Young Artist Award

The Young Artist Award (originally known as the Youth in Film Award) is an accolade presented by the Young Artist Foundation, an American nonprofit organization founded in 1978 to honor excellence of youth performers, and to provide scholarships for young artists who may be physically disabled or financially unstable.

First presented in 1979, the Young Artist Awards was the first organization established to specifically recognize and award the contributions of performers under the age of 18 in the fields of film, television, theater, and music.

The 1st Youth In Film Awards ceremony was held in October 1979, at the Sheraton Universal Hotel in Hollywood to honor outstanding young performers of the 1978/1979 season.

The Young Artist Association (originally known as the Hollywood Women's Photo and Press Club, and later, the Youth in Film Association) is a non-profit organization founded in 1978 to recognize and award excellence of youth performers, and to provide scholarships for young artists who may be physically or financially challenged. The Young Artist 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.

The Young Artist Foundation is a non-profit 501(c) organization founded in 1978 by long-standing Hollywood Foreign Press (Golden Globes) member Maureen Dragone and dedicated to presenting scholarships to physically or financially challenged aspiring young artists, allowing them to pursue a career in entertainment by attending a performing arts school of their choice. The scholarship program is funded through donations including contribution from the Hollywood Foreign Press Association.

The Young Artist Awards are presented annually by the Young Artist Association. Originally known as the Youth In Film Awards for the first 20 years, the name was officially changed to the Young Artist Awards for the 21st annual awards ceremony in March 2000. Playfully referred to as the "Kiddie Oscars", the Young Artist Awards are regarded as young Hollywood's answer to the Academy Awards, recognizing children for their work within the entertainment industry.

First presented for the 1978–1979 entertainment season, the awards were envisioned by Maureen Dragone, as a way to honor talented young people in film, television, and music who might otherwise be eclipsed by their adult co-stars. Two notable examples that year being young Ricky Schroder in The Champ and Justin Henry in Kramer vs. Kramer, who were each nominated for Golden Globes in the same categories as their adult counterparts.

Originally held in the autumn in its early years, the awards ceremony has traditionally taken place in the spring for more than 20 years.