Danny Trejo Will be Honored at The 12th Annual Texas Film Hall of Fame Awards

Austin Film Society announces

Honoree, Presenters and Emcee for the
12th Annual Texas Film Hall of Fame Awards

More celebrity guests gather in Austin to celebrate the best in Texas Film

Top Sponsors to date: Milton Verret, The Moody Foundation and The Patron Spirits Co.

Additional Sponsors: South by Southwest Film Festival & Conference, Texas Monthly, FBA Creative Agency, CultureMap,
Four Seasons Austin and The Austin Chronicle

AUSTIN, Texas—The Austin Film Society is delighted to announce that actor Danny Trejo will be honored at this year’s Texas Film Hall of Fame Awards. Texas director Robert Rodriguez will present Trejo with the Patrón Honorary Texan Award: for those who have spread Texas culture, or brought culture to Texas, in a unique and indelible way. Actor G.W. Bailey will present honors to Barry Corbin, comedienne and actress Caroline Rhea will introduce filmmaker Douglas McGrath, and actor Brett Cullen will present the Soundtrack Award to Meat Loaf. Comedian, actor and writer Wyatt Cenac will return as emcee for the evening for the second year in a row.

Danny Trejo loves to play the bad guy in movies, “because the bad guy always dies. That’s the real world,” he says. From his first role as a convict in Runaway Train, Trejo’s career has included Desperado, the From Dusk ‘Til Dawn series, Heat, Con Air, Once Upon A Time In Mexico, and the Spy Kids franchise. He was in Robert Rodriguez and Quentin Tarantino’s Grindhouse, which led to a spin-off movie from the original trailers called Machete, in which Trejo plays the anti-hero of the story – an ex-federale with a gift for wielding a blade who hides out as a day-laborer and is double-crossed by a corrupt state senator. Trejo will be shooting Machete Kills in 2012. His long-time collaboration with Rodriguez has dubbed Trejo an icon of the grindhouse film genre.

Veteran film and television actor G.W. Bailey will present the award to fellow Texan and friend, actor Barry Corbin. With memorable film appearances in Short Circuit, Mannequin and the Police Academy series as well as television roles on M*A*S*H, The Jeff Foxworthy Show and currently on The Closer, Bailey’s career spans over thirty years. He has also served as the Executive Direct of the Sunshine Kids Foundation since 2001.

Widely known for her role as Hilda Spellman on Sabrina, the Teenage Witch and as host of her own talk show, Caroline Rhea will present honors to collaborator and friend Douglas McGrath. From Hollywood Squares and the Biggest Loser, to appearances on The Drew Carey Show and Curb Your Enthusiasm, Rhea brings a fresh, smart and spontaneous approach to all of her work.

Houston-born Brett Cullen will honor Meat Loaf with the Soundtrack Award. Cullen has appeared in numerous films and television series, most recently the Emmy Award-winning Friday Night Lights. His TV appearances also include Falcon Crest, The Young Riders, Matlock, M*A*S*H and Ugly Betty, among others. In 2011, Cullen was named the official spokesman for Houston Works, which helps Houston residents with job training and placement.

The Austin Film Society is thrilled to welcome back Wyatt Cenac to serve as the evening’s Master of Ceremonies. Cenac, who attended high school in Dallas, worked as a writer on King of the Hill before becoming a correspondent and writer for The Daily Show with Jon Stewart. He starred in the Independent Spirit and Gotham Award-nominated Medicine for Melancholy in 2008, and last year launched his first-ever hour-long comedy special, Wyatt Cenac: Comedy Person on Comedy Central.

This year, the awards show will take place on March 8th, the evening before South by Southwest Film and Interactive conferences at ACL Live at The Moody Theater downtown. Tickets for this highly anticipated event are selling quickly. While many tables and individual seat sections have sold out, there are still $250 and $75 tickets available.

The Texas Film Hall of Fame Awards Gala will sparkle with the creative talents of Kendra Scott Design, who is presenting Lady Luck, the Grand Diva and glamorously iconic figurehead for this year’s event. Surrounded by a golden aura of mystery, Lady Luck is a lovely fortune-telling starlet dressed in vintage-inspired regalia designed by Coco Coquette and Vintage Vivant, and dripping in Kendra Scott custom jewelry and headdress. Guests can try their luck to win Kendra Scott couture bijoux, and nab great prizes at the silent auction. Kendra’s talented team is also designing the silent auction display.

Remaining table and single tickets are on sale at www.austinfilm.org. Businesses can support this event & get unparalleled sponsorship benefits by contacting Ann Welch at 512/322.0145 x3222 or ann@austinfilm.org.

To kick off this year’s festivities, Austin Film Society has partnered with Alamo Drafthouse for a series of special film screenings to honor several of this year’s inductees. Each screening will include to be announced special guests, as well as opportunities to win tickets to the Awards Show.

Film Screenings:

Infamous, directed by Douglas McGrath – February 20 at 7:00 pm at The Alamo Drafhouse South Lamar (1120 S Lamar)

No Country for Old Men, featuring Barry Corbin – February 27 at 7:00 pm at The Alamo Drafhouse South Lamar (1120 S Lamar)

Roadie, starring Meat Loaf – March 5 at 7:00 pm at The Alamo Drafhouse South Lamar (1120 S Lamar)

Tickets available at www.drafthouse.com/austin.

 

About the Austin Film Society

Austin Film Society promotes the appreciation of film and supports creative media production by screening rarely seen films, giving grants and other support to emerging filmmakers, and providing access and education about film to youth and the public. Through Austin Studios, which AFS opened in 2000 through a lease from the City of Austin, AFS helps attract film development and production to Austin and Texas. Gala film premieres and the annual Texas Film Hall of Fame Awards raise funds as well as awareness of the impact of film on the economy and community. Austin Film Society is ranked among the top film centers in the country and recognized by the National Endowment for the Arts and Directors Guild of America. The Austin Film Society’s programs are funded and supported in part by the City of Austin through the Cultural Arts Division, by a grant from the Texas Commission on the Arts and an award from the National Endowment for the Arts, which believes that a great nation deserves great art. For more information on Austin Film Society, visit www.austinfilm.org