Variety will honor Emmy-winning writer-producer-actor Lena Waithe with the Creative Impact in Producing Award at the Palm Springs International Film Festival on Jan. 3 as part of Variety’s annual “10 Directors to Watch” brunch at the Parker Palm Springs. The brunch is presented by AT&T.
Waithe is the screenwriter and producer of Universal Pictures and Makready’s Queen & Slim, directed by Melina Matsoukas. The film received the Impact Award and was listed as one of the top 10 Best Films of the Year by the African-American Film Critics Association.
“Lena Waithe is one of the most prolific writer-actor-producers working in Hollywood right now, with an extraordinary ability to get projects with black filmmakers and talent produced for film and television,” says Claudia Eller, Variety editor-in-chief. “With Queen & Slim, Lena wrote and produced a story that has been central to the conversation regarding representation and storytelling in the black community. Her determination to get these stories told is inspiring.”
Previously announced honorees of the brunch include Robert De Niro and Todd Phillips. The Palm Springs International Film Festival (psfilmfest.org) will be held Jan. 2-13, 2020.
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