The Hollywood Post Alliance (HPA) announced that it will present Leon Silverman with its lifetime achievement award. Given at the discretion of the HPA board of directors and a select committee, the lifetime achievement award is presented to an individual whose contributions have brought about significant change in the field of postproduction.
Silverman will receive the award at the HPA Awards on Nov. 12, at the Skirball Center in Los Angeles, Calif.
“It is a delight to honor Leon on this, the 10th anniversary of the HPA Awards,” said Barbara Lange, executive director of Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers (SMPTE), and HPA. “The award shines a light on his role in the organization, his significant contributions to the postproduction industry, and his unfailing support of the vision of so many filmmakers.”
“I’ve had the pleasure of working closely with Leon as we crafted the formal consolidation of HPA with SMPTE,” she added. “While he is consistently insightful, what I enjoy most about working with him is the passion he brings to every endeavor, and his championship of the industry that he loves.”
In 2002, Silverman spearheaded a coalition of postproduction executives to help launch the Hollywood Post Alliance. Originally envisioned as a place where individuals and companies would share information, build a community voice and provide education, the HPA quickly evolved into a trade organization for the postproduction community. Known for its HPA Awards and the HPA Technology Retreat, the organization is about to formalize an alliance with SMPTE.
“Joining forces with SMPTE is about the future of our creative industry, its people and the technology that increasingly fuels it,” said Silverman. “HPA within SMPTE provides common ground for those who create content and for those who create tools and standards to share their needs and their dreams.”
A post industry veteran with over 35 years’ experience, Silverman previously served as president of LaserPacific Media Corporation and vice president of entertainment imaging, Kodak. He currently serves as general manager, digital studio for the Walt Disney Studios. He has been recognized with industry accolades, including Emmy awards for outstanding achievement in engineering development for his contributions to LaserPacific’s electronic laboratory, and again for the development of LaserPacific’s SuperComputer assembly process.
Silverman was a founder of the Hollywood Post Alliance and has served as president since its inception. He is currently serving as governor at large, and has served two terms as a governor for the Hollywood region of the Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers (SMPTE), where he was named a fellow in November of 2003. He is an associate member of the American Society of Cinematographers, an affiliate member of the American Cinema Editors and was recently invited as a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.
