Sylvester Stallone To Receive Montecito Award At Santa Barbara Film Festival

The Santa Barbara International Film Festival announced today that Sylvester Stallone will receive their prestigious Montecito Award for his critically acclaimed role in Ryan Coogler’s CREED.  Given to a person in the entertainment industry whose has made a great contribution to film, the award will be presented to him at a ceremony on Tuesday, February 9^th at the historic Arlington Theater.

“Sylvester Stallone’s performance in Creed has reminded us of what a true talent he is and what a joy it is to share in his successes as the many beloved characters he has created.  Since he first hit the silver screen as Rocky Balboa nearly four decades ago, he has been a force in the industry both on film and behind the scenes.  He is a true legend in our field, and it is our privilege to present him with the Montecito Award, and to continue to honor his legacy,” said SBIFF Executive Director Roger Durling.

Stallone first established worldwide recognition as an actor and filmmaker when he starred in 1976’s “Rocky,” from his own screenplay.  Both a critical and box office hit, the film garnered 10 Academy Award nominations including Stallone for Best Actor and Best Original Screenplay.  Most recently, Stallone received an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor for “Creed,” becoming only the sixth actor in Academy history to be nominated for playing the same role in two different films.

Stallone’s numerous film credits include the “Rocky” and “Rambo” films, “Copland,” “Tango & Cash,” “F.I.S.T.,” “Victory” and “Nighthawks.”

In addition, Stallone’s influence and appreciation are acknowledged worldwide.  In 2008, the Zurich Film Festival presented him with the festival’s inaugural Golden Icon Award, which recognized his achievements as a great American Actor and Filmmaker, and in 2009, the Venice Film Festival honored Stallone with its Glory to the Filmmaker Award.

In addition to his extensive film career, Stallone is an accomplished artist, completing paintings on canvas as well as sculpture work.  He has had impressive exhibitions at Art Basil, The Russian State Museum and, most recently, at the Nice Museum of Contemporary Art in France.

The Montecito Award is named after one of the most beautiful and stylish areas in Santa Barbara.  Past recipients include Jennifer Aniston, Oprah Winfrey, Daniel Day-Lewis, Geoffrey Rush, Julianne Moore, Kate Winslet, Javier Bardem, Bill Condon, and Naomi Watts.

The festival previously honored Jane Fonda (Youth) with its Kirk Douglas Award for Excellence in Film and has announced that it will honor Johnny Depp (Black Mass) with its Maltin Modern Master Award; Michael Keaton, Mark Ruffalo and Rachel McAdams (Spotlight) as an ensemble with its American Riviera Award; and Alicia Vikander (The Danish Girl, Ex Machina), O’Shea Jackson Jr. (Straight Outta Compton) Géza Röhrig (Son of Saul), Elizabeth Banks (Love & Mercy), Joel Edgerton (Black Mass), Paul Dano (Love & Mercy) and Jacob Tremblay (Room) with its Virtuosos Award.

For more information, and to purchase tickets, festival passes and packages, please visit www.sbiff.org.