Producers Guild Honors Wright With Vanguard Award

The Producers Guild of America announced that it will present its 2007 Vanguard Award, which recognizes outstanding achievement in new media and technology, to Sims/Sim City creator Will Wright during the 2007 Producers Guild Awards on Saturday, January 20 at the Century Plaza. Wright is the first game designer to receive the award, with previous recipients including George Lucas, James Cameron, Pixar Animation Studios, and AOL Chairman and CEO Jon Miller. Wright, co-founder of the now EA-owned video game developer, Maxis, is best known as the brains behind the groundbreaking Sim City and The Sims. Currently at work on his ambitious life simulator Spore, Wright has received numerous accolades from the entertainment community, including a spot on Entertainment Weekly's "It List" of "the 100 most creative people in entertainment. Wright has also been featured on TIME Digital's "Digital 50", a listing of "the most important people shaping technology today." PGA Awards co-chairs, Mark Gordon and Hawk Koch commented, “Will Wright is the icon of the gaming industry and one of the great producers of entertainment content. His creations have transcended into feature films and continue to entertain a global audience. We are proud to have him be the first Vanguard recipient from the gaming universe.” “The PGA’s decision to honor a game designer is a big moment for game designers such as myself, and those who would like to follow in our footsteps. The PGA is signaling that games are an integral part of the entertainment industry, and an art form worthy of recognition,” said Wright. “For that reason, I am incredibly honored to be the first game designer to receive the Vanguard award.” Other confirmed award recipients for the event include Ron Meyer with the Milestone Award, Doug Wick and Lucy Fisher as the winner of the David O. Selznick Achievement Award in Theatrical Motion Pictures, and Jerry Bruckheimer will receive the Norman Lear Producers Guild Achievement Award in Television. Ken Ehrlich will be honored with the Visionary Award, and the Stanley Kramer Award will be presented to An Inconvenient Truth.