DGA To Honor Michael Apted With Its Robert B. Aldrich Award

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Michael Apted, Eric Shapiro, Susan Zwerman and Dency Nelson have been selected to receive four special DGA Awards at the Directors Guild of American’s awards dinner on Feb. 2.

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Apted will be honored with the DGA’s 2013 Robert B. Aldrich Award, for extraordinary service to the DGA and to its membership.

Shapiro will receive the DGA’s 2013 Lifetime Achievement Award in News Direction. Zwerman will be given the 2013 Frank Capra Achievement Award, which is given to an assistant director or unit production manager in recognition of career achievement in the industry and service to the DGA. The 2013 Franklin J. Schaffner Achievement Award, which is given to an associate director or stage manager in recognition of service to the industry and to the DGA, will be presented to Nelson.

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“The service and dedication of our members is our Guild’s greatest strength, and no one embodies these qualities more than Michael Apted,” DGA president Taylor Hackford said. "Michael has packed more Guild service into the 15 years since he was first elected to the Western Directors Council than most can do in an entire career.  He is unflagging in his leadership and steadfast in his devotion to our Guild, and we are proud to honor him, through this award, for the extraordinary commitment and service he has graced us with these many years.”

He hailed the other honorees, saying: “When we honor lifetime achievement and outstanding dedication and contribution to the Guild, we pay homage to the qualities upon which our Guild was founded – distinguished craftsmanship and service. Eric Shapiro’s lifetime of excellence in news direction began when he joined the DGA as a young production associate in 1965, and nearly 50 years later, it is our pleasure to recognize the man who has directed the coverage of every major news event of our generation. Susan Zwerman and Dency Nelson represent the highest examples of Guild service through their dedication, advocacy and representation on behalf of their fellow members, all while maintaining active, successful careers in their chosen fields.  We are privileged to benefit from their service.”

Filmmaker Milos Forman was previously announced as the recipient of the DGA’s 2013 Lifetime Achievement Award in Motion Picture Direction. 

All five special awards will be presented at the 65th annual DGA Awards Dinner at the Ray Dolby Ballroom at Hollywood & Highland in Los Angeles.