USC establishes Robert Redford award

LOS ANGELES, Jan. 29 (UPI) -- The University of Southern California School of Theatre will honor filmmaker Robert Redford with an award named for him, the school announced.

The "Robert Redford Award for Engaged Artists" will be presented annually to honor professional accomplishment as well as "public commitment to social responsibility, to increasing awareness of global issues and events and to inspiring and empowering young people," USC said in a news release Thursday.

Redford, 72, received a Lifetime Achievement Oscar from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences in 2002, and a best director Oscar in 1980 for "Ordinary People." He was a recipient of the Kennedy Center Honor in 2005.

Madeline Puzo, dean of the USC School of Theatre, said in a statement Redford "embodies all that an engaged artist represents."

"He is a distinguished actor, an Academy Award-winning director, an ardent conservationist, philanthropist and environmentalist, a man who stands for social responsibility and political involvement and an artist and businessman who is a staunch supporter of uncompromised creative expression," Puzo said.

The award will be presented Feb. 10 in Beverly Hills, Calif., at an event to raise money for scholarship support at the USC School of Theatre.