MPTF (Motion Picture & Television Fund) hosted the 14th annual edition of its iconic pre-Emmy Awards party, reimagined as “The Evening Before: Special Edition.”
The virtual benefit took place on Saturday, September 19, and celebrated Emmy nominees and other TV industry members, all while helping to raise funds for their colleagues and work family who benefit from MPTF’s charitable programs and services. The evening featured one-of-a-kind musical performances, special appearances from Emmy nominees and some of television’s brightest stars sharing how MPTF is supporting the entertainment community during this unprecedented time. The annual event raised $1.5 million last night.
“MPTF has never been more essential to our entertainment community. It has stepped up during this pandemic in heroic ways both for our residents on campus and for our workforce in the community. We’ve never been prouder of our efforts to take care of our own,” said Jeffrey Katzenberg, Chairman of the MPTF Board of Governors.
MPTF has been a lifeline for entertainment industry members, both working and retired, for the past century by providing social, financial, and health services. Since the pandemic began, MPTF has tripled the number of community members it serves, is assisting with financial relief, help with managing basic living expenses and health insurance, and issues around social isolation and loneliness, stress, and anxiety, and has made over 15,000 social work and care calls.
This year’s Host Committee included Rachel Brosnahan, Yvette Nicole Brown, George Clooney, America Ferrera, Josh Gad, Regina King, Billy Porter, Octavia Spencer, Jeremy Strong, and Ramy Youssef.
Guests were treated to musical performances by Bryan Adams, DJ Cassidy, Siedah Garrett, John Legend, Seth MacFarlane, Billy Porter, Noah Reid, Jac Ross, and Robin Thicke.
WME partner Richard Weitz and his daughter Demi, hosts of the highly successful Quarantunes, co-hosted the event.
MPTF also partnered with culinary connoisseur and host Billy Harris for a specially curated pre-event mixer for sponsors, with a home delivered meal from longtime MPTF supporters Jon Shook & Vinny Dotolo paired with wine from OVID Napa Valley and specialty cocktails courtesy of Charlotte Voisey from William Grant & Sons.
This year’s Presenting Sponsors were Target and PEOPLE.
The entertainment community came together to celebrate their own, with financial support graciously provided by Byron Allen, Amazon Studios, AMC, Greg Berlanti & Robbie Rogers, Deadline, Del Shaw Moonves Tanaka Finkelstein & Lezcano, Directors Guild of America, Disney+, Walt Disney Television, and Hulu, Channing Dungey, Entertainment One, FOX Entertainment, Corey Hawkins, Sherry Lansing, Edward F. Limato Foundation, Kevin McCormick & A. Scott Berg, Katie McGrath & J.J. Abrams, MGM Studios, NBCUniversal, Netflix, Stephen Prough & Marina Berti, Jay Roth & Sherry Grant, Michael Schur, Jeff Shell, Stacey Sher & Kerry Brown, Iris Smith, Octavia Spencer, Variety, ViacomCBS, Dana & Matt Walden, and WarnerMedia. Chairman of MPTF’s Board of Governors and long-time supporter of MPTF, Jeffrey Katzenberg, and his wife Marilyn, challenged individual donors with a matching gift for the Evening Before event.
The “Evening Before” event is designed after the highly successful “Night Before,” another fundraiser held annually before the Academy Awards for the past seventeen years to benefit MPTF.
