Sundance

The Creative Coalition announced the slate of honorees headlining the 2012 Spotlight Initiative Awards Gala Dinner to be held during the upcoming film festival in Park City, Utah.  This year's Spotlight Initiative Award recipients include actress Kate Bosworth, actor and artist Common, actor and comedian Tracy Morgan, actress Anna Lynne McCord, and filmmaker Stacy Peralta.  Leaders in the entertainment industry will join together to celebrate these luminaries, as well as the art
and craft of independent film, during the awards gala on Sunday evening, January 22nd in Park City.

Additionally, The Creative Coalition is pleased to announce that the films THE SURROGATE and GOATS will top their 2012 Spotlight Initiative Film Series slate.  The presentation will take place at the Gala Dinner with William H. Macy and John Hawkes accepting on behalf THE SURROGATE, and Vera Farmiga and Anne O'Shea doing the same on behalf of GOATS.

William H. Macy

THE SURROGATE was written for the screen and directed by Ben Lewin and produced by Judi Levine and Stephen Nemeth.  The film is about Mark O'Brien, a man confined to an iron lung, who is determined, at age 38, to lose his virginity. With the blessing of an unusual priest and support from enlightened caregivers, the poignantly optimistic and always droll O'Brien swallows his fear and hires a sex surrogate. What transpires over a handful of sessions transforms them both.

Red Crown Productions and Minerva Productions' GOATS concerns fourteen-year-old Ellis, who is getting ready to leave his luxurious home in the foothills of Tucson for his freshman year at Gates Academy, an East Coast prep school, leaving behind Wendy, his flakey, new age mother as well as his friend and mentor, the weed-smoking family gardener, Goat Man. Stepping into a world marked heavily by the legacy of his absent father, Ellis must put into perspective these two worlds and their competing influence on his identity.

"The Creative Coalition was galvanized to act as custodians of the arts in this nation.  The Spotlight Initiative shines a light on true artistic efforts that bring real histories, real stories closer to the public.  The Spotlight Initiative Awards celebrate those who take risks, who are fearless and who embrace innovation in storytelling," said CEO of The Creative Coalition Robin Bronk

Bosworth stars in the Park City World Premiere BLACK ROCK alongside Lake Bell, Katie Aselton and Jay Paulson. Common stars in the Sundance Dramatic Competition entry LUV directed by Sheldon Candis and also starring Meagan Good, Dennis Haysbert, and Danny Glover. Morgan stars alongside Jesse Eisenberg and Melissa Leo in PREDISPOSED. McCord headlines the festival's Midnight Section premiere EXCISION. Peralta, known for his long and legendary career as a professional skateboarder and the director of hit films such as RIDING GIANTS and DOGTOWN AND Z-BOYS, will be in Park City for the premiere of his latest skateboarding documentary BONES BRIGADE: AN AUTOBIOGRAPHY.

The Spotlight Initiative is sponsored by the Supper Club a LIVEstyle Entertainment production.  Co-hosting the event is The Creative Coalition President Tim Daly, Kate Burton, Stephen Frears, Mimi Rogers, Hal Sadoff, Cassian Elwes, and others TBA.

ABOUT THE CREATIVE COALITION AND THE SPOTLIGHT INITIATIVE (www.TheCreativeCoalition.org):

The Creative Coalition is the premiere nonprofit, 501(c)(3) nonpartisan charity of the arts and entertainment community. Founded in 1989 by prominent members of the creative community, The Creative Coalition is dedicated to educating, mobilizing, and activating its members on issues of public importance. The Creative Coalition uses the power and platform of the arts and entertainment communities in award-winning public service and advocacy campaigns.  The Spotlight Initiative Awards have been bestowed since 1995 and celebrate the art and craft of independent filmmaking, and honor those who leverage the platform of the silver screen to make a difference in the world. Past award winners include:  Cicely Tyson, Sean Penn, Marcia Gay Harden, Whoopi Goldberg, Robin Williams, among others.  Honored films include: MARGIN CALL with cast members Kevin Spacey, Paul Bettany, Jeremy Irons, Zachary Quinto, Penn Badgley, Simon Baker, Demi Moore and Stanley Tucci; HYSTERIA with cast members Hugh Dancy, Maggie Gyllenhaal, and Jonathan Pryce; PRECIOUS and its director Lee Daniels (www.TheCreativeCoalition.org).