Celebrated film critic, screenwriter and national arbiter of taste for the moviegoing public, Roger Ebert, will be honored at the 53rd San Francisco International Film Festival (April 22 – May 6) with the Mel Novikoff Award, an award that celebrates an individual or institution’s achievement in bringing to the public a treasured appreciation of world cinema. He will be honored on Saturday, May 1 at 5:30 pm as part of a presentation entitled An Evening with Roger Ebert and Friends at the Castro Theatre. Guests include directors Jason Reitman and Terry Zwigoff, with others to be announced soon.

The festival runs April 22 – May 6. For tickets and more info on the fest go to www.sffs.org.