Variety (and others) are just reporting about a new award the Santa Barbara Film Festival will be giving out:

The Santa Barbara Film Festival will honor Casey Affleck (“Gone Baby Gone,” “The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford”), Marion Cotillard (“La Vie en rose”), James McAvoy (“Atonement”), Ellen Page (“Juno”) and Amy Ryan (“Gone Baby Gone”) with its inaugural Virtuosos Award.

Nod was established this year to recognize the performances of a select group of young actors. They will be honored during a tribute ceremony Jan. 30 at Santa Barbara’s Lobero Theater.”

There will always be one or two performances that stand out, but this year in particular there were several performances by actors that truly set them apart from the pack,” said fest exec Roger Durling.

The Santa Barbara Film Festival runs Jan. 24-Feb. 3.

The award was created to recognize a group of young actors who have distinguished themselves through performances in film this past year. Congratulations Marion Cotillard!

• ‘Virtuoso’ actors discuss Oscars, strike, posted on February 1, 2008
• More on the Virtuosos Tribute, posted on February 5, 2008
• Picture Galore, posted on February 3, 2008
• Breakthrough Performance Award, posted on September 28, 2007
• Silver Medallion Award for Role in ‘Rust & Bone’, posted on August 30, 2012

Maria:

Thanks again for all the amazing updates – more wins and nominations – it’s great! You and Sarah Amelia do such a fantastic job with the site!