Look To The Stars News: Screen Actor's Guild Foundation

Emily Deschanel To Hold Q&A For Charity

Tue, 27 Oct 2009 11:30:00 -0000

The Screen Actors Guild will present a special screening of the hit TV show Bones in Los Angeles tonight, followed by a Q&A session with actress Emily Deschanel.

An actress with talent and poise, Emily Deschanel has built an impressive list of credits in her career, challenging herself with each new role.
 
An animal rights activist passionately involved with the charity Farm Sanctuary, Dechanel works to end cruelty to farm animals and promotes compassionate living through rescue, education and advocacy. She is also involved with The Humane Society and Women for Women International.  Deschanel was born in Los Angeles and received her B.F.A. in Theater from Boston University.

The Screen Actors Guild encourages interest in acting and improving the acting skills of interested persons though educational seminars, workshops, tapes and films.

This event starts at 7pm tonight, October 27, at the SAG Foundation Actors Center at 5757 Wilshire Avenue. For more information, click here.

Actresses To Be Honored For Sports And Charity

Thu, 01 Oct 2009 11:30:00 -0000

As previously reported by Look To The Stars, the 2009 Celebrity & Stuntwomen’s Awards and the Diamond in the RAW Foundation have announced two-time Golden Globe winner Jamie Lee Curtis and Super Middleweight Champion Laila Ali among top honorees. Curtis will be awarded the Action Icon Award for her achievements in film and Ali will be awarded the Dare2bDifferent Award for her achievements in sports and her involvement in charity work.

“In its second year, The Celebrity & Stuntwomen’s Awards will honor the fearless and outstanding achievements of action-oriented women within the entertainment industry and stunt community,” stated La Faye Baker, stuntwoman and co-creator of The Celebrity & Stuntwomen’s Awards. “We are excited to have Jamie Lee Curtis and Laila Ali among our top honorees, as well as several other outstanding women from the stunt community.”

The Diamond in the RAW Foundation is a Los Angeles-based non-profit organization whose mission is to educate and expose at-risk teen girls to a multitude of careers in the entertainment industry, both in front of the camera and behind the scenes.

Angela Meryl, Taurus World Stunt nominee with credits including “Obsessed”, “Kill Bill”, “Pirates of the Caribbean”, and “Grey’s Anatomy” will be awarded the Diamond in the RAW Award. May Boss will be honored with the Helen Gibson Award for her career as a veteran stunt woman and work in films including “Money Train” “The Story of Will Rogers”, “Blazing Saddles”, and “Police Academy”. The Special Achievement Award will be given to Mary Albee, whose credits include “Crossing Jordan”, “Ugly Betty”, “Seven Feet Under”, and “Murder She Wrote”. Given posthumously, Svetla Krasteva will be honored with the Gone But Not Forgotten Award for her work in films such as “Rush Hour 2”, “Peter Pan”, “The Ring”, and ’Lethal Weapon".

Additional award categories include the Gem Award, Jewel Award, Mentorship Award, “Wow” Stuntwoman Award, and Dynamic DUO Award, which are nominated by the stunt community and members of the Screen Actors Guild.

“Extra” correspondent Jeannie Mai and TV Guide Channel’s Patrick Stinson will serve as co-hosts for the 2009 Celebrity & Stuntwomen’s Awards. Special celebrity guests include, star of such shows as, 2009 Emmy Award Winner-Grey’s Garden,Tony Award Winner and 2009-2010 Screen Actors Guild President Ken Howard, Sean Patrick Flannery, star of the “Young Indiana Jones” film series; Lee Meriwether, best known for her role as Catwoman in the original “Batman” film; Louis Mandylor, co-star of the hit film “My Big Fat Greek Wedding”; actress Erica Hubbard from “Lincoln Heights”; Shirly Brener, co-star of “War, Inc.” and “The Dunwich Horror”; actress and stuntwoman Zoe Bell, who worked on the recent box office hit “Inglourious Basterds”; Dale Dye, actor and tactical advisor to Steven Spielberg; pro skateboarder Lauren Perkins; Robin Shou, star of the “Mortal Kombat” films; Diana Lee Inosanto, actress and goddaughter to legendary martial arts legend Bruce Lee..and many more!.

The Celebrity & Stuntwomen’s Awards. will take place Sunday, October 4, 2009 at the Skirball Cultural Center in Los Angeles from 11:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. A reception and silent auction will kick off the event at 11:00 a.m., followed by the luncheon and awards ceremony at 12:30 p.m. Tickets for the Awards are available for purchase at www.DiamondintheRAW.com.

Look To The Stars Film Pick: Reach For Me

Wed, 12 Aug 2009 12:00:00 -0000

Downtown Film Festival Los Angeles (DFFLA) is proud to announce A MediaVision Production’s of LeVar’s Burton’s film “Reach for Me” as the 2009 Centerpiece Gala film, to be presented on Friday, August 14th, 2009 at 7:30pm at the United Artists Screening Theater inside the AT&T Center.

The film’s star, Seymour Cassel will be presented with the festival’s Lifetime Achievement Award, and a gala party will follow the evening’s programming. The award will be presented by actress and Screen Actor’s Guild Foundation executive Connie Stevens, with video tributes from Wes Anderson, Steve Buscemi, Angelica Houston, Luke Wilson and more!

This special event will be located at the festival’s main screening venue, LBA Realty’s AT&T Center (formerly, the Transamerica Center), located at corner of Hill St. and 12th St , in downtown L.A.’s burgeoning new South Park district. The gala party will be held on the 32nd penthouse floor of the complex.

“Reach for Me” (2008, USA, 89 minutes) directed by LeVar Burton follows Alvin (Seymour Cassel), a bitter man confined to the Valley Meadow Hospice who unexpectedly discovers the joys of life and its many intricacies. Ready to pass away after a disappointing life, he is interrupted by the vivacious young man named Kevin (Johnny Whitworth), a new patient and roommate who loves to live life to the fullest. Kevin and his girlfriend Sarah (Lacey Chabert) do their best to make Alvin’s life meaningful in his last few days and even get him to fall in love for the first time with Valerie (Adrienne Barbeau). Setting all the wheels in motion for the intersecting relationships is head nurse Evelyn (Alfre Woodard).

Mr Burton says “The heart and humanity of Michael Bruce Adams’ script leapt off the page. When my producing partner Mark Wolfe brought me this amazing project I was committed immediately.” Producer Susan R. Rodgers has been pleased at both the critical and audience reception to the film, commenting, “This is a filmmaker’s dream to make a great film you care so deeply for and put so much work and sacrifice into it that has garnered both commercial and artistic success.” She and producing partner Charlene Blaine-Schulenburg adds, “…we tend to shun the aging and the sick and this film paints aging and dying with both humor and dignity and most of all honor.” Producer Mark Wolfe noted that “Having such a stellar ensemble cast lead by a talent like Seymour Cassel, and under LeVar’s direction, is the essence of successful indy filmmaking.”

Cassel, an Academy Award nominated actor for Faces (1968), will be presented the lifetime achievement award. One of Hollywood’s most familiar faces, Cassel has performed in more than 170 films with numerous distinctions throughout his career as well as television appearances in shows like “The F.B.I.” (1962 ) and “Heist” (2006). He is highly celebrated for his work and dedication with the American indie film community, beginning with director John Cassavetes’ Shadows (1950) and along with other Cassavetes’ titles like Minnie and Moskowitz (1971). In addition, he starred In The Soup (1992), in which Cassel received the Special Jury Recognition for Outstanding Performance at the Sundance Film Festival, and co-starred with Bill Murray in The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou (2004).

Much like many others in the film industry, Director LeVar Burton was amazed by Cassel’s heart and devotion to his craft. “By anyone’s standard, Seymour is a legend,” Burton comments. “He’s an amazing actor who’s had the kind of longevity in his career every actor dreams of….”

Starring along with Cassel is Alfre Woodard. In addition to her multiple Emmy and Golden Globe awards for her work in television, Woodard was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her celebrated role in director Martin Ritt’s 1983 film Cross Creek. As well as appearing in Desperate Housewives, Woodard is the co-founder of Artists for a New South Africa, a nonprofit organization dedicated to combating the African AIDS pandemic and advancing democracy and equality in South Africa. ANSA also works to further civil rights and safeguard voting rights in the U.S.

The Centerpiece Gala and Awards Ceremony will be attended by celebrity presenters to be announced at a later date.

For more information, visit the festival’s website: www.dffla.com

Celebrity-Signed Books Up For Grabs For Charity

Wed, 15 Jul 2009 15:30:00 -0000

Written by Tim Saunders

Whether you are looking for a good book to read while stretched out on the beach, or – for those of you in the Southern Hemisphere – searching for something to curl up with in bed on a frosty winter’s night, there will be something for you in the SAG Foundation’s Celebrity Autographed Book Auction.

The Screen Actor’s Guild Foundation is raising money for it’s literacy programs by auctioning off books signed by your favorite stars. Going under the hammer are titles such as The Olsen Twins’ Influence, Michael J. Fox’s Always Looking Up, Heidi Klum’s Body of Knowledge, Julianne Moore’s Freckleface Strawberry and the Dodgeball Bully, Tom Colicchio’s Craft of Cooking, William Shatner’s Quest For Tomorrow, Alison Sweeney’s All The Days Of My Life, Kirk Douglas’ Let’s Face It, Jenny McCarthy’s Healing and Preventing Autism, Larry King’s My Remarkable Journey, Tori Spelling’s Mommywood, Sean Astin’s There and Back Again, John Lithgow’s The Poet’s Corner and many more.

Proceeds from the auction benefit the Screen Actors Guild Foundation’s literacy effort, which began in 1992 and now includes such programs as:

BookPALS, a volunteer program comprised of performing artists who read aloud to students in schools, hospitals and libraries.
We The Children, which teaches children the value of books and the importance of their lives by giving them the opportunity to write and illustrate their family history.
Storyline Online, an online interactive website which brings the excitement of books into the classroom and home.

The auction runs until July 28 and can be accessed here.

Stars Sign Posters For Charity Foundation

Mon, 02 Mar 2009 12:00:00 -0000

Written by Tim Saunders

Now is the time to deck your walls with a selection of movie posters signed by your favorite stars in a new charity auction being run by ClothesOffOurBack.org.

Going under the hammer are a Brokeback Mountain poster signed by the late Heath Ledger and Michelle Williams, a Big Love poster and DVD set signed by Bill Paxton, a Philadelphia poster signed by Denzel Washington, and SAG Conversation Series posters signed by stars such as Kirk Douglas, Julia Louis Dreyfus, Greg Grunberg, Neil Patrick Harris, Holly Hunter, Rob Schneider, Kyra Sedgwick, Tom Selleck, Forest Whitaker, Rainn Wilson, Jenna Fischer, Ben Affleck, Matthew Perry, Amanda Peet, Tim Robbins, Ali Larter, Jesse Spencer and many more.

Proceeds from the auction will go to the Screen Actor’s Guild Foundation, an organization that offers substantive services to Guild members in its mission to assist, educate and inspire actors in their professional endeavors and to give back to the communities in which they live. Founded in 1985, the non-profit SAG Foundation is governed independently of the Guild and funded through the generosity of grants, donations, volunteering and fundraising efforts.

The auction runs until March 23 and can be accessed here.

Look To The Stars News: Screen Actor's Guild Foundation

Emily Deschanel To Hold Q&A For Charity

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Actresses To Be Honored For Sports And Charity

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Look To The Stars Film Pick: Reach For Me

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Stars Sign Posters For Charity Foundation

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