smith, Cate Blanchett, Clint Eastwood, James Cameron, Christopher Nolan, and Christopher Plummer.
Affleck started acting at a young age, taking small roles in independent films like Dazed and Confused, Mallrats, and Chasing Amy before hitting it big with 1997’s Good Will Hunting. After a variety of roles in a number of hit films, he made his directorial debut with Gone Baby Gone in 2007 and again stepped behind the camera for The Town in 2010.
The SBIFF, which is in its 28th year, will take place January 24 – February 3, 2013. Passes, packages, and information are available at sbfilmfestival.org and (805) 963-0023.
