Palm Springs Film Fest Awards Gala

The 21st Annual Palm Springs International Film Festival kicked off this past week. I'm a huge film buff, and especially enjoy independent films that rely on film festivals to be seen and gain awareness. The black tie Awards Gala is a major event that attracts tons of media and paparazzi, along with thousands of fans all looking to catch a glimpse of their favorite star. The film festival itself has grown to one of the largest in the world, with hundreds of films from around the world being screened on 15 screens in Palm Springs over the span of the festival. I always enjoy attending the festival and the Awards Gala. I've been quite busy this past week so I'm posting these photos later than I had planned, but I hope you still enjoy them.
The Red Carpet Arrivals

above: Actress Eva La Rue outside the Palm Springs Convention Center

above: Eva La Rue arrives on the red carpet

above: The throngs of media and papparazzi go wild as Mariah Carey arrives on the red carpet

above: before the event, Mariah Carey was all smiles and still sober...

above: Jeremy Renner

above: The great Helen Mirren
The Awards Gala

above: Inside the convention center, the room was filled with tables illuminated by glowing centerpieces

above: close up of the centerpieces, the flowers were really beautiful.

above: two kinds of desserts: a chocolate souffle

above: ...and a white chocolate mousse
The Awards Ceremony
Mary Hart, of Entertainment Tonight was the the master of ceremonies once again. She lives here in Palm Springs and brings a touch of glamor to the night. My photo of her didn't come out too well so I'm not posting it. I was fortunate to be the guest of a friend whose table was right up front, so I was able to get mostly pretty good photos as each person was on stage.

above: Anna Kendrick receives the Rising Star Award for her performance in "Up in the Air" with George Clooney.

above: Helen Mirren receives the Career Achievement Award, well deserved in my opinion!

above: Clint Eastwood speaks at the awards gala

above: Jeff Bridges accepts the Desert Palm Achievement Award in recognition of his 28 year screen career. He has been in a surprisingly large number of films.

above: Jeremy Renner receives the Breakthrough Performance Award for his role in The Hurt Locker. He was a really nice guy.

above: French actress accepts the Desert Palm Achievement Award.

above: Michelle Pfeiffer was on hand to present the award to her friend Jeff Bridges.

above: The great Morgan Freeman accepts the Career Achievement Award. His role in Invictus was incredible.

above: Sean Penn speaks about the Awards Gala

above: Songstress and newcomer actress gives her now famous acceptance speech for the Breakthrough Performance Award for her tiny role in Precious. If you have not seen it yet, here is the You Tube video of her...