‘Emilia Pérez’ to Receive MVFF Ensemble Spotlight Award at 47th Mill Valley Film Festival

The cast of Emilia Pérez – Karla Sofía Gascón, Zoe Saldaña, Selena Gomez and Adriana Paz – will receive the MVFF Ensemble Spotlight Award at the 47th Mill Valley Film Festival on October 5.

Director Jacques Audiard’s Cannes premiere won two awards at the French Riviera festival this summer, the Jury Prize and a Best Actress win shared by all four female performers. The film, currently a box office hit in France, will be in select U.S. theaters in November before heading to Netflix on November 13. Gascón, Saldaña and Paz will be on hand to receive the award.

Emilia Pérez is a fever dream that defies genres and expectations, following the journeys of four remarkable women in Mexico, each in pursuit of their own happiness. The story centers around Emilia (Gascón), a formidable cartel leader who enlists Rita (Saldaña), an unappreciated lawyer stuck in a dead-end job; to help fake her death so she can live authentically as her true self. With liberating song and dance sequences and bold visuals, Audiard takes audiences on a thrilling odyssey of identity and transformation. In his review for AwardsWatch, Ali Benzekri called it “nothing short of fabulous” and “the true heart of Emilia Pérez lies in the astonishing performance of Karla Sofía Gascón.”

“The film’s life force is irresistible, and the talents of an incredible ensemble drive it. It’s no wonder the jury at this year’s Cannes Film Festival insisted on creating a special award for them,” said MVFF director of programming Zoë Elton, referring to Cannes honoring all four actresses. “They bring passion and commitment to this groundbreaking film, and I’m excited that many will join us as guests. I can’t wait to share this film with our audience: It will be a very special night.”

Renowned French director and screenwriter Jacques Audiard (Paris, 1952) has twice won both the César and BAFTA Awards for Best Film Not in the English Language, for De battre mon cœur s’est arrêté (2005) and Un prophète (2010), the latter also winning the Grand Prix at Cannes. His film De rouille et d’os (2012) competed for the Palme d’Or, was BAFTA-nominated, and won the BFI London Film Festival Award. Audiard’s Dheepan won the Palme d’Or in 2015. His recent films include Sister’s Brothers, Les Olympiades, and Emilia Perez, the latter earning double honors at Cannes 2024.

Past recipients of Mill Valley’s Ensemble Spotlight award include the casts of the Netflix titles The Lost Daughter, The Trial of the Chicago 7 and Marriage Story. All three films later had at least one performer nominated for an Oscar.

The MVFF Spotlight program honors and celebrates exceptional work by film artists in their most current projects. Honorees may be in early, mid, or late careers. Over the years, MVFF has spotlighted talents such as Nikyatu Jusu, Paolo Sorrentino, Denis Villeneuve, Regina King, Delroy Lindo, Robert Pattinson, Richard E. Grant, Karyn Kusama, Joel Edgerton, Amandla Stenberg, Dee Rees, Alejandro González Iñárritu, Eddie Redmayne, Ewan McGregor, Brie Larson, Steve McQueen, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Michelle Yeoh, Elle Fanning and Jared Leto, among others.

Previously announced, Jude Law will receive a tribute and MVFF Award at the 47th edition of the festival.