On Friday, February 3, 2012 five stars convened at the Arlington Theater to be awarded Virtuosos Awards for their performances in various movies throughout 2011. Among the six actors and actresses recognized by the Santa Barbara International Film Festival for their spectacular performances were Demián Bichir for his role in A Better Life, Rooney Mara for her performance in The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, and Patton Oswalt for his portrayal of Matt Freehauf in Young Adult. Also being honored at the ceremony were Andy Serkis for his incredible interpretation of an ape in Rise of the Planet of the Apes, and Shailene Woodley for her stirring rendering of a troubled teen in The Descendants. The final actress honored was Melissa McCarthy for her role in Bridesmaids, but she was unable to make it to the presentation as she was suffering from laryngitis.
The first of the honorees was Demián Bichir, who starred in the movie A Better Life, the story of a Los Angeles gardener and his struggle to protect his son. His stellar performance as a man attempting to shelter his child in the unfriendly Los Angeles area was enough to win him both an Oscar Nomination for Best Actor in a Leading Role as well as a Virtuosos Award from the Santa Barbara International Film Festival. He was brought on stage for a brief interview, and a clip from his movie was shown for those who had not seen it.
“I hope people to be moved by [the movie] and see life differently, with an open mind towards many people who work around our lives to make our lives easier and better,” said Bichir.
The next honored guest was Rooney Mara for her portrayal of a disturbed young woman in The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. The movie followed Lisbeth Salander and Michael Bloomkvist as they attempted to solve the mystery of the disappearance of a 16 year old girl that occurred 40 years earlier. Her accurate interpretation of an abused and neglected outcast was enough to win her both a Virtuosos Award and an Oscar Nomination for Best Actress in a Leading Role. When brought onstage, two clips from her movie were shown. She was asked, among other things, about how she was able to become herself again after playing Salander and she simply said that she felt like Lisbeth in some ways and she was okay with being her a little while longer.
“I wasn’t really dying to get out of being Lisbeth,” said Mara.
After Mara had her time on stage, Patton Oswalt was brought onstage and immediately started joking about the journey from the audience to the stage entrance, saying that and you expect the honorees to go in with one outfit on and come out with a different one on. Oswalt, who was also nominated for the Critics’ Choice Award, was being honored for his rendition of a crippled man who never left his home town in Young Adult. The film was about a woman who went back to her hometown in an attempt to win back her high school sweetheart but found something else instead. Throughout his interview, the smile never left Oswalt’s face
Next up was Andy Serkis, who was being recognized for his spectacular portrayal of an intelligent ape named Cesar in Rise of the Planet of the Apes, a motion capture role. Serkis, who had decided to show up Oswalt, appeared from the stage entrance without his shirt on and in a primal, hunched position. Andy Serkis is best known for his motion capture portrayals in the title role in King Kong as well as Gollum in The Lord of the Rings trilogy. Serkis will be reprising his role this year of Gollum in The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey.
“Gollum is a really amazing character to play because he is so incredibly well written; he’s beautifully characterized,” said Serkis. “There’re many layers to him because there’s two parts to his personality. There’s Sméagol who is like a younger more defenseless but ultimately more manipulative side and then there’s Gollum who is kind of more aggressive, who speaks from the gut really.”
The final honoree of the night was Shailene Woodley, who was being honored for her top notch portrayal of a depressed 17 year old girl with a part-time parent in The Descendants. Woodley was also nominated for a Golden Globe for her performance in this dark film. The young actress was a little uncomfortable appearing after Serkis, who had taken his shirt off, and decided to keep her clothes on during her interview where it became apparent she was nothing like the darker girl she played onscreen.
At the end of all the interviews, a clip was shown for the absent honoree, Melissa McCarthy from Bridesmaids, who was forbidden to speak or attend by her managers. Once the individual interviews ended, the actors and actresses were again gathered onstage for a group interview. At the conclusion of the final interview, the honorees were presented the actual awards by Chris Weitz, director of A Better Life.
cynthiaandersonwrites 
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