'Star Wars' visionary Dave Feloni to recieve George Pal Memorial gong at 2024 Saturn Awards

Previous recipients include William Friedkin, Frank Marshall, John Carpenter, Sam Raimi and Guillermo del Toro.

PUBLISHED JAN 18, 2024

John Favreau and Dave Filoni onstage during the Ahsoka panel at the Star Wars Celebration 2023 in London at ExCel on April 08, 2023 in London, England. (Photo by Kate Green/Getty Images for Disney)

Los Angeles, California (Release): The Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Horror Films has announced they will give the George Pal Memorial Award to an icon in the world of animation and storytelling, Dave Filoni. The award will be presented to Filoni at the upcoming 51st Annual Saturn Awards, set to take place on February 4 and hosted by Joel McHale.

Filoni’s deep understanding of 'Star Wars' lore has introduced some of the most popular series, stories and characters to a galaxy far, far away. He has worked on such hits as 'The Mandalorian', 'The Book of Boba Fett', 'Ahsoka', 'Avatar: The Last Airbender', and 'Star Wars: The Clone Wars; to name just a few.

(L-R) Diana Lee Inosanto, Ivanna Sakhno, Rosario Dawson, Natasha Liu Bordizzo, Mary Elizabeth Winstead and Dave Filoni attend the Ahsoka panel at Start Wars Celebration 2023 in London at ExCel on April 08, 2023 in London, England. (Photo by Jeff Spicer/Getty Images for Disney)

Academy President Robert Holguin and Saturn Awards producers Bradley and Kevin Marcus said, “Dave’s work has had a profound impact on the Star Wars franchise, breathing new life into beloved characters and expanding the universe in exciting and unexpected ways. He is a true visionary in the world of animation and storytelling, and we are truly honored to bestow this very special award to him.”

Named after legendary filmmaker and animator, the George Pal Memorial Award's previous recipients include William Friedkin, Frank Marshall, Kathleen Kennedy, John Carpenter, Sam Raimi, Guillermo del Toro and the legendary Ray Harryhausen.

Dave Filoni accepts the award for Best Animated TV Series - "Star Wars: The Clone Wars" inside the Press Room at The 46th Annual Saturn Awards held at Los Angeles on October 26, 2021 in Burbank, California. (Photo by Albert L. Ortega/Getty Images for ABA)

Dave Filoni realized a lifelong dream in 2005 when he was selected by George Lucas to help build Lucasfilm’s animation studio from the ground up and create the company’s first series, 'Star Wars: The Clone Wars'. Over a span of seven seasons, and more than 100 episodes, 'The Clone Wars' won four Emmy Awards.

Filoni is creator, writer, and executive producer on the critically acclaimed series 'Ahsoka', executive producer, episodic director, and writer on the Emmy Award-winning series 'The Mandalorian', as well as its spin off series 'The Book of Boba Fett'. Filoni is the creator and executive producer of the animated series 'Star Wars: The Bad Batch' and 'Tales of the Jedi'. He is also executive producing the upcoming Star Wars series, 'Skeleton Crew'. Dave is currently the Chief Creative Officer of Lucasfilm.

This year’s Saturn Awards will be live streamed by the OTT linear channel and app from Electric Entertainment, ElectricNOW.