Kathleen Turner, Alexander Dinelaris and More Present at 26th Dusty Film & Animation Festival Awards Tonight

School of Visual Arts (SVA) announces this year's 26th Dusty Film & Animation Festival awards presenters, including: producer/director Daniel Minahan (Game of Thrones, True Blood, Marco Polo) presenting the Outstanding Achievement in Directing Award; animator Alex Kupershmidt (The Lion King, Lilo & Stitch, Frozen), presenting the Outstanding Animated Film Award; Golden Globe-winning and Academy and Tony Award nominated actress Kathleen Turner (Body Heat, Romancing the Stone, The War of the Roses) presenting the Human Spirit Award; Academy Award nominated documentarian Deborah Dickson (LaLee's Kin: The Legacy of Cotton, The Education of Gore Vidal), presenting the Outstanding Documentary Award; Founder, Titmouse Animation Studios and director/producer, Chris Prynoski (Metalocalypse, The Venture Bros. and Beavis and Butt-head Do America), presenting Outstanding Achievement in Character Animation and Animation Production Design; Academy Award-winning writer/producer Alexander Dinelaris (Birdman: Or The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance, The Year of the Monarchs), presenting the Outstanding Achievement in Screenwriting Award; Emmy Award winner Jesse Averna (Sesame Street, SyFy's 12 Monkeys), presenting the Outstanding Achievement in Editing Award; cinematographer Martin Ahlgren (House of Cards, Power, Aziz Ansari: Buried Alive) presenting the Outstanding Achievement in Cinematography Award; three-time Academy Award winner Chris Newman (The Exorcist, Amadeus, The English Patient), presenting the Gotham Honorary Sound Grants; New York Women in Film & Television President Alexis Alexanian (Pieces of April, Tadpole, Chelsea Walls), presenting the New York Women in Film & Television Award; program manager and producer Zach Mandinach, presenting the IFP Award; and media personality Valerie Smaldone, returning to emcee the ceremony. Additional presenters are to be announced.

Two of the presenters -- SVA alumni Daniel Minahan and Alex Kupershmidt -- will also be honored with the Dusty Outstanding Alumni Awards. The award for Daniel Minahan will be presented by director/writer Mary Harron (American Psycho, I Shot Andy Warhol, The Notorious Bettie Page), and the award for Alex Kupershmidt will be presented by writer/director Andre Degas (Condition Red, First Coda).

The 26th Dusty Film & Animation Festival screenings are scheduled for Saturday, May 9 through Monday, May 11, with a red carpet event tonight, May 12. All festival screenings are free and open to the public and will take place at the SVA Theatre, located at 333 West 23rd Street. The four-day event showcases more than 100 films and animations from thesis students graduating this spring.

Reeves Lehmann, chair of the BFA Film & Video and BFA Animation programs at SVA, said, "With our 26th Dusty Awards, we celebrate the early successes of nineteen filmmakers and animators along with an illustrious roster of SVA friends and allies from the world of film and animation."

"The Dustys has become one of the top student film festivals in the country," stated Annie Flocco, festival producer/director, SVA faculty member and independent producer. "Year after year, the program brings attention to remarkable work by SVA students and proves to be a launching pad for so many professional careers."

Headlining Sponsors are AbelCine, Adorama Rental Company, Animation Magazine, B&H Photo, Bryan Singer, Carlos Saldanha/BottleCap Productions, Emmett/Furla/Oasis Films, Feature Systems/Kits and Expendables, Foto Care, Gotham Sound, IFP, New York Women in Film & Television, Nice Shoes, Nickelodeon, Rota6, SCS Agency, SVA Campus Store, Technicolor PostWorks New York, and Toon Boom Animation. One hundred percent of the sponsors' donations will benefit thesis students in the form of grants and in-kind awards. For more information, visit: dusty.sva.edu.

The annual Dusty Awards boasts an illustrious list of presenters each year. Past presenters include Danny Aiello, Ralph Bakshi, Ellen Barkin, Peter Berg, Ed Burns, Ellen Burstyn, Patricia Clarkson, Wes Craven, Michael Cuesta, Griffin Dunne, Randall Emmett, Geoffery Fletcher, James Gandolfini, Lee Grant, Andrew Jarecki, Yvette Kaplan, Harvey Keitel, Kevin Kline, Melissa Leo, Doug Liman, Mira Nair, Bill Plympton, Declan Quinn, Thelma Schoonmaker, John Patrick Shanley, Bryan Singer, Tom Sito and John Turturro.

School of Visual Arts has been a leader in the education of artists, designers and creative professionals for more than six decades. With a faculty of distinguished working professionals, dynamic curriculum and an emphasis on critical thinking, SVA is a catalyst for innovation and social responsibility. Comprised of more than 6,000 students at its Manhattan campus and 35,000 alumni in 100 countries, SVA also represents one of the most influential artistic communities in the world. For information about the College's 32 undergraduate and graduate degree programs, visit sva.edu.