Kristi Zea honored with a Masters of Cinema award at RiverRun International Film Festival

Kristi Zea has been honored with a Masters of Cinema award at the 2022 RiverRun International Film Festival in Winston-Salem, North Carolina on April 26.

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“This is a huge honor,” it is not often that ‘below the line’ —and how I dislike that phrase! — people get an honor like this one."—Kristi Zea

Honored for her renown as a production designer, she joined actresses Karen Allen, Hayley Mills, Gigi Perreau, and filmmaker Roberta Morris Purdee (representing Karmic Release Ltd.) attending this year's festival to receive their awards. Kristi received her award prior to a special screening of the 1988 Jonathan Demme comedy Married to the Mob on April 26 at 8 p.m. at the festival's Hanesbrand Theatre.

Married to the Mob marked her transition from costume designer to production designer. “In this case, it’s bittersweet because of Jonathan’s passing (in 2017). He was such a collaborative and inspiring director to work with.” Kristi reunited with Demme for The Silence of the Lambs (Academy Award Winner 1991), Philadelphia (Academy Award Winner 1993), Beloved (1998), and The Manchurian Candidate (2004).

See Mark Burger's complete run down of this year's festival at YES! Weekly.

Kristi receives Masters of Cinema award from RiverRun Executive Director Rob Davis.

Kristi and UNCSA Dean of Filmmaking Deborah LaVine take questions from the audience.

Kristi signs the MARRIED TO THE MOB poster. She was the Production Designer for the film which was screened at RiverRun 2022.

Photographer: Tsing Liu