The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced on Monday that its Board of Governors voted to present Honorary Academy Awards to Angela Bassett, Mel Brooks, and editor Carol Littleton, and the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award to Michelle Satter of the Sundance Institute.
The four Oscar statuettes will be presented at the Academy’s 14th Governors Awards event on Saturday, Nov. 18 at the Fairmont Century Plaza in Los Angeles.
The Honorary Award, an Oscar statuette, is given “to honor extraordinary distinction in lifetime achievement, exceptional contributions to the state of motion picture arts and sciences, or for outstanding service to the Academy,” while the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award, also an Oscar statuette, is given “to an individual in the motion picture arts and sciences whose humanitarian efforts have brought credit to the industry.”
“The Academy’s Board of Governors is thrilled to honor four trailblazers who have transformed the film industry and inspired generations of filmmakers and movie fans,” Academy President Janet Yang said in a statement. “Across her decades-long career, Angela Bassett has continued to deliver transcendent performances that set new standards in acting. Mel Brooks lights up our hearts with his humor, and his legacy has made a lasting impact on every facet of entertainment. Carol Littleton’s career in film editing serves as a model for those who come after her. A pillar of the independent film community, Michelle Satter has played a vital role in the careers of countless filmmakers around the world.”
Bassett earned an Oscar nomination for Best Actress for her breakout role as Tina Turner in What’s Love Got to Do With It, and she went on to star in movies such as Boyz N the Hood, Malcolm X, Waiting to Exhale, How Stella Got Her Groove Back, Mission: Impossible – Fallout, Marvel’s Black Panther, and Avengers: Endgame, Pixar’s Soul and, most recently in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, where her bravura supporting turn earned her an Oscar nomination.
Brooks co-created the TV series Get Smart before writing and directing his first feature, The Producers, which earned him an Oscar for Best Original Screenplay. It later became a hit Broadway musical. Brooks’ iconic oeuvre also includes Blazing Saddles, Young Frankenstein, Spaceballs, and Robin Hood: Men in Tights, among many others.
Littleton’s career as a film editor spans nearly five decades, and she earned an Oscar nomination for her work on Steven Spielberg‘s 1982 blockbuster E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial. Her other notable credits include Body Heat, The Big Chill, Places in the Heart, and The Manchurian Candidate. She has served as governor of the Academy’s Film Editors Branch, president and vice president of the Motion Picture Editors Guild, and on the Board of Directors of American Cinema Editors.
Satter is the founding senior director of the Sundance Institute’s Artist Programs, focused on the cultural impact of supporting independent storytellers. In her more than 40 years in this role at the nonprofit, she has discovered and fostered the careers of hundreds of notable and award-winning filmmakers, many from underrepresented communities. She has also led the Sundance Institute’s international initiatives throughout the world, as she founded and oversees the vision and content of Sundance Collab, a global digital storytelling community and learning platform.
