Camara Wins Best Actor Award at San Sebastian Film Festival

Posted on September 27, 2015 by Tom Castaneda

Javier Camara is having a Shell of an awards season…

The 48-year-old Spanish actor picked up the Silver Shell for Best Actor at the San Sebastian Film Festival, alongside co-winner Ricardo Darin.

Camara and Darin won the double Silver Shell for their starring roles in Cesc Gay’s Truman, which was the most-applauded prize of the evening.

The film centers on Tomás (Camara), who returns to his hometown Madrid in order to convince his childhood friend Julian (Darin), whom he hasn’t spoken to in years, to continue his chemotherapy treatment.

Darin, a favorite at San Sebastian, quoted a tweet about the film that said, in Spanish: “at 23 I went to see a film about death and I think I learned everything about life.”

Meanwhile, Yordanka Ariosa took home the Silver Shell for Best Actress for her performance in The King of Havana, Agusti Villaronga‘s adaptation of the Pedro Juan Gutierrez novel.

It was a surprise win for the previously unknown Ariosa, who beat out Freeheld´s Oscar-tipped powerhouse Julianne Moore and Ellen Page.

In addition to the official awards, San Sebastian offered coveted cash prizes for competitions from many of the sidebars.

Argentinean filmmaker Santiago Mitre’s Paulina won the €35,000 cash prize that goes with the Horizontes Award for Latin American films.

Spanish filmmaker Asier Altuna’s Amama won the Irizar Basque Film Award with €20,000, given to a film with 20 percent financing from the local region.

Brazilian director Eliane Caffe’s The Cambridge Squatter won the Films in Progress top prize, which awards post-production financing to a nearly finished film, in addition to a spot at the festival next year.

Café Tacvba to Receive Icon Award at This Year’s La Musa Awards

Posted on September 17, 2015 by Tom Castaneda

There’s no doubt Café Tacvba is one of the Latin music world’s most iconic bands. And, now they have the award to prove it.

The trailblazing Mexican alt-rockers will be honored with the Icon Award at the La Musa Awards, which will take place on October 15 at The Fillmore Miami Beach Jackie Gleason Theatre in Miami Beach.

The icon designation is fitting for a band that, over the last 25 years, helped elevate rock by fusing it with hip-hop, electronic music, and folkloric sounds.

Recently, the act – consisting of Rubén Albarrán, Emmanuel “Meme” del Real, José Alfredo “Joselo” Rangel, and Enrique “Quique” Rangel – celebrated the 20th anniversary of its seminal album Re, which revolutionized rock en español.

Their most recent album, El Objeto Antes Llamado Disco, was deemed the Best Latin Album of 2012 by iTunes.

Café Tacvba will also perform during the awards show, produced by the Latin Songwriters Hall of Fame (LSHOF). The non-profit was founded by renowned songwriters/composers Desmond Child and Rudy Perez in 2012 to honor their peers who have impacted music on a global scale.

Cuban music mogul Emilio Estefan, Chilean singer/songwriter Myriam Hernandez, Argentine composer/performer Gustavo Santaolalla, Argentine singer/songwriter Diego Torres, Colombian songwriter Hector Ochoa Cardenas and Salvadoran singer/songwriter Alvaro Torres are the six music luminaries being inducted into the LSHOF during this year’s ceremony. Quincy Jones will receive the Desi Arnaz Pioneer Award while Chilean rock icon Beto Cuevas will be recognized with a special La Musa Conquistador Award.

Tickets for this year’s gala, hosted by actor/singer Carlos Ponce, are on sale via latinsonghall.com.

Belén Among This Year’s Latin Recording Academy Lifetime Achievement Award Recipients

Posted on September 16, 2015 by Tom Castaneda

It’s a Lifetime honor for Ana Belén…

The Latin Recording Academy will honor a diverse group of Latin music icons, including the 64-year-old Spanish songstress, actress and director with special career honors in a celebration coinciding with the Latin Grammys in November.

Belén, who has released nearly 40 in her 54 year musical career, received the Fine Arts Golden Medal presented by the Spanish royal family at Toledo Cathedral in 2007. She was nominated for Best Female Soloist for Peces de ciudad at the 2002 Latin Grammy Awards.

In addition to Belén, other artists being recognized this year include Argentine jazz saxophone player Gato Barbieri, Spanish singer Víctor Manuel, Dominican performer Angela Carrasco, Brazilian pop artist Djavan, Puerto Rican salsa legends El Gran Combo De Puerto Rico, and Cuban singer-songwriter Pablo Milanés will receive the Lifetime Achievement awards. Violinist Federico Britos, producer Humberto Gatica and composer Chelique Sarabia will, respectively, receive the Academy’s Trustees Award.

“It is a great honor to recognize and celebrate such a distinguished and dynamic group of honorees who have been the creators of such timeless art,” said The Latin Recording Academy President/CEO Gabriel Abaroa Jr. said in a statement. “Their outstanding accomplishments and passion for their craft have created a timeless legacy. By honoring them we honor our music. They surely will continue to have an influence in both our culture and the Latin music industry.”

The Latin Academy’s special awards honorees will be celebrated during an invitation-only ceremony to be held on Wednesday, November 18 at the MGM Grand Hotel & Casino, as part of the weeklong 16th Annual Latin Grammy Awards festivities.

Colón to Receive National Medal of Arts from President Barack Obama

Posted on September 7, 2015 by Tom Castaneda

Miriam Colón has proven her medal…

The 79-year-old Puerto Rican actress is among the 2014 National Medal of Arts recipients who’ll be recognized by President Barack Obama at a special White House ceremony, according to the National Endowment for the Arts.

Designed by Robert Graham, the medal is awarded by the president to individuals or groups for their outstanding contributions to the excellence, growth, support and availability of the arts in the United States.

Colón is being heralded for her contributions as an actress. “Ms. Colón has been a trailblazer in film, television, and theatre, and helped open doors for generations of Hispanic actors,” according to a statement from the National Endowment for the Arts.

In 1953, The Puerto Rico-born actress moved to New York City, where she was accepted by Actors Studio co-founder Elia Kazan after a single audition, becoming the Studio’s first Puerto Rican member. While in the Big Apple, Colón worked in theater and later landed a role on the soap opera Guiding Light.

Early on in her career, she appeared mostly in westerns such as Gunsmoke, Bonanza, The High Chaparral, and Have Gun, Will Travel.

Most recently, Colón appeared on television and film in Better Call Saul, Top Five and Bless Me, Ultima.

She’s also the founder and director of the Puerto Rican Traveling Theater in New York City.

This year’s ceremony will be held Thursday, September 10 at 12:00 pm in the White House’s East Room. First Lady Michelle Obama will also be in attendance.

Here’s the complete list of recipients:

John Baldessari, visual artist
Ping Chong, theater director, choreographer, and video and installation artist
Miriam Colón, actress
The Doris Duke Charitable Foundation
Sally Field, actress and filmmaker
Ann Hamilton, visual artist
Stephen King, author
Meredith Monk, composer, singer, and performer
George Shirley, tenor
University Musical Society
Tobias Wolff, author and educator

Mars’ “Uptown Funk” Collaboration with Mark Ronson Wins an MTV VMA

Posted on August 31, 2015 by Tom Castaneda

Bruno Mars is the (Moon)man of the hour…

The 29-year-old part-Puerto Rican singer picked up the third Moonman of his career atthe 2015 MTV Video Music Awards.

Mars picked up the award for Best Male Video for his collaboration with Mark Ronson, “Uptown Funk.”

Mars previously picked up awards at the 2013 MTV VMAs for Best Male Video for “Locked Out of Heaven” and Best Choreography for “Treasure.”

Here’s a look at the night’s winners:

Michael Jackson Video Vanguard Award: Kanye West
Video of the Year: “Bad Blood,” Taylor Swift ft. Kendrick Lamar
Best Female Video: “Blank Space,” Taylor Swift
Best Male Video: “Uptown Funk,” Mark Ronson ft. Bruno Mars
Best Pop Video: “Blank Space,” Taylor Swift
Best Hip Hop Video: “Anaconda,” Nicki Minaj
Best Rock Video: “Uma Thurman,” Fall Out Boy
Best Direction: “Alright,” Kendrick Lamar
Best Collaboration: “Bad Blood,” Taylor Swift ft. Kendrick Lamar
Best Video with Social Message: “One Man Can Changed the World,” Big Sean ft. Kanye West and John Legend
Best Art Direction: “So Many Pros,” Snoop Dogg
Best Choreography: “I Won’t Let You Down,” OK Go
Best Cinematography: “Never Catch Me,” Flying Lotus ft. Kendrick Lamar
Best Editing: “7/11,” Beyoncé
Best Visual Effects: “Where Are U Now” Skrillex and Diplo ft. Justin Bieber

Moreno Among the Recipients of This Year’s Kennedy Center Honors

Posted on July 16, 2015 by Tom Castaneda

Rita Moreno continues to rack up the honors…

The 83-year-old Puerto Rican actress, who received a Lifetime Achievement Award at last year’s SAG Awards, has been announced as one of recipients of this year’s Kennedy Center Honors.

Each year, the Kennedy Center recognizes a select group for their lifetime contributions to American culture through the performing arts with the primary criterion in the selection process being excellence. Honorees are chosen by the center’s board of trustees.

Moreno, a Grammy, Oscar, Golden Globe and Tony Award winner, will be honored along side Star Wars patriarch George Lucas, actress Cicely Tyson, songwriter Carole King, conductor Seiji Ozawa and the Eagles.

Moreno, who recently guest-starred on the CW’s Jane the Virgin, has previously received the Library of Congress Living Legends Award, the Presidential Medal of Freedom, a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, a National Medal of Arts and the Latin Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award.

The event, a fundraiser for the Washington, D.C. arts center, will take place on December 6. CBS will broadcast the star-studded event on December 29.

Jimenez Inducted Into the Austin City Limits Hall of Fame

Posted on June 19, 2015 by Tom Castaneda

Flaco Jimenez’s name will appear in the Austin City Limits history books…

The 76-year-old Mexican American Conjunto, Norteño and Tejano music accordionist and a member of the Tejano fusion group Texas Tornados, who received a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award earlier this year, has been inducted into the Austin City Limits Hall of Fame.

During the 2nd annual Austin City Limits Hall of Fame concert on Thursday, Jimenez was inducted with a class that included Loretta Lynn, Guy Clark, Asleep at the Wheel and the late Townes Van Zandt.

Jimenez’s short but sweet acceptance speech prefaced an upbeat six-song set earlier in the night with conjunto band Max Baca & Los TexManiacs featuring David Hidalgo of Los Lobos on guitar and vocals. Midway through, Dwight Yoakam came aboard to sing lead, with Jimenez’s colorful accordion accents propelling the extended cast on “Streets of Bakersfield” and Warren Zevon’s “Carmelita.”

The green room was jam-packed just moments earlier with friends, family and fellow musicians who just wanted to be close to Jimenez, who received the loudest reception of the night. He beamed recounting how Yoakam had mentioned his military service as an Army artilleryman during the Korean War.

“I was proud to serve my country,” Jimenez said.

Jimenez, a five-time Grammy winner, has enjoyed a successful career that has spanned more than six decades. In that time, he’s collaborated with artists like Bob Dylan, Ry Cooder, Doug Sahm and Carlos Santana.

Garcia to Be Inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame

Posted on June 16, 2015 by Tom Castaneda

Jerry Garcia legacy lives on…

The late part-Spanish American musician best known for his lead guitar work, singing and songwriting with the band the Grateful Dead, will be posthumously inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame this week.

Garcia and his songwriting partner Robert Hunter, who will also be honored, first paired together as performers in a folk duo in the early 1960’s. When Garcia formed the Grateful Dead in the mid-1960’s, he looked to Hunter for lyrics. Hunter became an official lyricist for the band, and when they were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1994, Hunter was inducted as a band member, the only non-performer ever honored.

Garcia wrote the music while Hunter penned lyrics for songs like “Casey Jones”, “China Cat Sunflower,” “St. Stephen” and “Truckin,’” which was recognized by the United States Library of Congress in 1997 as a national treasure.

With more than 35 million albums sold worldwide, other notable tracks include, “Dark Star,” which is listed as one of The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame’s “500 Songs that Shaped Rock and Roll” list, and was ranked #57 on Rolling Stone’s “100 Greatest Guitar Songs of All Time,” the 1987 single, “Touch Of Grey” which was also the band’s first music video and, “Friend of the Devil” from the 1970 album American Beauty, which has been covered by Bob Dylan, Tom Petty, The Counting Crows, Elvis Costello, Lyle Lovett and John Mayer. In 2007, the Grateful Dead received a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award.

The 46th Annual Induction and Awards Dinner will take place on June 18 at the New York Marriott Marquis.

The attendees will gather to celebrate the core of creativity that drives the music business: the craft of songwriting.

Other members of 2015 class of inductees: country hitmaker Bobby Braddock, late blues icon Willie Dixon, country star Toby Keith, ’80s pop chart-topper Cyndi Lauper and Linda Perry of 4 Non Blondes, who has written hits for Christina Aguilera, Alicia Keys, Gwen Stefani, James Blunt, the Dixie Chicks and others.

“Our 2015 lineup of inductees represents the rich diversity of American musical styles – Rock, Country, Blues and Pop – that have captivated the world over the past six decades,” said SHOF President & CEO Linda Moran. “Each one of these brilliant music creators have written instantly recognizable classics, songs that are both of their time and timeless. Our Annual Awards Gala is sure to be unforgettable.”

The evening’s lineup of performers and presenters includes Tony Bennett, Benny Blanco, Zac Brown, Michael Buble, Ledisi, Ne-Yo, Jennifer Nettles of Sugarland, Richie Sambora of Bon Jovi, Bernie Taupin and Paul Williams.

Miranda’s Musical “Hamilton” Wins Seven Drama Desk Awards

Posted on June 1, 2015 by Tom Castaneda

Lin-Manuel Miranda is celebrating a little excess drama…

The 35-year-old Puerto Rican composer, rapper, lyricist, and actor’s latest project, the musical Hamilton, won seven Drama Desk awards including best new musical, on Sunday night.

In addition to taking home one of the night’s the top honors, Miranda picked up three individual awards: Outstanding Music, Outstanding Lyrics and Outstanding Book of a Musical.

Hamilton, which won’t be eligible for the Pulitzer Prize or Tony Award nominations until next season, is based on Ron Chernow’s biography of Alexander Hamilton.

First presented at the Public Theater, Hamilton already had won the best musical award from the New York Drama Critics Circle, the OBIEs, the Lucille Lortel, the Outer Critics Circle and the Off-Broadway Alliance.

The show’s prize-winning juggernaut comes in advance of its July transfer to Broadway.

Unlike the Tony Awards, which are limited to Broadway productions, the Drama Desk, which comprises writers and editors from publications that cover theater, considers shows that opened off-Broadway as well.

Here is the complete list of winners:

Outstanding Play
Simon Stephens, The Curious Incident Of The Dog In The Night-Time

Outstanding Musical
Hamilton

Outstanding Revival of a Play
The Elephant Man

Outstanding Revival of a Musical
The King And I

Outstanding Actor in a Play
Alex Sharp, The Curious Incident Of The Dog In The Night-Time

Outstanding Actress in a Play
Helen Mirren, The Audience

Outstanding Actor in a Musical
Robert Fairchild, An American In Paris

Outstanding Actress in a Musical
Kristin Chenoweth, On the Twentieth Century

Outstanding Featured Actor in a Play
Todd Freeman, Airline Highway

Outstanding Featured Actress in a Play
Annaleigh Ashford, You Can’t Take It With You

Outstanding Featured Actor in a Musical
Christian Borle, Something Rotten!

Outstanding Featured Actress in a Musical
Renée Elise Goldsberry, Hamilton

Outstanding Director of a Play
Marianne Elliott, The Curious Incident Of The Dog In The Night-Time

Outstanding Director of a Musical
Thomas Kail, Hamilton

Outstanding Choreography
Christopher Wheeldon, An American In Paris

Outstanding Music
Lin-Manuel Miranda, Hamilton

Outstanding Lyrics
Lin-Manuel Miranda, Hamilton

Outstanding Book of a Musical
Lin-Manuel Miranda, Hamilton

Outstanding Orchestrations
Christopher Austin, An American In Paris

Outstanding Music in a Play
Arthur Solari & Jane Shaw, Tamburlaine The Great

Outstanding Revue
Just Jim Dale

Outstanding Set Design
Bob Crowley, An American In Paris

Outstanding Costume Design
Catherine Zuber, Gigi

Outstanding Lighting Design
Paule Constable, The Curious Incident Of The Dog In The Night-Time

Outstanding Projection Design
Finn Ross, The Curious Incident Of The Dog In The Night-Time

Outstanding Sound Design in a Musical
Nevin Steinberg, Hamilton

Outstanding Sound Design in a Play
Ian Dickinson (for Autograph), The Curious Incident Of The Dog In The Night-Time

Outstanding Solo Performance
Benjamin Scheuer, The Lion

Unique Theatrical Experience
Queen of the Night

Special Awards:

Outstanding ensemble, A. R. Gurney’s The Wayside Motor Inn: Kelly AuCoin, Jon DeVries, Quincy Dunn-Baker, Rebecca Henderson, Marc Kudisch, Jenn Lyon, Lizbeth Mackay, David McElwee, Ismenia Mendes and Will Pullen.

Bess Wohl, the Sam Norkin Off-Broadway Award: For establishing herself as an important voice in New York theater, and having a breakthrough year with the eclectic American Hero, Pretty Filthy and Small Mouth Sounds.

John Douglas Thompson: For invigorating theater in New York through his commanding presence, classical expertise, and vocal prowess in Tamburlaine the Great and The Iceman Cometh.

Ensemble Studio Theatre: For its unwavering commitment to producing new works by American playwrights since 1968.

Andy Blankenbuehler: For his inspired and heart-stopping choreography.

Rivera Wins Drama League Award for Her Performance in “The Visit”

Posted on May 16, 2015 by Tom Castaneda

Chita Rivera is this year’s Drama League darling…

The 82-year-old half-Puerto Rican actress, dancer and singer, the first Hispanic woman and the first Latino American to receive a Kennedy Center Honors award, picked up the Distinguished Performance Award at the 2015 Drama League Awards for her role in The Visit.

Rivera was named the winner during the Drama League’s annual luncheon ceremony May 15. The Broadway favorite and current Tony Awards nominee, beat out the likes of Helen Mirren, Bradley Cooper and Jake Gyllenhaal, among many others.

American in Paris bested its Tony Awards competition Fun Home, Something Rotten! and The Visit, along with a number of Off Broadway titles, in the new musical category, while Curious Incident came out on top in a race for the new play trophy that included fellow Tony nominees Hand to God and Wolf Hall.

The full list of 2015 Drama League Awards winners follows:

Distinguished Production of a Musical: “An American in Paris”
Distinguished Production of a Play: “The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time”
Distinguished Revival of a Musical: “The King and I”
Distinguished Revival of a Play: “You Can’t Take It With You”
Distinguished Performance Award: Chita Rivera, “The Visit”
Distinguished Achievement in Musical Theater: Joel Grey
Unique Contribution to the Theater: WNET (Neal Shapiro, David Horn)
Founders Award for Excellence in Directing: Stephen Daldry

Hispanically Yours

Celebrating the Latino Influence

Category Archives: Awards