Greta Gerwig to receive Director of the Year Award for 'Barbie' at Palm Springs film fest

Academy Award nominee Greta Gerwig will receive the Director of the Year Award for her criticallyacclaimed, record-breaking film "Barbie" at the Palm Springs International Film Awards.

The Film Awards will take place on Jan. 4, 2024, at the Palm Springs Convention Center, with the festival running through Jan. 15.

Gerwig's "Barbie" (cowritten with Noah Baumbach), along with Christopher Nolan's "Oppenheimer," took cinematic audiences by storm this summer as the global phenomenon aptly named "Barbenheimer." The film follows the iconic doll Barbie in her perfectly pink world until she suffers a crisis that leads her to question her world and existence. "Barbie" stars Margot Robbie, Ryan Gosling, America Ferrera, Issa Rae, Kate McKinnon and Simu Liu.

"Barbie" has brought in more than $1 billion at the global box office and is the highest-grossing film of the year.

“Director Greta Gerwig has brought us the cinematic experience of the year with 'Barbie,' theperfect blend of comedy, emotion and adventure that has both entertained and resonated withaudiences, becoming a cultural touchstone around the world,” Festival Chairman NachhattarSingh Chandi said in a statement.

"Gerwig is a masterful filmmaker, and her vision is brought to life so vividly by both the script she co-wrote with Noah Baumbach, and by her clear and singular collaboration with her extraordinary crafts teams, whose visuals are matched only by the outstanding performances delivered by Margot Robbie, Ryan Gosling and the entire cast. It is our honor to present the Director of the Year Award to Greta Gerwig," he added.

Gerwig is a three-time Academy Award-nominated director and writer who has established herselfas one of Hollywood’s most important voices. Her solo directorial projects include "Lady Bird," which was nominated for five Academy Awards, including best director and best original screenplay for Gerwig, and "Little Women," which earned her a best adapted screenplay nomination.

She has also appeared in front of the camera in a number of projects, including "White Noise," "Jackie," "Maggie’s Plan," "20th Century Women," "Lola versus," "Damsels in Distress," "Mistress America" and "Frances Ha," for which she earned a Golden Globe nomination for best actress in a comedy/musical.

Past recipients of the Director of the Year Award include Jane Campion ("The Power of the Dog"), Alejandro G. Iñárritu ("Babel," "Birdman"), Steve McQueen ("12 Years a Slave"), Alexander Payne ("Sideways"), Sarah Polley ("Women Talking"), Jason Reitman ("Up in the Air"), David O. Russell ("The Fighter"), Quentin Tarantino ("Once Upon a Time in Hollywood") and Chloé Zhao ("Nomadland"). In the years they were honored, McQueen, Payne, Reitman, Russell and Tarantino received Best Director Academy Award nominations, while Campion, Iñárritu and Zhao won the Oscar.

Gerwig joins this year’s previously announced honorees "Killers of the Flower Moon" (Vanguard Award), Emma Stone (Desert Palm Achievement Award, Actress), Cillian Murphy (Desert Palm Achievement Award, Actor) and Da’Vine Joy Randolph (Breakthrough Performance Award).

Ema Sasic covers entertainment and health in the Coachella Valley. Reach her at ema.sasic@desertsun.com or on Twitter @ema_sasic.

This article originally appeared on Palm Springs Desert Sun: Greta Gerwig to receive Palm Springs film festival award for 'Barbie'