Actress CHARLIZE THERON, actor JOAQUIN PHOENIX,actor MATTHEW BRODERICK and actress SUSAN SARANDON to be honored at the 9th Annual Hollywood Fest

The Hollywood Film Festival's Board of Advisors is proud to announce that this year's festival will honor Academy Award-winning actress CHARLIZE THERON with the "Hollywood Actress of the Year Award" for her performance in Warner Bros. Pictures and Participant Productions' "NORTH COUNTRY," Oscar(r)-nominated actor JOAQUIN PHOENIX with the "Hollywood Actor of the Year Award" for his portrayal of Johnny Cash in Fox's "WALK THE LINE," Tony Award-winning actor MATTHEW BRODERICK with the "Hollywood Supporting Actor of the Year Award" for his performance in Universal Pictures' "THE PRODUCERS" and Oscar(r)-winning actress SUSAN SARANDON with the "Hollywood Supporting Actress of the Year Award" for her performance in Paramount Pictures' "ELIZABETHTOWN."

The awards will be bestowed upon the honorees as part of the Hollywood Awards Gala Ceremony on Monday evening, October 24, at the Beverly Hilton Hotel.

The announcement was made today by Carlos de Abreu, Founder and Executive Director of the Hollywood Film Festival. "Every year we are very proud to honor excellence in the art of filmmaking, and Ms. Theron, Mr. Phoenix, Mr. Broderick and Ms. Sarandon are great examples of that excellence," said de Abreu.

CHARLIZE THERON stars in the October 21 release "North Country," directed by Niki Caro, an inspiring story about a single mother who rallies her female coworkers to rise above unfair treatment they face at a mining company. She will next be seen starring in Paramount Pictures' sci-fi thriller "Aeon Flux," due for release December 2. Charlize Theron won the Oscar(r) for her stunning performance in 2003 in Patty Jenkins's "Monster," which she also produced. Her other feature films include "Head in the Clouds," "The Italian Job," "Waking Up in Reno," "Trapped," "The Curse of the Jade Scorpion," "15 Minutes," "Sweet November," "The Legend of Baggar Vance," "Men of Honor," "The Yards," "Reindeer Games," "The Cider House Rules," "The Astronaut's Wife," "Mighty Joe Young," "Celebrity," "The Devil's Advocate," and "That Thing You Do!" among others.


JOAQUIN PHOENIX stars as country music legend Johnny Cash in James Mangold's film "Walk the Line" from Twentieth Century Fox, which also stars Reese Witherspoon. Mr. Phoenix received an Academy Award nomination for his portrayal of Commodus in 2000 in the highly acclaimed Oscar(r)-winning film "Gladiator." He began his film career at age 10 with a role in "SpaceCamp," and since then has portrayed a wide range of characters in such films as "Ladder 49," "Hotel Rwanda," "The Village "Signs," "Quills," "The Yards," "8MM," "Clay Pigeons," "Return to Paradise," "U Turn," "Inventing the Abbotts," and "To Die For," among others.

MATTHEW BRODERICK stars in Universal Pictures' feature film version of "The Producers," reprising his Tony Award-winning performance in the Broadway musical, which was written and produced by Mel Brooks from his Oscar(r)-winning screenplay for the 1968 film. A veteran performer and highly regarded film actor, Mr. Broderick starred in the smash hit "Godzilla," in the hit romantic comedy "Addicted to Love," opposite Meg Ryan, in "The Cable Guy," opposite Jim Carrey, and in the hit "Inspector Gadget." Mr. Broderick's other film credits include "Strangers with Candy," "The Last Shot," "The Stepford Wives," "You Can Count on Me," "The Road to Wellville," "Mrs. Parker and the Vicious Circle," the voice of Simba in "The Lion King," "Glory," "Torch Song Trilogy," "Biloxi Blues," "Ferris Bueller's Day Off," "WarGames" and "Max Dugan Returns," among many others. Also a veteran of the Broadway stage, Matthew Broderick won Tonys for "Brighton Beach Memoirs" and "How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying," and will open October 27 on Broadway in "The Odd Couple," starring opposite Nathan Lane.


SUSAN SARANDON stars in Paramount Pictures' "Elizabethtown," directed by Cameron Crowe and also starring Orlando Bloom and Kirsten Dunst. Ms. Sarandon won the Oscar(r) for her performance in 1996 in Tim Robbins's "Dead Man Walking," and she has received four other Academy Award nominations, for her work on "The Client," "Lorenzo's Oil," "Thelma & Louise" and "Atlantic City." Susan Sarandon made her acting debut in the film "Joe" in 1970, and since then has performed in such films as "Alfie," "Shall We Dance," "Noel," "Moonlight Mile," "The Banger Sisters," "Igby Goes Down," "Joe Gould's Secret," "Anywhere But Here," "Cradle Will Rock," "Stepmom," "Illuminata," "Twilight," "Safe Passage," "Little Women," "Bob Roberts," "Light Sleeper," "White Palace," "A Dry White Season," "Sweet Hearts Dance," "Bull Durham," "The Witches of Eastwick," "Compromising Positions," "The Buddy System," "Pretty Baby," "King of the Gypsies," "The Other Side of Midnight," "The Rocky Horror Picture Show," "The Great Waldo Pepper" and "The Front Page," among many others.

Other industry professionals who will be honored for their achievements at the Gala Awards Ceremony are Oscar(r)-winning producer Douglas Wick and producer Lucy Fisher who will receive the "Hollywood Producers of the Year Award," actor Jake Gyllenhaal who will be honored with the "Hollywood Breakthrough Actor of the Year Award," actress Rachel McAdams who will receive the "Hollywood Breakthrough Actress of the Year Award," director Paul Haggis who will be honored with the "Hollywood Breakthrough Director of the Year Award," screenwriter Akiva Goldsman who will be awarded the "Hollywood Screenwriter of the Year Award," Lions Gate Films Releasing President Tom Ortenberg who will be honored with the "Hollywood Leadership Award," Librarian of Congress Dr. James Billington who will receive the "Hollywood Film Preservation Award," Oscar(r)-nominated cinematographer Pawel Edelman who will be honored with the "Hollywood Cinematographer of the Year Award," Academy Award-winning editor Walter Murch who will be awarded the "Hollywood Editor of the Year Award," award-winning composer Harry Gregson-Williams who will receive the "Hollywood Composer of the Year Award," Oscar(r)-winning director Hayao Miyazaki who will be honored with the "Hollywood Animation Award," Academy Award-winning senior visual effects supervisor Dennis Muren who will receive the "Hollywood Visual Effects of the Year Award," special make-up effects supervisor Gregory Nicotero who will be honored with the "Hollywood Make-Up of the Year Award," supervising sound editor David G. Evans who will receive the "Hollywood Sound of the Year Award," Academy Award-winning costume designer Colleen Atwood who will be honored with the "Hollywood Costume Designer of the Year Award," Oscar(r)-winning production designer Grant Major who will receive the "Hollywood Production Designer of the Year Award" and casting director Avy Kaufman who will be honored with the "Hollywood Casting Director of the Year Award."