Nicole Kidman, Richard Pena to be feted at NYFF

Nicole Kidman and Richard Pena will be the subject of gala tributes at this year’s 50th edition of the New York Film Festival (NYFF), which runs Sept 28 - Oct 14.

The festival also announced the addition of Lee Daniels’s The Paperboy (starring Kidman) to NYFF’s main slate.

Pena has been the program director of the Film Society of Lincoln Center and the director of the New York Film Festival since 1988.

He said of Kidman: “Nicole Kidman is one of film’s finest contemporary actresses. Since her breakthrough performance in To Die For and her bold and provocative appearances in Lars Von Trier’s Dogville, Stanley Kubrick’s Eyes Wide Shut, as well as her awarding-winning portrayal of Virginia Woolf in Stephen Daldry’s The Hours, Kidman has insisted on finding roles that are complex, bold and demanding. We are excited to honor her with a tribute at the New York Film Festival.”

FSLC’s executive director, Rose Kuo said of Pena: “It is very fitting that we celebrate the 50th birthday of the New York Film Festival by honoring the man who has guided the festival’s artistic vision for the last 25 years. Richard Pena helped us discover directors like Pedro Almodovar, Abbas Kiarostami, Olivier Assayas, Lars Von Trier and Hou Hsiao-hsien, making an indelible contribution to film culture in New York CIty and around the world. We hope that his friends and colleagues will join us for a special evening to celebrate his achievements.”