Producer/Screenwriter Lena Waithe To Be Honored At Film Fest

PALM SPRINGS, CA — Emmy Award-winning screenwriter Lena Waithe will be recognized at the 31st annual Palm Springs International Film Festival for producing and penning the script for the film "Queen & Slim," organizers announced Monday.

Waithe will be honored by Variety magazine with the Creative Impact in Producing Award. She'll be recognized along with actor Robert De Niro and director Todd Phillips at the festival's "10 Directors to Watch Brunch" at the Parker Palm Springs on Jan. 3.

"Queen & Slim" tells the story of a black woman and man who go on the run after he shoots a policeman in self-defense after being pulled over for a minor traffic violation during the duo's first date.

"Lena Waithe is one of the most prolific writer-actor-producers working in Hollywood right now, with an extraordinary ability to get projects with black filmmakers and talent produced for film and television," said Claudia Eller, Variety's editor-in-chief.

"With `Queen & Slim,' Lena wrote and produced a story that has been central to the conversation regarding representation and storytelling in the black community," Eller said. "Her determination to get these stories told is inspiring."

Waithe is perhaps best known for her work alongside actor Aziz Ansari in the Netflix comedy "Master of None." Waithe and Ansari shared an Emmy for outstanding writing for a comedy series in 2017.

The film festival runs from Jan. 2 to Jan. 13.

— By City News Service