Cinema maverick Timothée Chalamet will be honored with the prestigious Arlington Artist of the Year Award at the 40th annual Santa Barbara International Film Festival (SBIFF). Chalamet will receive the award during an in-person tribute and career retrospective on Tuesday, February 11, 2025. The evening will highlight his performances in three highly acclaimed films: “A Complete Unknown” (Dir. James Mangold), “Dune: Part Two” (Dir. Denis Villeneuve) and “Wonka” (Dir. Paul King). This honor recognizes Chalamet’s unparalleled talent and his enduring impact on the cinematic landscape.
“I’m a big fan of Bob Dylan, and I was blown away by Chalamet’s transformation in ‘A Complete Unknown.’ His performance is galvanizing and electrifying, especially coming on the heels of the major box office triumph earlier this year with “Dune: Part Two.” Truly, this is the age of Chalamet” said SBIFF Executive Director Roger Durling.
Timothée Chalamet was the youngest “Best Actor” Oscar nominee since 1939 for his breakout role in “Call Me by Your Name.” He has starred in five Best Picture Oscar nominees: “Call Me by Your Name,” “Lady Bird,” “Little Women,” “Dune,” and “Don’t Look Up.” Additional Credits include “Bones and All,” “The French Dispatch,” “Beautiful Boy,” “The King,” “Interstellar,” and “Dune: Part Two.” He is currently in production on A24 and Josh Safdie’s “Marty Supreme,” inspired by the late American table tennis legend Martin ‘Marty’ Reisman.
The 40th Santa Barbara International Film Festival will take place Live February 4 – February 15, 2025. Official events including screenings, filmmaker Q&As, industry panels, and celebrity tributes, will be held at SBIFF’s Riviera Theatre and its new Film Center, plus the historic Arlington Theatre. Passes for the 2025 Festival are on sale now at sbiff.org.
Last year, the festival had a program of 200+ films from over 48 countries with honorary awards feted on Robert Downey Jr., Bradley Cooper, Mark Ruffalo, Jeffrey Wright, America Ferrera, Lily Gladstone, Greta Lee, Charles Melton, Da’Vine Joy Randolph, Andrew Scott, Martin Scorsese, Justine Triet, Billie Eilish, and Ludwig Göransson.
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 2025.
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 39 years, SBIFF has become one of the top 10 film festivals in the United States – attracting 100,000 attendees and offering 11 days of 200+ films, tributes and symposiums, fulfilling their mission to engage, enrich, and inspire the Santa Barbara community through film.
SBIFF continues its commitment to education and the community throughout many free educational programs and events. SBIFF’s programs support over 18,000 kids, students and families in our local community by introducing film as an art form to young children with programs like AppleBox and Mike’s FieldTrip to the Movies; teaching film analysis to highschool and college students with programs like Rosebud and the Film Studies Program; and teaching the craft of screenwriting and filmmaking with Film Camp and 10-10-10 Mentorship programs. Most importantly SBIFF’s programs are always directed towards the under-represented and under-served communities within Santa Barbara County.
More recently, SBIFF secured a long-term lease for the iconic multi-plex at 916 State Street in the heart of downtown Santa Barbara. This landmark acquisition paves the way for the creation of a state-of-the-art Film Center — a vibrant, year-round destination that will serve as a central hub for cinema enthusiasts and the heart of SBIFF’s renowned Film Festival. Building on the success of the Riviera Theatre revitalization in 2016 and the opening of its own Education Center in 2019 in the downtown area, SBIFF continues to strengthen its commitment to the cultural fabric of Santa Barbara.