1st Youth in Film Awards
The 1st Youth in Film Awards ceremony (now known as the Young Artist Awards), presented by the Youth in Film Association, honored outstanding youth performers in the fields of film, television and music for the 1978–1979 season, and took place in October 1979 at the Sheraton Universal Hotel in Universal City, California. Established in 1978 by long-standing Hollywood Foreign Press Association member, Maureen Dragone, the Youth in Film Association was the first organization to establish an awards ceremony specifically set to recognize and award the contributions of performers under the age of 21 in the fields of film, television, theater and music. Although the Youth in Film Awards were conceived as a way to primarily recognize youth performers under the age of 18, the eldest winner in a competitive category at the 1st annual ceremony was Dennis Christopher who was 23 years old on the night he won as Best Juvenile Actor in a Motion Picture for his performance in Breaking Away. Categories ★ Bold indicates the winner in each category. Best Young Performer in a Feature Film Best Juvenile Actor in A Motion Picture ★ Dennis Christopher – Breaking Away – 20th Century Fox Thelonious Bernard – A Little