TRIBUTE TO SEAN PENN

Sean Penn has become an American film icon in a career spanning over three decades. As an actor, Penn has been nominated five times for an Academy Award® as Best Actor for Dead Man Walking, Sweet and Lowdown, I Am Sam, and won his first Oscar® in 2003 for his searing performance in Clint Eastwood’s Mystic River and his second in 2009 for Gus Van Sant’s Milk. Penn received Best Actor awards at the Cannes (She’s So Lovely) and Berlin (Dead Man Walking) film festivals, as well as being a two-time winner of Best Actor honors at the Venice Film Festival (Hurlyburly, 21 Grams). His unparalleled acting career also includes performances in Taps, Fast Times at Ridgemont High, At Close Range, State of Grace, Carlito’s Way, The Assassination of Richard Nixon, and The Tree of Life. As a director, Penn has crafted powerful dramas such as The Indian Runner, The Pledge and Into the Wild, which garnered Penn nominations from the DGA and WGA. Additionally, Penn wrote and directed the United States’ contribution to the compilation film 11’09’01. MVFF welcomes back long-time guest and friend Sean Penn for the 40th edition of the Festival.