Eugene Levy to Receive Newport Beach Film Festival’s Inaugural Lifetime Achievement Award
By Danielle Turchiano
LOS ANGELES (Variety.com) – Eugene Levy is set to receive the first-ever Newport Beach Film Festival Lifetime Achievement Award at the inaugural TV Awards Showcase, in partnership with Variety, during the 21st annual festival this April.
The “Schitt’s Creek” star, co-creator and executive producer will be on-hand to receive this honor on the opening night of the TV Awards Showcase on April 24.
“For the past century, television has been a key component in the entertainment industry and continually persisted to accomplish groundbreaking achievements,” said Gregg Schwenk, CEO and co-founder, . “We strive to acknowledge all forms of storytelling and with the evolution of television it is a natural progression to include it into the film festival’s high quality lineup.”
Levy is an award-winning actor, writer, and producer. In addition to his Emmy-nominated work on “Schitt’s Creek,” Levy has played countless iconic roles across his storied career in film and television. After solidifying his television legacy on “SCTV (Second City Television),” Levy partnered with Christopher Guest to co-write and co-star in widely celebrated films “Best in Show,” “Waiting for Guffman,” “For Your Consideration” and “A Mighty Wind.” With the role of Noah Levenstein in the “American Pie” franchise, Levy also cemented his reputation as America’s favorite dad.
For the TV Awards Showcase, Newport Beach Film Festival and Variety’s editorial team will curate and screen six of 2020’s hottest and most buzz-worthy television shows. Each screening will be followed by an intimate Q&A session with the cast and crew moderated by a Variety television reporter. The showcase will kick off the festival’s opening weekend, with the other series and panel participants to be announced at a later date.
“With the lines between film and television now blurred in the best of all possible ways — witness the recent Oscars — we’re excited to work with the forward-looking team at the Newport Beach Film Festival on their first-ever NBFF Television Awards Showcase,” said Steve Gaydos, executive VP and content executive editor at Variety. “The talents, the creativity, the importance of the projects that will be brought to life with in-person conversations and screenings means this is an irresistible opportunity for Variety to lead the charge on progress and change, as we’ve been doing for 115 years.”
This year’s Newport Beach Film Festival, taking place April 23 to April 30, will showcase more than 350 films and television shows from 50 countries and host nightly special events, red carpet galas, compelling conversations with filmmakers, international spotlight events and seminars. The festival offers filmgoers unique opportunities to mingle with celebrities, filmmakers from around the globe and film industry professionals in a beautiful seaside locale.
Passes and tickets for film screenings, galas and special events go on sale April 1.
