Mira Sorvino to Receive Promise Institute Award for Contribution to Human Rights Through the Arts

Academy Award-winning actor and activist Mira Sorvino has been named the inaugural recipient of the UCLA Law Promise Institute Award for Contribution to Human Rights Through the Arts. Sorvino will accept the award at UCLA's summit Light. Camera. Reaction: The Art of Impact in Entertainment at the Hammer Museum on March 16.

"I'm deeply honored to receive the inaugural Promise Award," said Sorvino, who in addition to her career as an actor and producer has worked to combat human trafficking, slavery and sexual harassment and abuse. "Film is a powerful tool to bring about social change, and we in the industry have the privilege of using our platform for social justice, and to use our art to tell stories of injustice, war, and genocide to encourage the spread of human rights around the globe."

Light. Camera. Reaction will bring together the legal, human rights and filmmaking communities for a landmark discussion that will illuminate issues of legality and ethics, creative integrity, production, distribution, and publicity as they relate to bringing human rights stories to the big screen.

Panelists will include Academy Award-winning producer and director Edward Zwick ("Shakespeare in Love," "Legends of the Fall," "Glory," "Blood Diamond,") Academy Award-nominated and Emmy winning documentary film producer Amy Ziering ("The Invisible War," "The Hunting Ground"), leading First Amendment and media law attorney Kelli Sager, Academy Award-nominated producer Reginald Hudlin ("Django Unchained," "Marshall"), Sundance Film Festival award-winning director Catherine Hardwicke ("Thirteen," "Twilight"), producer Dr. Eric Esrailian ("The Promise," "Intent to Destroy"), director Evgeny Afineevsky ("Winter on Fire," "Cries from Syria").

Organizers include the Promise Institute for Human Rights at UCLA School of Law, the Skoll Center for Social Impact Entertainment at UCLA's School of Theater, Film and Television, and the nonprofit arts foundation Creative Armenia.

The Promise Institute Award for Contribution to Human Rights through the Arts recognizes individuals and organizations who have used their talents to focus the public's attention on injustices and human rights violations. The award was created in 2018 by the Promise Institute for Human Rights at UCLA School of Law.

"The arts can educate, heal, change policy and change lives," said Esrailian, who in addition to producing films is on the faculty of the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA. "Collaborations among human rights experts and filmmakers-including the organizers, sponsors and participants in this event-are critical for bringing attention to crises that are affecting lives around the globe. I know we can work together to find solutions that will prevent further violence and displacement."

Sorvino has appeared in dozens of feature films and television shows, including the movies "Romy and Michelle's High School Reunion," Spike Lee's "Summer of Sam," the groundbreaking mini-series "Human Trafficking"-for which she was nominated for a Golden Globe-and the upcoming "Look Away." In 1996, she won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her role in "Mighty Aphrodite." She will next be seen in "Modern Family" and "Condor."

A graduate of Harvard University magna cum laude, Sorvino has shown a life-long commitment to social change. She is one of the driving forces behind the recent TIME'S UP movement, has served as the spokesperson for Amnesty International's Stop Violence Against Women campaign, and has been Goodwill Ambassador to fight human trafficking for the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime since 2009. On behalf of the UN's Blue Heart campaign, she addressed a Vatican conference on human trafficking and has testified before Congress and others on issues including modern slavery and the crisis in Darfur. She was the on-the-ground anchor of CNN Freedom Project's "Every Day in Cambodia" documentary on child sex-trafficking. She is currently producing a feature comedy centering on marriage equality.

Jennifer L. Mnookin, dean of the UCLA School of Law, said, "Mira Sorvino is widely recognized as a champion of social justice and human rights, and we are thrilled that she is the first recipient of UCLA Law's Promise Award. The Promise Institute on Human Rights has its origins in the courageous social impact film "The Promise," and here at UCLA we are using the combined power of legal advocacy and film to shine a light on human rights crises, educate future leaders and make a positive impact in troubled parts of the world."

Photo Credit: Walter McBride / WM Photos

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