Charles D. King has become the first Black producer to earn the PGA Milestone Award, which is traditionally given to producers or production teams that have made major contributions to the entertainment industry.
King, the creator of Macro Media, expressed astonishment at the distinction last month, stating, “I was a little stunned and surprised. I was speechless. I was filled with immense thankfulness. “I stand on the shoulders of all the incredible producers, executives, my parents, and our ancestors who knocked down doors, made sacrifices, and blazed a trail for me to be able to do what I’m blessed to do,” Deadline reports.
After quitting WME nine years ago, King took a chance and founded Macro, a multiplatform media firm that promotes the perspectives of people of color. He described the event as a “full circle” experience for him, recalling how he and his family first lived on Orange Drive, just a street away, when he was a junior assistant at WME in 1999.
With this award, King, known for his contributions to films such as “Judas and the Black Messiah” and “They Cloned Tyrone,” joins forward-thinking filmmakers such as Walt Disney, Alfred Hitchcock, James Cameron, and Samuel Goldwyn, whose contributions revolutionized the motion picture industry.
Ryan Coogler, the director of Black Panther and Creed, and King’s collaborator on Judas and the Black Messiah, presented the award. He also claimed that the honoree inspired him to start his own production firm, Proximity.
“Charles King’s contributions to our industry are undeniable, whether as an agent representing important voices or as the producer responsible for the growing empire that is MACRO, a multi-platform media company representing the voice and perspectives of Black people and persons of color,” PGA Presidents Stephanie Allain and Donald De Line said in a joint statement.
King is a “active philanthropist” who serves on the boards of The Sundance Institute, College Track, and The American Cinematheque.