Celebrities, cultural icons and a few surprise guests are gathering for the annual Kennedy Center Honors celebration in Washington.

At Sunday’s Kennedy Center Honors, George Lucas, Martin Scorsese and Robert De Niro each appeared on stage to give special tributes to Francis Ford Coppola, while Al Pacino called him a trailblazer willing to break the first rule of Hollywood: Never put your own money in your movie projects.

The group was recognized at the Kennedy Center Honors ceremony Dec. 8 for their lifetime contribution to American culture through performing arts. Sunday night also honored blues-rock-how-could-you-possibly-categorize-her legend Bonnie Raitt;