Amanda Seyfried Wins Montecito Award at 36th Santa Barbara International Film Festival

Amanda Seyfried will receive the Montecito Award at the 36th annual Santa Barbara International Film Festival. Seyfried will be honored on Friday, April 9th and will be recognized for her impressive career and performance in David Fincher's MANK from Netflix, for which she recently received Golden Globe and Critic's Choice nominations.

"Amanda gives one of the best performances of 2020 in "Mank," and makes us do a double take about her whole career. This is a defining moment for her, and a rediscovery for us." comments SBIFF's Executive Director Roger Durling.

The Montecito Award is named after one of the most beautiful and stylish areas in Santa Barbara. Past recipients include Lupita Nyong'o, Melissa McCarthy, Saoirse Ronan, Isabelle Huppert, Sylvester Stallone, Jennifer Aniston, Oprah Winfrey, Daniel Day-Lewis, Geoffrey Rush, Julianne Moore, Kate Winslet, Javier Bardem, Bill Condon, and Naomi Watts.

The 36th Santa Barbara International Film Festival will take place March 31st through April 10th, 2021. More information as well as Festival passes and tickets, will be available in the coming weeks at www.sbiff.org.

Amanda Seyfried is currently starring opposite Gary Oldman in David Fincher's MANK. The film is a biographical drama about screenwriter Herman J. Mankiewicz and his development of the screenplay for Citizen Kane. Seyfried has received glowing reviews for her role as Marion Davies, the actress and mistress of William Randolph Hearst who forges a deep friendship with Mankiewicz. The script for the film was written by Fincher's late father, Jack Fincher.

She will next star in Netflix's THINGS HEARD AND SEEN. Directed by Shari Springer and Robert Pulcini, the horror thriller is based off Elizabeth Brundage's novel ALL THINGS CEASE TO APPEAR. She will also star in Amy Koppelman's indie, A MOUTHFUL OF AIR alongside Paul Giamatti and Amy Irving. Based on Koppelman's novel of the same name, the film will follow Seyfried's 'Julie' as she struggles with the darkness of post-partum depression.

Seyfried first captured the attention of audiences and critics alike in her breakthrough performance as Sophie in MAMMA MIA! which was released in 2008. The film, directed by Phyllida Lloyd, garnered a Golden Globe nomination and grossed more than $600 million. Ten years later, in 2018, she reprised her role in Ol Parker's MAMMA MIA: HERE WE GO AGAIN. That film grossed over $400 million.

She has starred in countless noteworthy performances over her twenty year career.

Most recently, she starred opposite Ethan Hawke in Paul Schrader's critically acclaimed film, FIRST REFORMED in 2018. The film first premiered at The Venice Film Festival and went on to earn an Independent Spirit Award nomination and AFI's "Movie of the Year" award.

Seyfried transformed into Linda Lovelace in Millennium/Radius Films' LOVELACE, a drama directed by Rob Epstein and Jeffrey Friedman. The film tells the true story of Lovelace, the world's first adult film star (DEEP THROAT) who is abused by the industry and by her coercive husband, before fighting back and taking control of her life. The film premiered at Sundance in 2013 and she garnered incredible reviews for her performance. Peter Sargsaard and Sharon Stone also star in the film.

She once again displayed her vocal talents as Cosette in Universal's musical film adaptation of LES MISERABLES in 2012. Tom Hooper directed the film also starring Anne Hathaway, Hugh Jackman and Russel Crowe. The film earned Academy Award, Golden Globe, SAG and BAFTA nominations and grossed over $400 million internationally.

In 2010, Seyfried starred alongside Channing Tatum in the box office hit, DEAR JOHN, the adaptation of the Nicolas Sparks bestseller. In the film, Seyfried plays a young woman who meets and falls in love with a soldier (Tatum) while he's on leave. Lasse Hallstrom directed from a script by Jamie Linden. DEAR JOHN grossed more than $100 million worldwide and is the third highest opening film to date for Sony Screen Gems.

Seyfried starred opposite Julianne Moore in CHLOE, an Atom Egoyan-directed thriller where she plays an escort hired by a successful doctor (Moore) to test her husband's fidelity. The film premiered at the Toronto Film Festival in 2009. Her second film at the festival that year was the cult classic, JENNIFER'S BODY, where she starred opposite Megan Fox.

Seyfried's other screen credits include her role opposite Adam Driver in Noah Baumbach's film, WHILE WE'RE YOUNG. She has worked with Seth MacFarlane in two film, TED 2 and A MILLION WAYS TO DIE IN THE WEST. She lent her voice to 20thCentury Fox's animated film, EPIC, alongside Beyonce and Christoph Waltz. Seyfried starred opposite Justin Timberlake in Andrew Niccol's IN TIME and opposite Vanessa Redgrave in the Summit film, LETTERS TO JULIET.

Seyfried had her theater debut in 2015 with Neil Labute's off-Broadway "The Way We Get By." Reviews hailed her performance in this Second Stage Theatre production by Leigh Silverman. On the small screen, Seyfried received critical praise for her role as Sarah Henrickson in the Golden Globe nominated, BIG LOVE, for HBO.

A Pennsylvania native, Seyfried started her career by modeling at the age of 11. She soon turned to acting and landed her first contract role in 2000 as Lucy Montgomery on AT THE WORLD TURNS. In 2002, ALL MY CHILDREN signed her to the contract role of Joni Stafford. Her big break, though, was in 2004's MEAN GIRLS the Lorne Michaels/Tina Fey/Paramount film where she co-starred with Lindsay Lohan and Rachel McAdams. She followed that film with Sundance Film Festival Favorites NINE LIVES, and Nick Cassavetes' ALPHA DOG, alongside Justin Timberlake, Sharon Stone and Bruce Willis.

Seyfried is currently Lancôme's global ambassador, alongside Julia Roberts, Lily Collins, Kate Winslet, Penelope Cruz and Isabella Rossellini. She is an avid supporter of the non-profit organization Best Friends Animal Society which is the home of the largest no kill sanctuary in the United States. She and her husband Thomas Sadoski are also heavily involved with INARA, an organization that provides access to medical assistance to children impacted by war.

She lives in New York with her husband, Thomas Sadoski and their two children.

The Santa Barbara International Film Festival (SBIFF) is a 501(c)(3) non-profit arts and educational organization dedicated to discovering and showcasing the best in independent and international cinema. Over the past 35 years, SBIFF has become one of the leading film festivals in the United States - attracting 100,000+ attendees and offering 11 days of 200+ films, tributes and symposiums, fulfilling their mission to engage, enrich, and inspire the Santa Barbara community through film.

In 2016, SBIFF entered a new era with the acquisition of the historic and beloved Riviera Theatre. After a capital campaign and renovation, the theatre is now SBIFF's new state-of-the-art, year-round home, showing new international and independent films every day. In 2019, SBIFF opened its own Education Center in downtown Santa Barbara on State Street to serve as a home for its many educational programs and a place for creativity and learning.

To post a comment, you must register and login.