Kathleen Kennedy, the venerable filmmaker and former president of Lucasfilm, spent her Sunday singing the praises of American sound designers.

The prolific producer-turned-executive received an honorary award from the Motion Picture Sound Editors at the group’s annual Golden Reel Awards in Los Angeles, marking a distinguished career responsible for indelible movie moments across titles like “Jurassic Park,” “Back to the Future” and “Schindler’s List.”

“Sound helps root the story. It helps represent where characters are, not only geographically, but emotionally.

It helps foreshadow the intent of a character or define what they’re going through. In short, it takes the audience on the journey of the film,” said Kennedy, accepting the prize from iconic sound designer Ben Burtt (films, series and games in the Star Wars universe) at the Wilshire Ebell Theatre.

A key lesson in sound design came from Kennedy’s work on Steven Spielberg’s E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial with Ben Burtt.

While everyone focused on E.T.’s look, it was the sounds, his heavy, shuffling steps and raspy, melodic breathing and that truly brought him to life, turning a puppet into a lovable friend.

Kennedy shared a fun tidbit: E.T.’s unique voice came from Pat Welsh, a woman Burtt overheard at a photography store, who happened to smoke two packs of Kool cigarettes a day.

At the event, Kennedy also gave a peek at her upcoming projects and her shift from leading Lucasfilm.

She’s producing the soon-to-release The Mandalorian & Grogu, a project she personally approved.

On the beloved Grogu (aka Baby Yoda), she emphasized how the character connects deeply with audiences without saying a word.

Unlike Yoda’s quirky speech, Grogu’s silent expressiveness will remain, making him even more endearing on the big screen.

Kennedy recently opened up about passing the baton at Lucasfilm in January to her longtime collaborators, Dave Filoni, now president and chief creative officer, and Lynwen Brennan, co-president.

She stressed that the change didn’t happen overnight, it was the result of a decade-long mentorship.

“I spent 10 years guiding Dave into live-action work. He already had tons of animation experience, and his love and knowledge of Star Wars are incredible. It’s been a long mentorship for both of them,” she said.

Kennedy also noted that Brennan, who came from Industrial Light & Magic, had been her trusted general manager for years.

In her view, the leadership handoff was smooth and seamless.

During the ceremony, host Patton Oswalt playfully quipped that Kennedy was finally “freed from the nerd mafia” and “the comments section,” poking fun at the passionate, and sometimes intense, Star Wars fanbase.

Kennedy later admitted that her time at Lucasfilm overlapped with the rise of social media, where fan expectations could collide with reality.

She said fans have always been a huge part of the franchise, and while this new dynamic was initially overwhelming, it quickly became vital to the company.

Kennedy wrapped up her on-stage speech with a touching shout-out to sound designers, playfully referencing her 1981 classic “Raiders of the Lost Ark.”

She said, “What I love about sound designers is your curiosity. You’re the only ones who can hear a toilet lid scrape and say, ‘That’s it! That’s the sound of the Ark of the Covenant opening.’”

She’s also intrigued by AI in filmmaking, but prefers to call it “augmented reality.”

In an interview with Variety, Kennedy explained she sees these tools as helpers, boosting creativity and speeding up the process, but insists nothing can replace the human touch in storytelling.

Kathleen Kennedy is one of Hollywood’s most influential producers, with eight Oscar nominations to her name.

As head of Lucasfilm, she oversaw blockbuster hits like Star Wars: The Force Awakens, the highest-grossing domestic film ever as well as Rogue One, The Last Jedi, and Solo.

Before joining Disney, she produced or executive produced over 70 films, including classics like Jurassic Park, E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, The Sixth Sense, the Back to the Future trilogy, Who Framed Roger Rabbit, Gremlins, and The Goonies.

Together, these films earned 120 Academy Award nominations and 25 wins.

Her Lucasfilm projects continue to impress, with The Mandalorian (and Grogu) and the upcoming Ryan Gosling-led Star Fighter in the works.

Beyond filmmaking, Kennedy has received a BAFTA Fellowship and a CBE Award, chaired the AFI board, and helped found the Hollywood Commission to Eliminate Sexual Harassment and Advance Equality.

She also serves on the boards of the LA Promise Fund, the Library of America, and USC’s School of Cinematic Arts.