Gina Prince-Bythewood, Hakeem Jeffries tapped for 2023 Motion Picture Association honor
The director and congressman will receive the MPA Creator Award and the Industry Champion Award, respectively, for their impact on the film, TV and streaming industries.
Director Gina Prince-Bythewood is among the 2023 Motion Picture Association (MPA) Awards honorees, Variety reports.
The MPA started the awards ceremony last year to honor those who “have made notable contributions to the film, TV and streaming industry,” according to the organization, per Deadline.
This year’s ceremony, scheduled for June at the MPA headquarters in Washington, will honor Prince-Bythewood, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.), and Mexico City Gov. Claudia Sheinbaum Pardo, according to Variety.
“The 2023 MPA Awards recognize three individuals whose valuable contributions have enabled our global industry to continue to flourish,” said Charles Rivkin, MPA chairman and CEO.
Prince-Bythewood will receive the MPA Creator Award for her body of work spanning two decades, including the romantic drama “Love & Basketball,” “Beyond the Lights,” “The Secret Life of Bees” and critically acclaimed feature, “The Woman King.”
Jeffries is receiving the Industry Champion Award for ensuring “that the American creative community continues to drive economic growth and export the best films and TV shows to the world,” per the MPA, Deadline reports.
The MPA said Sheinbaum is being recognized for her impact on media and embracing “the industry during a global pandemic by digitizing and streamlining administrative procedures for filming in the capital region.”
“Each of this year’s honorees is working in their own way to ensure the success of the global creative economy, protect creators and build a more inclusive pipeline for storytellers,” said Rivkin, according to Variety.
Last year’s honorees were Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.), Gov. Phil Murphy (D-N.J.), Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) and filmmaker Nikyatu Jusu. “Being part of this community is among my life’s proudest achievements,” Jusu said at the time.
Meanwhile, Prince-Bythewood’s upcoming Disney+ anthology series from National Geographic, which is titled “Genius: MLK/X,” will profile civil rights leaders Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
“Malcolm and Martin are staggering icons, and we have been eager to explore the genius of these two very real men in a way that has not yet been seen,” Prince-Bythewood and her husband Reggie Rock Bythewood said in a statement.
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