SBIFF Sizzling Hot

The big news since we last mentioned the upcoming 41st annual Santa Barbara International Film Festival (excluding the big January 14 announcement of the film screenings and such – frustratingly slated to drop well past our deadline, ahem) is the addition of a trio of true superstar actors collectively receiving the newly-named Hammond Cinema Vanguard Award. Leonardo DiCaprio, Sean Penn, and Benicio Del Toro will share the stage February 9 at the Arlington Theatre for a conversation with longtime SBIFF moderator Pete Hammond about One Battle After Another, Paul Thomas Anderson’s genre-busting allegory-thriller that has dominated the early awards season. 

The film topped the Golden Globe nominations, receiving nods for all three of the actors. While none of them took home a GG on Sunday night, Teyana Taylor, who will appear with seven other honorees at SBIFF’s Virtuosos Awards at the Arlington on February 8, did win the Supporting Actress award for her riveting 19 minutes in One Battle After Another. Meanwhile the film claimed one of the Best Picture Globes while PTA won for both directing and his screenplay. We’ll be shocked if he’s not part of the upcoming directors award at SBIFF. 

Other confirmed SBIFF honorees who claimed Golden Globes are Stellan Skarsgård, who earned Best Supporting Actor and will receive the Montecito Award on February 11, and The Secret Agent’s star Wagner Moura, one of the Best Actor winners, who is also part of the SBIFF Virtuosos. More are likely to be added before SBIFF opens on February 4-14. 

Meanwhile, Oscar nomination voting takes place this week, with ballots due by 5 pm on Friday, and nominees announced on January 22, the date of our next issue. Stay tuned.