Christopher Plummer to Receive the Santa Barbara Film Festival's Modern Master Award

Christopher Plummer has been selected to receive the Santa Barbara International Film Festival's highest honor, its Modern Master Award, which will be presented as part of a special tribute Jan. 28 at the Arlington Theatre in Santa Barbara.

The award honors an individual "who has enriched our culture through his multi-faceted accomplishments in the motion picture industry."

 "My fondest memories of going to the movies and the theater involve Mr. Plummer and I'm so grateful he's agreed to this honor," festival director Roger Durling said. "He is one of the greatest and most cherished ones – and he gave us his best in 'Beginners.'"

The veteran actor was nominated for a supporting actor Oscar for 2009's "The Last Station," in which he played Leo Tolstoy, and he appears headed for another Oscar nomination for his current performance as a widower who comes out late in life in "Beginners."

– The Hollywood Reporter