A Hollywood star will set foot in Rochester this July.
Octavia Spencer will receive the George Eastman Award for her distinguished contribution to the art of cinema.
The George Eastman Museum announced the honor for Spencer on Thursday. She's best known for her performances in "The Help," "Hidden Figures," and "The Shape of Water."
Spencer's role as Minny in the 2011 film "The Help" earned her an Academy Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role, a BAFTA Award, a Golden Globe, a SAG award, and a Broadcast Film Critics’ Choice Award, among numerous other accolades.
In "Hidden Figures," she played the historical figure Dorothy Vaughan — the mathematician and computer programmer at NASA who broke barriers for Black women in STEM. That 2016 performance earned her a nomination for Best Actress in a Supporting Role. She was similarly nominated in 2017 for her role as Zelda Fuller in "The Shape of Water."
She's currently working as the star of and executive producer for the action-adventure series, "Ride or Die," premiering July 15. The project is being produced through her company, Orit Entertainment, which she launched in 2019.
The public award ceremony is scheduled for 8 p.m. July 17 in the Dryden Theatre. The event will include an appreciation of Spencer's career by Peter Bagrov, senior curator of the museum's Moving Image Department. There will be a compilation of highlights of her work and an on-stage conversation with Spencer — to be followed by the celebratory gala in the museum.
Museum members will get to access the advance ticket sales at 10 a.m. June 15.
More information, including how to buy tickets is available on the museum's website.
