\n<\/p>\n
\u201cThis honor isn\u2019t just for or about me,\u201d Bassett said. \u201cWhat I hope this moment means is that we are taking the necessary steps toward a future in which it is the norm, not the exception, to see and embrace one another\u2019s full humanity, stories and perspectives. This must be our goal, and to always remember that there is room for us all.\u201d<\/p>\n
In Littleton\u2019s prolific career of more than four decades, the editor has cut films as varied as \u201cE.T. the Extra-Terrestrial,\u201d \u201cBody Heat\u201d and \u201cThe Accidental Tourist.\u201d Glenn Close presented Littleton with her award. The two first worked together in 1983 in Close\u2019s second film, \u201cThe Big Chill.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI accept this for all editors who toil in the darkness of an editing room, weighing each cut, making infinite choices to create a unique, believable world born of the imagination,\u201d Littleton said. \u201cMost of all I want to thank John, my dear Johnny.\u201d<\/p>\n
Then came Satter, who in her four decades as the founding director of the Sundance Institute has been responsible for nurturing the careers of some of Hollywood\u2019s most respected filmmakers: from Quentin Tarantino, Kimberly Peirce and Gina Prince-Bythewood to Taika Waititi, Lulu Wang and Marielle Heller. The directors of the past three best picture winners: The Daniels (\u201cEverything Everywhere All at Once\u201d), Sian Heder (\u201cCODA\u201d) and Chlo\u00e9 Zhao (\u201cNomadland\u201d), all began their careers at the Sundance Labs.<\/p>\n
Satter\u2019s son, Michael, was the founder of an entertainment marketing firm that promoted the work of underrepresented voices, and he had worked closely with Coogler on the release of \u201cFruitvale Station.\u201d<\/p>\n
But it was Zhao, who was onstage with Coogler to present Satter\u2019s award, who had the most emotional moment of the night. \u201cMichelle, you\u2019re a mother to me. And you\u2019re a mother to Ryan. And you\u2019re a mother to so many people sitting in this room,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are so grateful to you,\u201d she continued. \u201cWe wouldn\u2019t be here without you. We know you\u2019re hurting. We\u2019re so sorry and we know that there\u2019s nothing we can say that can take away the pain. We want to say and we hope we can say this to you: We are all your children.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n