Burdett to Receive HPA Lifetime Achievement Award

Post-production veteran Ron Burdett will receive the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Hollywood Post Alliance at the HPA annual meeting Nov. 6.

Burdett has worked in post for over 30 years. For more than 25 years, he led the famed post facility Sunset Digital.

"Ron Burdett has epitomized the entrepreneurial spirit of innovation and forward thinking that helped to define our modern post production industry," said HPA President Leon Silverman. "His leadership skills in helping to create a vibrant post production community as well as his contributions to technical excellence and creativity cannot be overstated."

Burdett was a founding member of the HPA and played a leading role in the creation and growth of its predecessor organization, the International Teleproduction Society (ITS). He served as president of the Southern California Chapter of the ITS and as president of the international organization. As president, he helped to create worldwide awareness of the issues of post production and helped to drive an agenda that focused on the business, creative and technological issues of the industry, according to HPA.

Sunset Digital has contributed to a number of Academy Award and Emmy winning projects. The company was a pioneer in the development of film mastering and restoration and in the authoring and encoding of DVDs.

The 2008 HPA Awards will recognize excellence in categories including color grading, editing, audio post production and compositing. The HPA will also bestow the first Charles S. Swartz Award for Outstanding Contribution in the Field of Post Production on Dean Elizabeth Daley of the University of Southern California School of Cinematic Arts, as well as the Engineering Excellence Award.

Tickets for the HPA Awards Gala Ceremony are on sale now. Information is available at www.hpaawards.net.