Steve McQueen, the British director who took on America’s shameful past in “12 Years a Slave,” has been named Director of the Year by the Palm Springs International Film Festival, PSIFF organizers announced on Thursday.
The award will be presented on Jan. 4 at the festival’s annual Awards Gala, a black-tie event used by PSIFF as a fundraiser and by studios as a way to showcase awards contenders just days before Oscar nominating ballots are due.
Other honorees at the event will include Sandra Bullock, Bruce Dern and Matthew McConaughey, as well as a number of others yet to be named.