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Few producers can claim that their films not only drastically altered the landscape of American independent filmmaking but also seemed to define the tenor of an entire decade. Stacey Sher is one such individual, responsible – with her producing partners Danny DeVito and Michael Shamberg – for ushering into being such paradigmatic films of the 1990s as Pulp Fiction (1994), Get Shorty (1995), Matilda (1996), Gattaca (1997), and Out of Sight (1998). Meanwhile her credits this century are no less impressive, given that they include an expansion and deepening of her collaborations with Quentin Tarantino and Steven Soderbergh, as well as other artistic pairings with Oliver Stone, Cate Blanchett, Bradley Cooper, Liam Neeson, Chris Pine, and so many other names from the upper echelon of the industry. Neither is Sher’s producing domain limited to the world of cinema: she has simultaneously produced successful TV shows like Reno 911! and the Emmy award-winning Mrs. America (2020) along with serving as co-president of the video game company Activision’s tentative steps into the world of film adaptations. She was also responsible, with Soderbergh, for the production of the 93rd Academy Award ceremony itself.
Giona A. Nazzaro, Artistic Director of the Locarno Film Festival: “Stacey Sher’s work has profoundly reshaped our collective notions of independent cinema. The 1990s were marked indelibly by her producer’s acumen and vision and thus gave rise, through her stewardship, to some of the most iconic films in the canon of American filmmaking. Her long association with filmmakers such as Tarantino and Soderbergh is proof of her vision and devotion to the craft. Whether in films like Man on the Moon (1999) by Miloš Forman or Gattaca (1997) by Andrew Niccol, her desire to challenge what is still possible in filmmaking is in abundant evidence. Celebrating Stacey Sher’s significant achievements at the Locarno Film Festival and awarding her with the coveted Raimondo Rezzonico Award is an honor and joy for us as well as a gift for film lovers all over the world.”
The Tribute Program
Stacey Sher will receive the Raimondo Rezzonico Award in Piazza Grande on the evening of Thursday August 8. The tribute will include screenings of two major titles from her career to date:
Erin Brockovich by Steven Soderbergh – USA – 2000
Django Unchained by Quentin Tarantino – USA – 2012
On Friday August 9 at 10:30 am, the public will have a chance to meet with Sher during a panel conversation to be held at the Forum @Spazio Cinema.
Raimondo Rezzonico Award, offered by the Municipality of Minusio, was created in 2002 in memory of the man who was President of the Festival from 1981 to 1999.
Stacey Sher has produced more than two dozen major motion pictures amassing nearly $2.2 billion at the global box office. Her many critically acclaimed and commercially successful production credits include such notable titles as Quentin Tarantino’s Pulp Fiction (1994), Django Unchained (2012), and The Hateful Eight (2015); Steven Soderbergh’s Out of Sight (1998), Erin Brockovich (2000), and Contagion (2011); Reality Bites (1994); Get Shorty (1995); Garden State (2004); and Respect (2021).
Sher is a two-time Academy Award nominee, receiving nomination honors for Quentin Tarantino’s Django Unchained, starring Jamie Foxx, Leonardo DiCaprio, Christoph Waltz, Samuel L. Jackson and Kerry Washington, as well as Steven Soderbergh’s Erin Brockovich, with Julia Roberts and Albert Finney. Sher currently has a first look television deal at FX and ABC Signature Productions and, in 2020, she executive produced the FX limited television series, Mrs. America (2020), which earned 10 Emmy Award nominations. She also executive produced the 93rd Annual Academy Awards alongside Steven Soderbergh and Jesse Collins, for which they earned an Emmy Award nomination. Most recently, Sher produced the upcoming A24 thriller, Heretic, starring Hugh Grant, and Chris Pine’s directorial debut, Poolman (2023), starring Pine, Danny DeVito, and Annette Bening.
Sher has been the recipient of many honors, including from the ACLU for her commitment to film and television projects that are empowering, inspirational, and thought-provoking, dealing with issues from public safety to education, social justice to censorship. Sher is a member of the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences, BAFTA, the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences and the Producers Guild of America.
The 77th Locarno Film Festival will take place from 7 to 17 August 2024.