Lifetime achievment to the Donner's at Ojay next fall

Ojai Film Festival has announced it will produce two Lifetime Achievement Awards programs to honor high powered producers, Lauren Shuler Donner and Richard Donner, Friday, Nov. 7 as well as an American icon, Ray Bradbury on Saturday November 8 as part of its ninth annual event set to run November 6 through 9, at the five-diamond resort – the Ojai Valley Inn & Spa. Chairman of the Festival Board, David Shor enthused, “I am pleased and honored to announce, Ray Bradbury and the Donners' have accepted our invitation to be honored at the Ojai Film Festival with a Lifetime Achievement Award for their amazing bodies of work that have inspired and entertained so many people around the world. All the honorees have one thing in common – they can’t be categorized in any one genre. These are major developments for our festival.”
As a true definition of a ’power couple,’ in Hollywood, The Donners’ were married in 1985, and have done solo and paired projects throughout their relationship as well as each having hefty resumes with comedies, dramas and action-adventures exploring genres too numerous to name. [Sample: Lethal Weapon franchise – all four films. He did first three and they combined for the fourth; Superman I & II Richard; X-Men, combined efforts and Free Willy, all three films.] Richard Donner began his career in TV as an actor and directed episodes of classic television series such as, Gilligan’s Island, The Man From U.N.C.L.E., Get Smart, Perry Mason, and the forerunner Twilight Zone, among many others. Shuler-Donner burst on the scene with the block buster comedy Mr. Mom, and was responsible for two of the most popular "Brat Pack" movies of the '80's, St. Elmo's Fire and Pretty in Pink, both of which garnered platinum records for their soundtracks. In the early '90's, Shuler Donner produced the box office smash hits, Dave and Free Willy, which were two of the top ten films of 1993. The critically acclaimed Dave was nominated for both an Academy Award (Best Original Screenplay) and a Golden Globe (Best Picture-Comedy). Most recently, she produced She’s the Man, to high critical acclaim.

Together they are also known as philanthropists and have been honored by Mikhail Gorbachev's environmental organization, Global Green USA, with their 2000 Green Cross Millennium Award for Entertainment Industry Environmental Leadership for their tireless efforts to protect the Earth for future generations. They were also honored in September of 2005 by PETA.

Ray Bradbury is best known as the author of extraordinary science fiction -- Fahrenheit 451 and The Martian Chronicles but his work is so much more than this one genre. For instance, in the world of film, Bradbury wrote the screenplay for the classic Moby Dick. Bradbury is a prolific writer ( http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0001969/bio) with a total literary output close to 600 short stories, more than 30 books and numerous poems and plays. In 2004 Bradbury received a National Medal of Arts. He was given a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6644 Hollywood Blvd. An asteroid is named in his honor, "9766 Bradbury", and the Apollo astronaut named a crater on the moon "Dandelion Crater", after his novel, Dandelion Wine. Bradbury also received: the World Fantasy Award for Lifetime Achievement; the Grand Master Award from Science Fiction Writers of America; an Emmy Award for his work as a writer on The Halloween Tree,’ and many other awards and honors. His works were translated to more than 40 languages and sold tens of millions of copies worldwide. Bradbury currently resides in Los Angeles, California. He has never driven a car and does not have one. He writes daily.

Hottest addition to this year’s festival will be the Celebrity Golf Classic and Malcolm McDowell will serve as the Honorary Chair and Host at the prestigious Ojai Valley Inn & Spa (OVIS) Golf Course. McDowell noted “The Ojai Valley Inn Golf Course is one of the finest resort golf courses in the country. Designed by the brilliant George Thomas - who designed Riviera, Bel Air and the L.A. Country Club courses - Ojai is the jewel in the crown with spectacular views and very taxing course but a fair one.” He declared, “We’re trying to make this one of the really more interesting festivals and with our association with Ray Bradbury, who is to America what Jules Verne is to France, I think this is an exciting time for the Ojai Film Festival and I’m happy to be a part of it as I have been from the beginning.”

McDowell bounded onto screens in Lindsay Anderson’s If, in 1968, worked with Stanley Kubrick on his masterpiece Clockwork Orange, and continues to work diligently and intelligently with acting credits in every nook of entertainment, all the while playing complicated levels of characters in every situation and in every century. He can be seen on previous seasons of HBO’s comedy series skewering the Hollywood system on Entourage, as Terence – Ari Gold’s former agency boss played to the hilt. The Celebrity Golf Classic gives the festival added stature and transforms the festival to a five-diamond “destination for film & golf lovers.”

VIP Packages for the Festival and Celebrity Golf Classic are already on sale at the website: http://www.ojaifilmfestival.com/ticketing.html. Early Bird incentives are only in effect now through June 1. Purchasers of the VIP Platinum Pass gain entry into all screenings, plus the Opening & Closing Night Party, Lifetime Achievement Award Special Events & Screenings, Friday After Party, Awards Ceremony & Brunch, VIP Seating and entry into the Celebrity Golf Classic on November 6. Enticing patrons to plan ahead, the early bird ticket buyers pay $825. ($205 savings). General tickets and passes for four-pack and six-pack film screenings will come on sale later in the year as the festival line-up gets established. Individual passes for some of the Festival events are also available online at discounted pricing.
Film Lovers Only will want the VIP Gold Pass which will get you entry into all of the Festival related events that the VIP Platinum Pass covers, except for the Celebrity Golf Classic ($100 savings). VIP Gold Pass is $350. until June 1. Click on this Link: http://www.ojaifilmfestival.com/ticketing.html
“The Ojai Film Festival Celebrity Golf Classic at the OVIS golf course brings the dream of Hollywood to Ojai,” said Bill Monot (Board member & chair for the golf tournament). “A round of celebrity golf with a weekend of great films…what could be better?” he asked. As celebrities are confirmed names will be released. Added Shor, “Malcolm McDowell’s friends are sure to populate the list of golfers on the celebrity menu as well as some other surprise names from the world of rock n’ roll courtesy of Board member Monot’s connections as an agent of Paradise Artists”.
Screenings, panels and the Ojai Film Festival Hub will all be centered at the 220-acre OVIS resort and will utilize all of the public spaces for the Festival on the high-end property as well as the usual venues in town, the Plaza Theatre, the Matilija Auditorium and Ojai Arts Center. Panavision remains on board as a major sponsor/title sponsor of “Limelight” bringing new filmmakers to the forefront and celebrated at the festival. Ojai Film Festival has steadfastly maintained the theme of Enriching the Human Spirit Through Film as its focus; however, the Festival also welcomes all subjects in any genre. Deadlines for submissions are as follows: April 15 Early deadline; May 15 Regular Deadline; June 15 Late Deadline; July 15 Extended Deadline. http://www.ojaifilmfestival.com/entries.html

With the new host partnership created between the nine-year-old film festival and the premiere destination resort, Ojai Valley Inn & Spa, the Ojai Film Festival is setting the barre higher than in past years and will continue to make more leaps and bounds culminating on November 6 – 9. So be sure to watch the website for developments. (www.ojaifilmfestival.com).
www.ojaifilmfestival.com