Bruce Dern to receive career award from Palm Springs Film Festival

Bruce Dern, the Oscar-nominated actor who’s generating awards buzz for his starring role in Alexander Payne’s Nebraska, will receive the Career Achievement Award from the Palm Springs International Film Festival on Jan. 4.

“Bruce Dern is truly a one of a kind performer,” said Festival chairman Harold Matzner, in a statement. “His skill at capturing the essence of a character, no matter how complex or unorthodox, is unique and unparalleled. In over 80 feature films, this talent is vividly reflected in such classic roles as the deranged pilot plotting a mass attack in Bloody Sunday, or the scarred Vietnam vet who returns home to find his wife embroiled in an affair with another man in Coming Home. In his latest cinematic endeavor Nebraska, certainly deserving of award recognition, Dern brings his consummate acting gifts to the role of an inscrutable elderly father who, with his son, journeys to claim a million dollar prize, while ultimately coming face to face with his past.”

Dern was nominated for an Oscar in 1979 for his supporting role in Coming Home. He also starred in They Shoot Horses, Don’t They?, The King of Marvin Gardens, The Great Gatsby, The ‘Burbs, and Django Unchained, among others. His current role in Nebraska has already been honored by the Cannes Film Festival and he’s in the conversation for an Oscar nomination.

Nebraska opened in a few theaters on Nov. 15. The Palm Springs International Film Festival runs Jan. 3-13.