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Saoirse Ronan | Desert Palm Achievement
SAOIRSE RONAN TO RECEIVE DESERT PALM ACHIEVEMENT AWARD, ACTRESS AT 29th ANNUAL PALM SPRINGS INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL FILM AWARDS GALA
Palm Springs, CA (December 4, 2017) - The 29th annual Palm Springs International Film Festival (PSIFF) will present Saoirse Ronan with the Desert Palm Achievement Award, Actress for her performance in Lady Bird at its annual Film Awards Gala. Ronan joins previously announced 2018 honorees Timothée Chalamet, Gal Gadot, Holly Hunter, Allison Janney, Gary Oldman, Sam Rockwell and The Shape of Water. The Film Awards Gala, hosted by Mary Hart, will be held Tuesday, January 2nd at the Palm Springs Convention Center. The Festival runs January 2-15, 2018.
"Saoirse Ronan delivers one of the most outstanding performances of this year as an outspoken high school student growing up in Sacramento in the critically acclaimed film Lady Bird," said Festival Chairman Harold Matzner. "Following her exceptional performances in Atonement and Brooklyn, Ronan is sure to receive her third Academy Award nomination. It is our honor to present the Desert Palm Achievement Award, Actress to Saoirse Ronan."
Ronan received the PSIFF International Star Award in 2016 for her performance in Brooklyn, going on to receive an Academy Award nomination for Best Actress for the same role. Additional past recipients of the Desert Palm Achievement Award, Actress include Natalie Portman, Cate Blanchett, Julianne Moore, Sandra Bullock, Halle Berry, Marion Cotillard, Anne Hathaway, Charlize Theron, and Naomi Watts.
In Lady Bird, Greta Gerwig proves herself a bold new cinematic voice with her directorial debut, excavating the humor and pathos in the turbulent bond between a mother and her teenage daughter. Christine "Lady Bird" McPherson (Saoirse Ronan) fights against but is exactly like her wildly loving, deeply opinionated, strong-willed mom (Laurie Metcalf), a nurse working to keep her family afloat after Lady Bird's father (Tracy Letts) loses his job. Set in Sacramento, California in 2002, amid a rapidly shifting American economic landscape, Lady Bird is an affecting look at the relationships that shape us, the beliefs that define us, and the unmatched beauty of a place called home.
For her role in the film, Ronan has already received Best Actress from the Gotham Independent Film Awards and is nominated for Best Female Lead from the Film Independent Spirit Awards.
Ronan began her career at just 13 years old with her critically acclaimed performance as Briony Tallis in Atonement, opposite Keira Knightley and James McAvoy. The role garnered her Academy Award, Golden Globe, and BAFTA nominations for Best Supporting Actress. She starred as Eilis in Fox Searchlight's Academy Award-nominated film Brooklyn, written by Nick Hornby and directed by John Crowley. Her portrayal earned her Academy Award, Golden Globe, and BAFTA nominations for Best Actress in a Leading Role. Her other film credits include The Grand Budapest Hotel, Hanna, The Lovely Bones, and The Way Back. She recently wrapped production on Dominic Cooke's On Chesil Beach and is currently in production on Focus Features' Mary Queen of Scots, playing the title character.