December 20, 2018 – The Cinema Eye Honors today announced that the landmark public television series Eyes on the Prize will be the recipient of the 2019 Legacy Award, a recognition of a classic work of nonfiction filmmaking that continues to inspire new generations of filmmakers and remains as relevant today as it was when it was first broadcast in 1987. Eyes on the Prize is the first series to receive the Legacy Award.
The Legacy Award will be presented to veterans of the Eyes on the Prize creative team at the 12th Annual Cinema Eye Honors Awards Ceremony, to be held Thursday, January 10, 2019 at the Museum of the Moving Image in Astoria, New York. Tickets for the Awards Ceremony are available for purchase at https://cinemaeyehonors.com/tickets/
“For me and so many others, Eyes on the Prize was a transformational cinematic experience, artfully crafting the history of a nation into an unforgettable story,” said Cinema Eye Board Co-Chair Dawn Porter. “Countless filmmakers have been inspired by this elegant body of work.”
Cinema Eye Board Co-Chair Marshall Curry stated, “It’s hard to overstate the importance of this series. It captured a crucial chapter of American history and shared it with millions of viewers, opening eyes and challenging hearts. And for a generation of documentary filmmakers, its craft, style, journalistic thoroughness, and emotional power became the gold standard that we all still strive to reach.”
Created and Executive Produced by the late Henry Hampton, Eyes on the Prize is the definitive documentary record of the civil rights era in America. Over two series and fourteen episodes, Hampton and a purposefully diverse team of producers, writers and directors traced the country’s long and brutal march toward equality and the fight to end decades of discrimination and segregation.
There will be a screening of one of the episodes from Series One: America’s Civil Rights Years 1954-1965 at the Museum on Wednesday, January 9, the night prior to the Awards Ceremony, followed by a conversation with Writer/Director/Producer Orlando Bagwell, Writer/Director/Producer Callie Crossley, Series Producer Jon Else, Writer/Director/Producer Sam Pollard and Writer/Director/Senior Producer Judith Vecchione.
With the announcement of this year’s Legacy Award recipient, all of this year’s Cinema Eye nominated films and filmmakers have been revealed.