Nate Parker to receive Sundance Institute’s Vanguard Award

Filmmaker/actor Nate Parker is set to receive the Sundance Institute’s Vanguard Award following the success of his new film The Birth of a Nation.
The Non-Stop star earned critical acclaim at this year’s (16) Sundance Film Festival for the historical drama and now organisers will honour him for the movie during a ceremony in Los Angeles in August (16).
Parker, who received support for the film from the Sundance Institute Feature Film Program, will be the fifth recipient of the award, joining past honourees such as Fruitvale Station’s Ryan Coogler and Whiplash director Damien Chazelle.
Parker directed, wrote, and stars in The Birth of a Nation, which chronicles the story of former slave Nat Turner, who led a liberation movement in 1831 to free African-Americans in Virginia.
During the Sundance Film Festival, Parker’s directorial debut won both the audience award and the coveted grand jury prize. It also picked up the biggest deal ever at the annual independent film showcase when Fox Searchlight executives won a bidding war, and purchased the rights for $17.5 million (GBP12.3 million).
The Birth of a Nation, which also stars also stars Armie Hammer, Gabrielle Union, and Aja Naomi King, will hit cinemas in the U.S. on 7 October (16).