UPDATED with latest: Emma Stone, the La La Land Oscar winner whose latest film Poor Things premiered at the Venice Film Festival and won the Golden Lion prize, will receive the 2024 Desert Palm Achievement, Actress, award from the Palm Springs Film Festival.
She stars in the pic as Bella, a young woman brought back to life by a brilliant and unorthodox scientist (Willem Dafoe). Under his protection, she is eager to learn and hungry for the worldliness she is lacking, running off on a whirlwind adventure across the continents. Free from the prejudices of her times, Bella grows steadfast in her purpose to stand for equality and liberation. Watch the trailer here.
The Searchlight title also played the Telluride, New York, London and Busan film festivals and opens domestically on December 8.
See the 2024 festival’s list of honorees so far below.
PREVIOUSLY, Nov. 14: With the SAG-AFTRA strike behind us, the all-important film festivals that occur in the heart of awards season are starting to take shape. A key stop is always the Palm Springs Film Festival gala, which has just announced its first award: the Vanguard, which goes to a film’s director as well as its ensemble cast. It is probably no surprise that this year’s recipient is Apple Original Films and Paramount’s epic Western drama Killers of the Flower Moon.
Director Martin Scorsese and stars Leonardo DiCaprio and Lily Gladstone will be on hand to accept at the Palm Springs gala January 4 in the desert city. The film had its world premiere at the Cannes Film Festival in May, winning much acclaim. It opened a wide theatrical release through Paramount on October 20 and has earned north of $100 million globally to date.
“Killers of the Flower Moon is a powerful and important film not only for its cinematic poetry but also as
a complicated story about the suspicious murders of members of the Osage Nation, one which fully
illustrates the evils of racism and corruption,” PSIFF chairman Nachhattar Singh Chandi said Tuesday.
Based on a true story and told through the improbable romance of Ernest Burkhart (DiCaprio) and Mollie Kyle (Gladstone), Killers of the Flower Moon tracks the suspicious murders of members of the Osage Nation, who became some of the richest people in the world overnight after oil was discovered underneath their land. It also stars Robert De Niro and Jesse Plemons along with a cast of Native American actors including veteran Tantoo Cardinal. Scorsese directed from a screenplay he wrote with Eric Roth, based on David Grann’s bestselling book. The film features an original score from the late Robbie Robertson.
Past recipients of the fest’s Vanguard Award include Best Picture Oscar winners Green Book and The
Shape of Water and nominees Belfast, La La Land, Little Miss Sunshine, The Fablemans and The Trial of the Chicago 7.
Palm Springs will be rolling out its annual awards list leading up to the festival, which runs January 4-15 in the desert city east of Los Angeles. Here’s the list of recipients so far:
Vanguard Award: Killers of the Flower Moon
Desert Palm Achievement, Actress: Emma Stone