Emilio Estevez to Receive Pioneer Award at Sun Valley Film Festival

The Sun Valley film festival announced Emilio Estevez is set to receive the Pioneer Award at the festival’s upcoming pioneer party.

Estevez joins previously announced Sun Valley film festival honorees including Variety‘s 10 Producers to Watch, Josh Brolin, Sophie Thatcher and Nina Yang Bongiovi, who are set to receive the Vision Award, the Rising Star Award and the Variety Creative Impact Award in Producing, respectively.

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On March 31, Estevez will receive his Pioneer Award, and on April 1, will host a special screening of his 2011 feature, “The Way.”

After collaborations “The War at Home” and “Nightbreaker,” Estevez joined his father Martin Sheen once more for “The Way,” a feature that Estevez not only starred in, but also directed, produced and wrote. “The Way” follows Tom (Sheen) as he embarks on a pilgrimage throughout the El Camino de Santiago after his son Daniel (Estevez) died while traveling through that very path. Estevez’s feature is set to be re-released in theaters nationwide this coming May.

“We are so thrilled to recognize Emilio Estevez with this year’s Pioneer Award for his outstanding work in front of and behind the camera as a writer and director. Ever since we first saw him on screen in ‘Repo Man,’ Emilio has shown a dedication to telling emotional and important stories, making him a true trailblazer,” said Teddy Grennan, founder and executive director of the Sun Valley Film Festival.

As the latest Pioneer Award honoree, the actor-director joins a series of former honorees — including Kate Bosworth, Mark Duplass, Eliza Hittman, Shaka King, Aaron Paul and Danny Strong — who have been recognized for either their on or off-screen trailblazing spirit within the industry.

Prior to “The Way,” Estevez wrote, directed and starred in “Men at Work,” Bobby” and “The Public,” as well as starring in “The Outsiders,” “Maximum Overdrive,” “The Breakfast Club,” “Mission: Impossible” and “The Mighty Ducks.”

The 2023 Sun Valley Film Festival will be held March 29-April 2. Additional honorees and programming titles will be released in the coming weeks on the festival website.

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