See Highlights From the AFI Awards

Today, the American Film Institute (AFI) celebrated the 2019 AFI AWARDS honorees at an invite-only luncheon in Beverly Hills. Unique in its celebration of the film and television arts' collaborative nature, AFI AWARDS - now in its 20th year - is the only national program that honors creative teams as a whole.

During the event, AFI revealed its official rationales for all 22 honorees (below), providing the cultural and historic context for inclusion in the list of the year's most outstanding film and television programs. Mel Brooks, the 43rd AFI LIFE ACHIEVEMENT AWARD recipient, introduced the awards presentation by sharing a story about his late wife Anne Bancroft's participation in the AFI Directing Workshop for Women. "It fills my heart that AFI was there to hear women's voices."

Closing the event, EGOT-winner Rita Moreno delivered the annual benediction in celebration of the honorees' remarkable achievements in film and television. Moreno said to the audience of honorees, "I am filled with hope and love and excitement because times are changing, and I applaud it and I applaud you."

Guests in attendance at the AFI AWARDS luncheon include: Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, Gillian Anderson, Awkwafina, Kathy Bates, Noah Baumbach, David Benioff, Dean-Charles Chapman, Lisa Cholodenko, Sian Clifford, Bradley Cooper, Brian Cox, Peter Cramer, Kieran Culkin, Jamie Lee Curtis, Roman Griffin Davis, Robert De Niro, Laura Dern, Alexandre Desplat, Kaitlyn Dever, Leonardo DiCaprio, Adam Driver, Ava DuVernay, Ana de Armas, Clint Eastwood, Brad Falchuk, Greta Gerwig, Susannah Grant, Jon Hamm, Kit Harington, Jared Harris, Paul Walter Hauser, Don Johnson, Rian Johnson, Bong Joon Ho, Song Kang Ho, Damon Lindelof, George MacKay, David Mandel, Craig Mazin, Thomasin McKenzie, Sam Mendes, Kevin Messick, Ron Meyer, Peter Morgan, Ryan Murphy, Thomas Newman, Josh O'Connor, Amy Pascal, Todd Phillips, Joaquin Phoenix, Brad Pitt, Billy Porter, Margaret Qualley, Billy Ray, Sam Rockwell, Ray Romano, Saoirse Ronan, Jane Rosenthal, Alan Ruck, Ted Sarandos, Martin Scorsese, Andrew Scott, Zhao Shuzhen, Jeremy Strong, Robin Swicord, Quentin Tarantino, Sarah Timberman, Taika Waititi, Phoebe Waller-Bridge, Lulu Wang, D.B. Weiss, Merritt Wever and Irwin Winkler.

The AFI AWARDS luncheon was sponsored by Audi, a leading supporter of AFI and its programs for the past 16 years.