Ed Harris and Gyula Gazdag Set to Receive Robert Redford Luminary Award at Sundance Institute Gala

The Sundance Institute has zeroed in on a pair of honorees to celebrate during its Celebrating Sundance Institute: A Tribute to Founder Robert Redford gala.

The fundraiser, set to take place at the Grand Hyatt Deer Valley in Utah during next year’s Sundance Film Festival on Jan. 23, will honor Ed Harris and Gyula Gazdag with the inaugural Robert Redford Luminary Award. As previously announced, the event will honor its founder who passed away in September.

The Robert Redford Luminary Award is being established to recognize and celebrate “individuals who have, in a visionary way, used their resources, insights and reach to create possibility where there wasn’t, thus doing their part to make the world a better place.” Harris and Gazdag will be acknowledged for their decades-long contributions as creative advisors for the Sundance Institute Directors Lab.

In addition to his enviable acting resume, Harris has served as a creative advisor for the Sundance Institute directors and screenwriters labs since 2002. Gazdag is a screenwriter, film and theater director, professor emeritus (UCLA), creative advisor (Binger Film Lab, Amsterdam) and mentor at Script Station (Berlinale Talents). He has served as a creative advisor for the Sundance Institute directors and screenwriters labs since 1994 and artistic director for the directors lab since 1997.

Said Harris: “I’ve fortunately been asked to take part in the lab as an advisor for the past 19 years. Those weeks have been at the top of the list of the most rewarding, fulfilling, invaluable experiences of my life. The work and the people I’ve met and learned from and loved have enriched my life considerably. I’m eternally grateful to Robert Redford for his vision and passion. And I humbly accept this honor.”

Added Gazdag: “The Sundance Institute directors and screenwriters labs became my second home throughout the years, where everything is about nurturing independent art, and that is second nature to every person who is part of it. It has provided me with fresh air, inspiration, camaraderie, moral support, and love. I always felt that making an effort to reciprocate all of that results in a fruitful process of free creation. Becoming part of the Sundance Institute family is one of the best things that ever happened to me.”

The annual fundraiser at which they will be toasted supports the nonprofit institute by collecting funds to support independent artists year-round through labs, intensives, grants, fellowships, a continuum of support and public programming. The 2026 Sundance Film Festival, its last in Park City, Utah, will be held from Jan. 22 – Feb. 1, 2026.

“This will be a profoundly meaningful year for Sundance Institute as we honor our founder, Robert Redford. This special evening supports the mission that he built this organization upon,” said Ebs Burnough, Sundance Institute board chair. “This annual event enables the nonprofit institute to continue to launch and uplift the work of independent artists from all over the world through labs, grants, and public programs. We look forward to our guests joining us in honoring and celebrating the vision that we will carry forward.”

Added Sundance Institute acting CEO Amanda Kelso: “We are pleased to introduce the Robert Redford Luminary Award to Ed Harris and Gyula Gazdag, who have played crucial roles in the Sundance Institute labs for over two decades and strongly exemplify the mission that Mr. Redford set for the organization. By dedicating their time to mentoring artists and collaborating with the fellows who have come through the labs, they have been influential in the development of generations of filmmakers. We are proud to continue this important work with them.”