“I’ve always been in love with monsters,” filmmaker Guillermo del Toro said Thursday night, as part of the acceptance speech for his Cinema Unbound Award. And as he looked out at a crowd including philanthropists, elected officials, and fellow creatives, del Toro added a genial observation: “We’re all monsters.”
The colorful speech by del Toro was one of the highlights of the 2023 Cinema Unbound Awards, the fundraising event in which the Portland Art Museum’s PAM CUT (Center for an Untold Tomorrow) honors innovators and creators from a variety of fields.
The fourth annual Cinema Unbound Awards ceremony got off to a lively start, with aerialists dangling from the ceiling of the museum’s Kridel Grand Ballroom, pouring beverages for attendees. Razzle-dazzle was provided by hosts IZOHNNY, the drag queen duo of Isaiah Esquire and Johnny Nuriel, and some fiery – literally – dance performances.
Attendees at the 2023 Cinema Unbound Awards Thursday included honoree Fred Armisen, right, his “Portlandia” collaborator, Carrie Brownstein, center, and Riki Lindhome, left, with whom Armisen costars in the Netflix series, “Wednesday.”
But the heart of the evening were the awards, which honored del Toro, whose Oscar-winning “Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio” – co-directed by Portland stop-motion animation veteran Mark Gustafson – is the subject of the current Portland Art Museum exhibit, “Guillermo del Toro: Crafting Pinocchio”; Portland-based novelist and screenwriter Jon Raymond; Portland celebrity chef Gregory Gourdet; “Portlandia” co-creator and costar Fred Armisen; actress Tessa Thompson, who accepted remotely; and Jacqueline Stewart, director and president of the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures, and Turner Classic Movies host.
Related: Cinema Unbound Award winner Jacqueline Stewart on why movies — even problematic ones — matter
Speeches from the notables who introduced the Cinema Unbound Awards winners were also heartfelt, and sometimes funny. Actor Doug Jones, who has worked with del Toro to create memorably non-human characters in such films as “The Shape of Water” and “Pan’s Labyrinth,” said he didn’t realize how labor-intensive the stop-motion animation process was until he visited the “Guillermo del Toro: Crafting Pinocchio” exhibit.
Of the Mexican-born director, Jones humorously noted that del Toro speaks three languages – “Spanish, English, and the F word” – all with equal amounts of charm.
In his speech, del Toro thanked ShadowMachine, the production company behind the mostly Portland-made “Pinocchio,” as well as his co-director and “precious partner,” Gustafson.
The filmmaker also praised Portland as a city with “a personality,” and “pride,” and added that Portland’s legacy as a hub for top-level stop-motion animation helps give the city those qualities.
Armisen’s award was presented by Corin Tucker, of the band Sleater-Kinney, and her husband, filmmaker Lance Bangs.
“I don’t like to travel if it’s not for work,” Armisen said as he accepted his award, adding that Portland is the exception to that rule. He recalled how he used to enjoy visiting Portland to spend time with his friend and “Portlandia” co-creator and costar Carrie Brownstein, who is also a member of Sleater-Kinney, which Armisen called his favorite band of all time.
Those trips led to the creation of “Portlandia,” the satirical comedy series that ran from 2011 through 2018, which Armisen described as “a love letter” to the Rose City.
The upbeat tone was consistent throughout the evening. Stewart, who was introduced via video by filmmaker Ava DuVernay, called the feeling of love and community in the room “overwhelming.”
Todd Haynes, the director of such films as “Far From Heaven” and “May December,” which recently premiered at the Cannes Film Festival, lives in Portland and is a previous winner of a Cinema Unbound Award. Haynes introduced Jon Raymond, whose credits include co-writing Haynes’ HBO miniseries version of “Mildred Pierce.”
Haynes spoke about how he became friends with Raymond after the director moved to Portland in 2000. Haynes’ friend, filmmaker Kelly Reichardt, came to visit Haynes in Portland, where she also met Raymond, which launched a collaboration between Reichardt and Raymond that has included such Oregon-made films as “Old Joy,” Wendy and Lucy,” “Meek’s Cutoff,” “Night Moves,” “First Cow,” and “Showing Up.”
Filmmaker Guillermo del Toro was among the honorees at the 2023 Cinema Unbound Awards ceremony Thursday night.
Raymond talked about his memories of seeing movies at what was then known as the Northwest Film Center (the name prior to the PAM CUT rebrand), and described the collaborative process of making films as akin to building a cathedral.
Padma Lakshmi, who recently announced her departure as host of Bravo’s “Top Chef,” appeared via video to introduce “my dear friend” Gregory Gourdet, who competed in two seasons of the show and has made other “Top Chef” appearances since then, including the 2020 season filmed in and around Portland.
Lakshmi called Gourdet “a wonderful citizen of Portland,” and noted how his restaurant, Kann, recently won a James Beard award as best new restaurant of 2023.
In accepting his award, Gourdet spoke of the importance of remembering ancestors, such as his parents, who were young immigrants from Haiti when they moved to the United States. Recalling his past as a New Yorker who was struggling with substance abuse issues, Gourdet said that he got sober not long after he moved to Portland. He went on to say that, as white as Portland is, there is a lot of diversity in the city, especially in the food and arts scenes, and that he accepted the award on behalf of young cooks “who want to change the world.”
— Kristi Turnquist
503-221-8227; kturnquist@oregonian.com; @Kristiturnquist
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