For those who don’t know, the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films is a nonprofit organization dedicated to celebrating genre entertainment, and the Saturn Awards are its signature event — honoring excellence in science fiction, fantasy, horror, action, adventure and beyond across film and television for more than five decades.

Our Saturn journey began almost by accident.

In the late 1980s, our closest friend — and now Academy President — Robert Holguin introduced us to the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films. At a comic convention, we picked up a flyer with a phone number on it.

This was before websites, social media, streaming — even before most of us had computers. Yes, those days.

We called the number and were amazed when the Academy’s founder and president, the late, great Dr. Donald A. Reed, answered the phone himself. He talked with us for more than an hour. We were hooked.

Soon we were attending the Academy’s weekend screenings, and Dr. Reed began inviting us to industry press screenings that seemed to happen every other night. What movies. What memories. Long before blogs, YouTube or social media, Dr. Reed was an influencer before anyone knew what the word meant. He championed genre filmmaking when few others did, knew everyone from Roger Corman and Joe Dante to James Cameron — and they knew him. We had no idea it was only the beginning. From helping out at early Saturn Awards dinners, to producing the show, to eventually being entrusted with carrying Dr. Reed’s dream forward, the Saturn Awards have become far more than something we produce. They are an honor, a responsibility — and, in many ways, our family business.

Dr. Reed, Robert and the Academy are family. The Saturn Awards are in our blood. And when we look around a Saturn Awards ballroom today and see filmmakers and icons like James Cameron, Guillermo del Toro, Tom Cruise, William Shatner, Geena Davis, Vince Gilligan, Christopher McQuarrie, Elle Fanning  and George Lucas gathered together celebrating the genres Dr. Reed loved so fiercely, we can’t help thinking of where it all started: Two brothers. A comic convention. A flyer. And one phone call. Wherever Dr. Reed may be in that galaxy far, far away, we hope every Saturn Awards brings him a little closer — and puts a smile on his face.

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