Mark Ruffalo will be honored with the American Riviera Award at the 39th annual Santa Barbara International Film Festival. Ruffalo will receive the award on Sunday, February 11, 2024 at an in-person conversation about his career, leading up to this year’s performance as Ducan Wedderburn in the upcoming Yorgos Lanthimos’ “Poor Things.”
Emmy winner and three-time Academy Award – nominee Mark Ruffalo is one of Hollywood’s most beloved actors. Ruffalo will next be seen in Yorgos Lanthimos and Searchlight Pictures’ “Poor Things” and Bong Joon Ho’s “Mickey 17.” Ruffalo was nominated for Academy Awards for his roles in “Spotlight,” “Foxcatcher” and “The Kids are Alright.” He won the Emmy and the Screen Actors Guild Award for his portrayal of twin brothers in “I Know This Much is True,” and also won a Screen Actors Guild for his role in Larry Kramer’s “The Normal Heart.”
Ruffalo’s commitment extends beyond the silver screen, as exemplified in his lead role in “Dark Waters,” a film which leveraged the power of storytelling to shed light on the urgent need for environmental protections. His advocacy for clean energy and environmental and social justice aligns seamlessly with the stories and characters he brings to life on screen.
“Ruffalo has been such a remarkable performer for years – deserving all the honors year after year – but his go-for broke acting in ‘Poor Things’ is a revelation. An extraordinary talent that just keeps outdoing himself” remarked SBIFF’s Executive Director Roger Durling.
Behind the camera, Ruffalo has produced numerous projects, many of which bring attention to the fight for indigenous rights, environmental concerns and the communities most affected by the climate crisis. Most recently, Ruffalo produced “Lakota Nation vs. United States,” “Invisible Hand” and “Dear President Obama: The Clean Energy Revolution Is Now.”
Ruffalo is a co-founder and Board member of The Solutions Project, a national organization with a mission to accelerate the transition to 100% clean energy and equitable access to healthy air, water, and soils by supporting climate justice organizations, especially those led by women of color. He received the Global Green Millennium Award for Environmental Leadership, the Meera Gandhi Giving Back Foundation Award, The Big Fish Award from Riverkeeper, and the SAG-AFTRA Foundation’s Artists Inspiration Award in 2019 for using his creative and professional success as a performing artist to advance philanthropic and humanitarian causes.
From filmmaker Yorgos Lanthimos and producer Emma Stone comes the incredible tale and fantastical evolution of Bella Baxter (Stone), a young woman brought back to life by the brilliant and unorthodox scientist Dr. Godwin Baxter (Willem Dafoe). Under Baxter’s protection, Bella is eager to learn. Hungry for the worldliness she is lacking, Bella runs off with Duncan Wedderburn (Mark Ruffalo), a slick and debauched lawyer, 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.
The American Riviera Award was established to recognize actors who have made a significant contribution to American Cinema. Previous recipients include Brendan Fraser, Kristen Stewart, Delroy Lindo, Renée Zellweger, Viggo Mortenson, Sam Rockwell, Jeff Bridges, Michael Keaton, Rachel McAdams, Mark Ruffalo, Patricia Arquette, Ethan Hawke, Robert Redford, Quentin Tarantino, Martin Scorsese, Annette Bening, Sandra Bullock, Mickey Rourke, Tommy Lee Jones, Forrest Whitaker, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Kevin Bacon and Diane Lane.
The 39th Santa Barbara International Film Festival will take place LIVE February 7 – February 17, 2024. Official events including screenings, filmmaker Q&As, industry panels, and celebrity tributes, will be held throughout the city, including at the historic Arlington Theatre. Passes for the 2024 Festival are on sale now at sbiff.org.
Last year, the festival had 52 world premieres, 78 U.S. premieres, with honorary awards feted on Angela Bassett, Cate Blanchett, Jamie Lee Curtis, Brendan Fraser, Austin Butler, Kerry Cordon, Danielle Deadwyler, Nina Hoss, Stephanie Hsu, Ke Huy Quan, Jeremy Strong, Colin Farrell, Brendan Gleeson, Todd Field and Martin McDonagh.
A-list and industry guests will once again ascend to Santa Barbara, making it a must-stop location on the awards circuit, and delivering a record number of films with many World and U.S. premieres. The film lineup and schedule will be announced January, 2024.
About the Santa Barbara International Film Festival
The Santa Barbara International Film Festival (SBIFF) is a 501(c)(3) non-profit arts and educational organization dedicated to discovering and showcasing the best in independent and international cinema. Over the past 38 years, SBIFF has become one of the leading film festivals in the United States – attracting 100,000+ attendees and offering 11 days of 200+ films including 100+ premieres representing over 60 countries, tributes and panel discussions, fulfilling their mission to engage, enrich, and inspire the Santa Barbara community through film.
In 2016, SBIFF entered a new era with the acquisition of the historic and beloved Riviera Theatre. After a capital campaign and renovation, the theatre is now SBIFF’s new state-of-the-art, year-round home, showing new international and independent films every day. In 2019, SBIFF opened its own Education Center in downtown Santa Barbara on State Street to serve as a home for its many educational programs and a place for creativity and learning.