Angelina Jolie, Daughter Zahara Emerge After Long Hiatus at 36th Palm

Angelina Jolie accepts the Desert Palm Achievement Award, Actress onstage during the 36th Annual Palm Springs International Film Awards at Palm Springs Convention Center on January 03, 2025 in Palm Springs, California. (Photo by Matt Winkelmeyer/Getty Images for Palm Springs International Film Society)

Angelina Jolie accepts the Desert Palm Achievement Award with a heartfelt message. (Photo by Matt Winkelmeyer/Getty Images)

Angelina Jolie, Ariana Grande and Nicole Kidman were among the actors who won awards at this year’s 36^th Palm Springs International Film Festival.

The Palm Springs International Film Society hosted the awards on Friday (Jan. 3) at the Palm Springs Convention Center The festival runs through Jan. 13.

The event has come to be known as the first stop on the road to the Academy Awards and precedes the Golden Globes.

The organization specializes in nurturing and encouraging new film-making talent, honoring the great masters of world cinema, and expanding audience horizons, according to its website.

It was one of the first outings for Jolie, who appeared with her second eldest daughter, Zahara Marley Jolie, since news broke that her long-running divorce from Brad Pitt had been finalized.

Jolie, 55, received the Desert Palm Achievement Award for her portrayal of Maria Callas in Pablo Larraín’s latest film, “Maria” about the world famous opera singer.

“The freedom to express and create is the greatest privilege,” Jolie told the audience in her acceptance speech.

“I think of artists persecuted globally because of their work whose voices are suppressed.”

The famed actress is also expected to appear at the Golden Globes this Sunday (Jan. 5). She is nominated for Best Performance by a Female Actor for the same role.

Ariana Grande, 31, (Rising Star Award) and Mikey Madison, 25, (Breakthrough Performance Award, Actress) fulfilled the organization’s mission to honor young emerging film talent.

“I learned early on that laughter and I remember the infectious impact that it had not only on the people in my life, but how it fed me in return,” said the actress. “So it really does feel like a new chapter.

Grande has been known principally for her stellar decade-long music career, but she gave off a definite Audrey Hepburn vibe at the gala, which presaged a burgeoning acting career, as well.

“‘Glenda the Good’ is full of frivolous humor and witty punch lines. Comedy is just another way of telling the truth. She has an innate ability to make light out of darkness and to bring levity wherever she goes and even when there is pain,” she said.

Madison was honored for her work in “Anora,” a comedy-drama written, directed, and edited by Sean Baker.

It follows the beleaguered marriage between Anora (Madison), a young sex worker, and Vanya Zakharov (Mark Eydelshteyn), the son of a Russian oligarch. The film won the prestigious Palme d’Or at Cannes.

“Through my work, I’ve been able to experience so much life, so much living; it’s what excites me and invigorates me,” she said.

Madison praised the audience of “masterful adventurers.”

The following awards were also presented:

Adrien Brody (Desert Palm Achievement Award, Actor)
Timothée Chalamet (Chairman’s Award)
Kieran Culkin (Breakthrough Performance Award, Actor)
Colman Domingo (Spotlight Award, Actor)
Nicole Kidman (International Star Award)
Denis Villeneuve (Visionary Award)
Conclave (Ensemble Performance Award) presented to actors Ralph Fiennes, Isabella Rossellini, Stanley Tucci, John Lithgow, Carlos Diehz, and Lucian Msamati
Emilia Pérez (Vanguard Award) presented to director Jacques Audiard and actors Karla Sofia Gascón, Zoe Saldaña, Selena Gomez and Edgar Ramírez

Presenters included: Amy Adams, Edward Berger, Jacqueline Bisset, Jennifer Coolidge, Alan Cumming, Jamie Lee Curtis, Andrew Garfield, Demi Moore, Gary Oldman, and Sharon Stone.

Other boldface names include Festival Chairman Nachhattar Singh Chandi and Lili Rodriguez (Artistic Director), Faraz Arif Ansari (Bun Tikki), Edward Burns (Millers in Marriage) and Christy Turlington, Jon M. Chu (Wicked),

Dan Cohen (President, Republic Pictures), James Duff (producer/writer), Jesse Eisenberg (A Real Pain), Cynthia Erivo (Wicked), Phillip Keene (actor), Udo Kier (actor), Greg Kwedar (Sing Sing), Clarence Maclin (Sing Sing), Halina Reijn (Babygirl), William Rodriguez (Silvercrest), and James Sweeney (Twinless).

Honorees were presented with either the John Kennedy “The Entertainer” statue or a Chihuly Glass Sculpture. The event was presented by Silvercrest, Arco, IHG Hotels & Resorts, and sponsored by Entertainment Tonight.

Check out the night’s red carpet.

AWARDS SHOW HONOREES/PRESENTERS IN SHOW ORDER

			Honoree	Award	Presenter	Past Honorees
			Mikey Madison Anora	Breakthrough Performance Award, Actress	Isabella Rossellini	Da’Vine Joy Randolph, Danielle Deadwyler, Andra Day, Cynthia Erivo, Brie Larson, Jennifer Hudson, Lupita Nyong’o, Mary J. Blige, Rosamund Pike
			Kieran Culkin A Real Pain	Breakthrough Performance Award, Actor	Sharon Stone	Austin Butler, Rami Malek, Jeremy Renner, Mahershala Ali
			Denis Villeneuve Dune: Part Two	Sonny Bono Visionary Award	Timothée Chalamet + Amy Adams	Martin Scorsese, Alfonso Cuarón, Danny Boyle, Michel Hazanavicius, Tom Hooper, Tom McCarthy, Richard Linklater, Quentin Tarantino
		Colman Domingo Sing Sing		Spotlight Award, Actor	Demi Moore	Brendan Fraser, Bryan Cranston, Colman Domingo, Andrew Garfield
			Ariana Grande Wicked	Rising Star Award	Jennifer Coolidge	Gal Gadot, Terrence Howard, Anna Kendrick, Scarlett Johansson, Jennifer Lawrence, Alicia Vikander
			Ralph Fiennes, Stanley Tucci, Isabella Rossellini, John Lithgow, and Lucian Msamati Conclave	Ensemble Performance Award	Edward Berger	King Richard, Mary Poppins Returns, Hidden Figures, The Big Short, The Social Network, Revolutionary Road, The Imitation Game
	Nicole Kidman Babygirl			International Star Award	Jamie Lee Curtis	Michelle Yeoh, Penélope Cruz, Carey Mulligan, Charlize Theron, Javier Bardem, Nicole Kidman, Helen Mirren, Gary Oldman
Adrien Brody The Brutalist				Desert Palm Achievement Award, Actor	Andrew Garfield	Cillian Murphy, Colin Farrell, Riz Ahmed, Adam Driver, Bradley Cooper, Daniel Day-Lewis, Colin Firth, Matthew McConaughey, Gary Oldman, Brad Pitt, Eddie Redmayne
			Angelina Jolie Maria	Desert Palm Achievement Award, Actress	Jacqueline Bisset	Emma Stone, Jessica Chastain, Viola Davis, Renée Zellweger, Olivia Colman, Cate Blanchett, Charlize Theron, Halle Berry, Julianne Moore, Sandra Bullock, Natalie Portman
			Timothée Chalamet A Complete Unknown	Chairman’s Award	Gary Oldman	Billie Eilish+ Finneas O’Connell, Viola Davis, Jennifer Hudson, Gary Oldman, Joaquin Phoenix, George Clooney, Matt Damon, Nicole Kidman, Regina King, Reese Witherspoon, Tom Hanks
			Jacques Audiard (director) and actors Karla Sofia Gascón, Zoe Saldaña, Selena Gomez, and Edgar Ramírez Emilia Perez	Vanguard Award	Alan Cumming	Killers of the Flower Moon, The Fabelmans, Belfast, Green Book, La La Land, Little Miss Sunshine, Shape of Water, The Trial of the Chicago 7, Young Adult

Angelina Jolie, Daughter Zahara Emerge After Long Hiatus at 36th Palm Springs Film Fest (Photos!)