SF Honors: Cyrano

A constant force in the acting world, and one of the most consistently acclaimed actors of his generation, Peter Dinklage first redefined the conception of a leading man in the 2003 movie The Station Agent.

He memorably portrayed Tyrion Lannister in the global phenomenon Game of Thrones; starring in the epic television series from its 2011 premiere through its 2019 finale, he won four Emmy Awards and a Screen Actors Guild Award.

He has also won a Screen Actors Guild Award, with his fellow actors from the ensemble, in the Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture category for Martin McDonagh’s Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri.

Mr. Dinklage’s other notable film work has included Reed Morano’s I Think We’re Alone Now, opposite Elle Fanning, which he also produced and which won the Special Jury Prize for Excellence in Filmmaking at the Sundance Film Festival; Tom DiCillo’s cult classic Living in Oblivion; J Blakeson’s I Care A Lot; the all-star X-Men: Days of Future Past; both the UK and the U.S. iterations of Death at a Funeral; Sidney Lumet’s Find Me Guilty; Jon Avnet’s Three Christs; and Mark Palansky’s Rememory.

Haley Bennett has established herself as one of the film industry’s most dynamic actresses, with performances both natural and striking. She was named Best Actress at the 2019 Tribeca Film Festival for her startling performance, opposite Austin Stowell, in Carlo Mirabella-Davis’ Swallow, which Ms. Bennett also executive produced.

Previously, she starred in several Hollywood hits including The Girl on the Train, directed by Tate Taylor and Antoine Fuqua’s The Equalizer and The Magnificent Seven.

After making a memorable movie debut starring and singing in Marc Lawrence’s Music and Lyrics, opposite Drew Barrymore and Hugh Grant, Ms. Bennett’s other films have included Ron Howard’s Hillbilly Elegy, which was nominated for two Academy Awards; David Frankel’s fan favorite Marley & Me; Jason Hall’s Thank You for Your Service; Antonio Campos’ The Devil All the Time; Gideon Raff’s The Red Sea Diving Resort; Gregg Araki’s Kaboom; Phedon Papamichael’s Arcadia Lost; and Warren Beatty’s Rules Don’t Apply. Additionally, she has starred in a number of short films, including Shekhar Kapur’s Passage, with Lily Cole and Julia Stiles, which screened at the Venice International Film Festival.

Exploring a wide range of characterizations, Kelvin Harrison Jr. captures audiences’ attention in a variety of mediums. He recently portrayed Chairman Fred Hampton in Aaron Sorkin’s The Trial of the Chicago 7. For this film Mr. Harrison shared the ensemble Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture with his fellow actors, and the film was nominated for six Academy Awards including Best Picture. After small roles in films including Gavin Hood’s Ender’s Game, he co-starred in Nate Parker’s The Birth of a Nation and Dee Rees’ Mudbound, which was nominated for four Academy Awards. He was showcased at the 2018 Sundance Film Festival in Anthony Mandler’s Monster; Sam Levinson’s Assassination Nation; and Reinaldo Marcus Green’s Monsters and Men.

His recent work includes Nijla Mumin’s Jinn; Justin Kelly’s JT LeRoy; Stella Meghie’s The Photograph, Nisha Ganatra’s The High Note, the acclaimed Waves, Alistair Banks Griffin’s The Wolf Hour, and Julius Onah’s Luce. He will soon be seen opposite Emmy Award winner Zendaya, on the new season of Sam Levinson’s groundbreaking television series Euphoria.

Erica Schmidt is a playwright, screenwriter, and theatre director. In 2001 she was honored with the Princess Grace Award, given by the foundation of the same name.

She directed her adaptation Cyrano, collaborating with members of the band The National, at the Goodspeed Opera House and off-Broadway at The New Group. She directed her adaptation Mac Beth at Seattle Rep and off-Broadway at the Lucille Lortel Theatre and HTP, receiving Drama Desk Award nominations for Outstanding Direction and Outstanding Revival as well as a Lucille Lortel Award nomination; Mac Beth has since been published by DPS.

For The New Group Ms. Schmidt wrote and directed All the Fine Boys, which has been published by Samuel French. She adapted and directed Debbie Does Dallas for The Araca Group, directed Richard 2 at The Old Globe; A Month in the Country at the Classic Stage Company; Rent, in Tokyo; Trust, with The Play Company, As You Like It, at the New York Shakespeare Festival’s Public Theater; and chashama, at the New York International Fringe Festival.

Ms. Schmidt’s first produced screenplay is Cyrano; she is currently writing the screenplay for Rumplestiltskin, at Sony Pictures.

Joe Wright has become one of the premier directors making great moviegoing memories for audiences. He began his career in television, winning a BAFTA Award for the BBC miniseries Charles II: The Power & The Passion (a.k.a. The Last King). Upon his segue into motion pictures, Mr. Wright won a second BAFTA Award, the Carl Foreman Award for the Most Promising Newcomer, for his feature directorial debut, Pride & Prejudice. The film was a box office hit, garnering five additional BAFTA nominations as well as four Academy Award nominations.

He immediately reunited with Keira Knightley for Atonement. Based on Ian McEwan’s novel, the film was nominated for 14 BAFTA Awards, winning Best Film and Best Production Design, nominated for seven Golden Globe Awards, winning Best Motion Picture and Best Original Score, and nominated for seven Academy Awards, winning Best Original Score.

Mr. Wright directed Atonement Academy Award nominee Saoirse Ronan in the title role of the action thriller Hanna.This was followed by Darkest Hour with Gary Oldman. Darkest Hour received six Academy Award nominations and eight BAFTA Award nominations. His other films include: The Soloist; Pan; and The Woman in the Window.