Fifty-year-old filmmaker Ava DuVernay will be recognized with the Award of Inspiration by amfAR, the Foundation for AIDS Research, at the Venice Film Festival on Sept. 3.
Kevin Robert Frost, amfAR CEO, said in a statement: “We are thrilled to be returning to Venice for what promises to be a festive evening raising funds to advance our lifesaving HIV cure research. “We’re delighted to be honoring Ava DuVernay with our Award of Inspiration and deeply grateful to our chairs, sponsors and generous supporters for making this evening possible. “In addition to warmly welcoming the support of MasterCard, we are indebted to our good friends at Red Sea International Film Festival and Chopard for their continuing generosity.”
Singers Rita Ora and Leona Lewis will perform at this year’s black-tie gala and dinner, which will take place at Venice’s La Misericordia. Casey Affleck, Marisa Tomei, Jodie Turner-Smith, Patricia Clarkson, Rachel Brosnahan, Trace Lysette and Zooey Deschanel were among the stars who attended last year’s amfAR gala.
In October 2020, the A Wrinkle in Time director admitted she didn’t ever think she would become a successful filmmaker. DuVernay who’s directed numerous great films including Selma, 13th, Middle of Nowhere and more told PEOPLE: “It makes me think about everything that I missed out on because I didn’t become a filmmaker until I was in my 30s. At the age that these girls are, I had no concept that a Black woman could be a director. I had no idea that a woman could be a director. I’d never seen it.”
