Producer and Lucasfilm chief Kathleen Kennedy has been named the 2013 Pioneer of the Year honoree by the Will Rogers Motion Picture Pioneers Foundation.
She will accept her award at an April dinner that will be held in conjunction with CinemaCon, a trade show for theater owners that takes place every spring in Las Vegas.
The dinner, which honors movie moguls and philanthropists, has been handed out in past years to such industry titans as Jack Warner, Darryl F. Zanuck, Terry Semel, Sumner Redstone and Sherry Lansing. Proceeds from the event go to the Motion Picture Pioneers Assistance Fund (MPPAF), a nonprofit that helps movie industry veterans grappling with illness or injury.
Kennedy has a track record to rival any of the previous recipients. She has produced a slew of blockbusters, including such films as "Jurassic Park," "Twister," "Who Framed Roger Rabbit" and the Indiana Jones films. She joined Lucasfilm in 2012, having been personally selected by George Lucas to lead the company.
She is nominated for an Oscar this year for her work producing "Lincoln." Despite seven other nominations, for such acclaimed films as "Munich" and "Seabiscuit," she has yet to win the prize.
Prior to joining Lucasfilm, Kennedy headed The Kennedy/Marshall Company, which she founded in 1992 with her husband, the director and producer Frank Marshall. Kennedy co-founded another production company, Amblin Entertainment, in 1982 with Marshall and Steven Spielberg.
