Star Wars Producer Kathleen Kennedy to be Honored at Austin Film Festival

Legendary film producer Kathleen Kennedy, the powerhouse behind dozens of blockbusters and Oscar nominees and current president of Lucasfilm, will be the recipient of the Polly Platt Award at this year's Austin Film Festival. (Photo by Matthew Brookes (C) Lucasfilm Ltd. & TM. All Rights Reserved.)

There are few film producers who have had the impact of Kathleen Kennedy. Her career will be celebrated at this year's Austin Film Festival (Oct. 24-31) as she becomes the next recipient of the Polly Platt Award for Producing.

Named after the boundary-breaking production designer, screenwriter, and producer, the Polly Platt Award is descrbed by the festival as being given to producers with a "keen sense of story, who have a history of fostering new talent." That undoubtedly describes Kennedy, who joins a roster of previous honorees that includes Lauren Shuler Donner (Superman), Dede Gardner (Moonlight), Stephanie Allain (Hustle & Flow), and Sarah Green (The Tree of Life). The award ceremony will take place during AFF's Writers Conference (Oct. 24-27).

Kennedy wrote, “I am deeply honored to receive the Austin Film Festival's Polly Platt Award for Producing. Polly was not only an incredible producer and mentor to so many, with an impact and voice still felt to this day, but also a staunch supporter of the Austin Film Festival and a dear personal friend. Polly attended every year, right up until her passing, and I look forward to celebrating her legacy in October.”

Kennedy began her career producing E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, which marked the start of decades of collaboration with Steven Spielberg, including cofounding Amblin Entertainment with the director and Kennedy's future husband, Frank Marshall (with whom she also founded the Kennedy/Marshall Company). During this time, her name became synonymous with blockbusters such as the Gremlins, Jurassic Park and Indiana Jones films, Back to the Future, and Twister. However, she was also a force in the making of more serious fare, including Schindler's List, The Diving Bell and the Butterfly, and Munich, and that filmography has earned her eight Oscar nominations. In 2018, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences honored her with the Irving G. Thalberg Memorial Award, its highest honor celebrating a creative producer's career of achievement and contributions to the industry.

More recently, Kennedy has been the force behind arguably the biggest franchise in film history. In 2012, she was hand-picked by her old friend, George Lucas, to become co-chair of Lucasfilm Ltd. When he sold the company later that year to the Walt Disney Corporation she took over as sole president, overseeing the company's three divisions: Lucasfilm, Industrial Light & Magic, and Skywalker Sound. That meant she has spent the last decade guiding the sequel trilogy, and the franchise's critically acclaimed and beloved pivot to live-action television with Disney+ shows including The Mandalorian, Andor, and The Book of Boba Fett.

The 31st annual Austin Film Festival runs Oct. 24-31. Tickets and passes at austinfilmfestival.com.
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