Yahoo News Pixar’s Pete Docter, Raven-Symoné, LeVar Burton, ‘SpongeBob SquarePants’ to Be Honored at Inaugural Variety Family Entertainment Awards
Variety will host its first Family Entertainment Awards Dinner, presented by Kidoodle.TV, on Dec. 8 in Los Angeles. This year’s honorees will be feted at the exclusive invite-only event for their achievements in executive leadership, creative storytelling and franchise building of entertainment that connects with fans of all ages.
The celebration is tied to Variety‘s Family Entertainment Impact Report which highlights the executives, creators and talent who made a significant impact on the family entertainment ecosystem in 2022.
The evening program includes an awards presentation to this year’s tribute honorees, including the Variety Leadership Award being presented to Pete Docter, chief creative officer at Pixar Animation Studios, recognizing his dedication to best-in-class storytelling at the animation studio that has released 26 feature films and multiple shorts, beginning with Disney and Pixar’s “Toy Story” in 1995.
LeVar Burton will receive a Storytelling Visionary Award recognizing his legacy of educating children and their families.
Raven-Symoné will receive a Storytelling Visionary Award honoring her creative longevity in family programming, from her days on “That’s So Raven” through today, executive producing and starring in “Raven’s Home.”
The series “Cobra Kai” will receive a Storytelling Visionary Award for programming that engages all generations of family members and will be accepted by its creators and executive producers Josh Heald, Jon Hurwitz, Hayden Schlossberg and show star Xolo Maridueña. “Cobra Kai” is produced by Sony Pictures Television for Netflix.
Kidoodle.TV will present Julian Shapiro-Barnum, “Recess Therapy” creator and host, with the Family Entertainment Safe Streaming Hero Award.
Variety will honor “SpongeBob SquarePants” with the Franchise Award, celebrating the overwhelming success of the animated franchise across TV, film, toys, merchandise and more.
Kidoodle.TV will be highlighting three charities at the event — Baby2Baby, Mamas for Mamas and The Dream Machine. Kidoodle.TV is helping Baby2Baby continue to provide vulnerable families with winter essentials and has committed to feeding 10 of the organization’s most at-risk families for an entire year. Kidoodle.TV is working alongside Mamas For Mamas by providing monthly support for their highest risk families, and they are also supporting The Dream Machine by feeding 10 families for an entire year.
“This is a great opportunity to not only celebrate the many achievements happening within Family Entertainment but to also tie this to important charitable work that’s close to our hearts,” said Neil Gruninger, president and chief product officer of A Parent Media Co. Inc. (owner of Kidoodle.TV). “Families across the world have chosen Kidoodle.TV to stream their favorite shows and because of that we can give back in a meaningful way.”
“We are so excited that Kidoodle.TV is supporting our inaugural celebration of creators, producers, executives and talent committed to producing excellence in kids and family entertainment,” said Dea Lawrence, Variety’s chief operating and marketing officer. “Family entertainment has multiple beneficial effects on community, and we are happy to shine the light on the talented individuals at the forefront of this important genre.”
In celebration of the evening, Variety will benefit the non-profit Extraordinary Families, an L.A.-based foster and adoption agency that seeks to provide loving homes to children and youth.
The dinner will be covered in print as well as on Variety.com and across Variety’s social media.
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