This Award is to Highlight Women in The Film Arts. We call it the “The Pickford Award” In honor the Great Mary Pickford Silent Film Pioneer. Mary Pickford was a Canadian-American motion picture actress, co-founder of the film studio United Artists and one of the original 36 founders of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. In addition she starred in countless films,including several in the Action Genre making her one of the first action film stars. She produced many of her films having started in film acting as child she understood the medium better than most and knew early on that artists in film needed to be protected and have more control over their work. She also was instrumental in archiving early silent films, including Charlie Chaplin Films.