As previously announced, Francis Ford Coppola is finally receiving the coveted AFI Life Achievement Award from the American Film Institute. Now, it’s revealed that fellow directors George Lucas, who co-founded American Zoetrope with Coppola, and Steven Spielberg will present the award to the auteur during the 50th AFI Life Achievement ceremony.
“There is only one Francis Ford Coppola,” Bob Gazzale, AFI President and CEO, said. “And it is AFI’s honor to gather the art and entertainment communities, along with his family, friends and colleagues to celebrate cinema — all of it — and the very best of it.”
Coppola has famously pushed the boundaries of cinema, most recently with his self-funded epic “Megalopolis.” When he won the Worst Director title from the Razzie Awards, Coppola brilliantly wrote on Instagram that he chooses to “not follow the gutless rules laid down by an industry so terrified of risk that despite the enormous pool of young talent at its disposal, may not create pictures that will be relevant and alive 50 years from now” and asked audiences to “remind ourselves that box office is only about money, and like war, stupidity and politics have no true place in our future.”
Coppola’s “Apocalypse Now,” “The Godfather,” and “The Godfather II” are ranked among “AFI’s 100 Years…100 Movies” list as the greatest American films. The six-time Academy Award-winning auteur will be feted by AFI alongside guests and presenters Robert De Niro, Adam Driver, Spike Lee, Al Pacino, Harrison Ford, Morgan Freeman, Dustin Hoffman, Ron Howard, C. Thomas Howell, Diane Lane, and Ralph Macchio, plus family members and fellow filmmakers Gia Coppola and Roman Coppola. The Gala Tribute will take place at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, CA, on April 26.
The televised special, titled “The 50th AFI Life Achievement Award: A Tribute to Francis Ford Coppola” will premiere on TNT with an encore airing on TCM; both air dates will be announced soon. This is the 10th year the Emmy-winning AFI Life Achievement Award special will air on TNT.
The AFI Life Achievement Award, established by the AFI Board of Trustees in 1973, is presented to a single honoree each year “whose talent has in a fundamental way advanced the film art; whose accomplishment has been acknowledged by scholars, critics, professional peers and the general public; and whose work has stood the test of time,” as the statement reads. The American Film Institute is a nonprofit organization with a mandate to champion the moving image as an art form. All proceeds from the 50th AFI Life Achievement Award Gala support AFI’s education and arts initiatives.
