Thursday, January 10, 2013

66th BAFTA Film Award Nominations - Complete List

The British Academy Film Awards (also known as the BAFTAs) are presented in an annual award show hosted by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA). They are the British counterpart of the Oscars.


Previously known as the Orange British Academy Film Awards, they are now known as the EE British Academy Film Awards. The British telecommunications company, EE, replaces Orange as the title sponsor of the awards.

The 66th EE British Academy Film Awards will take place on Sunday, February 10, 2013 at London's Royal Opera House.

2012 BAFTA FILM AWARD NOMINATIONS (presented in 2013):

BEST FILM
ARGO - Grant Heslov, Ben Affleck, George Clooney
LES MISÉRABLES - Tim Bevan, Eric Fellner, Debra Hayward, Cameron Mackintosh
LIFE OF PI - Gil Netter, Ang Lee, David Womark
LINCOLN - Steven Spielberg, Kathleen Kennedy
ZERO DARK THIRTY - Mark Boal, Kathryn Bigelow, Megan Ellison

OUTSTANDING BRITISH FILM
• ANNA KARENINA - Joe Wright, Tim Bevan, Eric Fellner, Paul Webster, Tom Stoppard
• THE BEST EXOTIC MARIGOLD HOTEL - John Madden, Graham Broadbent, Pete Czernin, Ol Parker
• LES MISÉRABLES - Tom Hooper, Tim Bevan, Eric Fellner, Debra Hayward, Cameron Mackintosh, William Nicholson, Alain Boublil, Claude-Michel Schönberg, Herbert Kretzmer
• SEVEN PSYCHOPATHS - Martin McDonagh, Graham Broadbent, Pete Czernin
• SKYFALL - Sam Mendes, Michael G. Wilson, Barbara Broccoli, Neal Purvis, Robert Wade, John Logan

OUTSTANDING DEBUT BY A BRITISH WRITER, DIRECTOR OR PRODUCER
• BART LAYTON (Director), DIMITRI DOGANIS (Producer)- The Imposter
• DAVID MORRIS (Director), JACQUI MORRIS (Director/Producer) - McCullin
• DEXTER FLETCHER (Director/Writer), DANNY KING (Writer) - Wild Bill
• JAMES BOBIN (Director) - The Muppets
• TINA GHARAVI (Director/Writer) - I Am Nasrine

DIRECTOR
AMOUR - Michael Haneke
ARGO - Ben Affleck
DJANGO UNCHAINED - Quentin Tarantino
LIFE OF PI - Ang Lee
ZERO DARK THIRTY - Kathryn Bigelow

DOCUMENTARY
THE IMPOSTER - Bart Layton, Dimitri Doganis
MARLEY - Kevin Macdonald, Steve Bing, Charles Steel
McCULLIN - David Morris, Jacqui Morris
SEARCHING FOR SUGAR MAN - Malik Bendjelloul, Simon Chinn
WEST OF MEMPHIS - Amy Berg

ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
AMOUR - Michael Haneke
DJANGO UNCHAINED - Quentin Tarantino
THE MASTER - Paul Thomas Anderson
MOONRISE KINGDOM - Wes Anderson, Roman Coppola
ZERO DARK THIRTY - Mark Boal

ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
ARGO - Chris Terrio
BEASTS OF THE SOUTHERN WILD - Lucy Alibar, Benh Zeitlin
LIFE OF PI - David Magee
LINCOLN - Tony Kushner
SILVER LININGS PLAYBOOK - David O. Russell

FILM NOT IN THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE
AMOUR - Michael Haneke, Margaret Ménégoz
HEADHUNTERS - Morten Tyldum, Marianne Gray, Asle Vatn
THE HUNT - Thomas Vinterberg, Sisse Graum Jørgensen, Morten Kaufmann
RUST AND BONE - Jacques Audiard, Pascal Caucheteux
UNTOUCHABLE - Eric Toledano, Olivier Nakache, Nicolas Duval Adassovsky, Yann Zenou, Laurent Zeitoun

ANIMATED FILM
BRAVE - Mark Andrews, Brenda Chapman
FRANKENWEENIE - Tim Burton
PARANORMAN - Sam Fell, Chris Butler

LEADING ACTOR
BEN AFFLECK - Argo
BRADLEY COOPER - Silver Linings Playbook
DANIEL DAY-LEWIS - Lincoln
HUGH JACKMAN - Les Misérables
JOAQUIN PHOENIX - The Master

LEADING ACTRESS
EMMANUELLE RIVA - Amour
HELEN MIRREN - Hitchcock
JENNIFER LAWRENCE - Silver Linings Playbook
JESSICA CHASTAIN - Zero Dark Thirty
MARION COTILLARD - Rust and Bone

SUPPORTING ACTOR
ALAN ARKIN - Argo
CHRISTOPH WALTZ - Django Unchained
JAVIER BARDEM - Skyfall
PHILIP SEYMOUR HOFFMAN - The Master
TOMMY LEE JONES - Lincoln

SUPPORTING ACTRESS
AMY ADAMS - The Master
ANNE HATHAWAY - Les Misérables
HELEN HUNT - The Sessions
JUDI DENCH - Skyfall
SALLY FIELD - Lincoln

ORIGINAL MUSIC
ANNA KARENINA - Dario Marianelli
ARGO - Alexandre Desplat
LIFE OF PI - Mychael Danna
LINCOLN - John Williams
SKYFALL - Thomas Newman

CINEMATOGRAPHY
ANNA KARENINA - Seamus McGarvey
LES MISÉRABLES - Danny Cohen
LIFE OF PI - Claudio Miranda
LINCOLN - Janusz Kaminski
SKYFALL - Roger Deakins

EDITING
ARGO - William Goldenberg
DJANGO UNCHAINED - Fred Raskin
LIFE OF PI - Tim Squyres
SKYFALL - Stuart Baird
ZERO DARK THIRTY - Dylan Tichenor, William Goldenberg

PRODUCTION DESIGN
ANNA KARENINA - Sarah Greenwood, Katie Spencer
LES MISÉRABLES - Eve Stewart, Anna Lynch-Robinson
LIFE OF PI - David Gropman, Anna Pinnock
LINCOLN - Rick Carter, Jim Erickson
SKYFALL - Dennis Gassner, Anna Pinnock

COSTUME DESIGN
ANNA KARENINA - Jacqueline Durran
GREAT EXPECTATIONS - Beatrix Aruna Pasztor
LES MISÉRABLES - Paco Delgado
LINCOLN - Joanna Johnston
SNOW WHITE AND THE HUNTSMAN - Colleen Atwood

SOUND
• DJANGO UNCHAINED - Mark Ulano, Michael Minkler, Tony Lamberti, Wylie Stateman
• THE HOBBIT: AN UNEXPECTED JOURNEY - Tony Johnson, Christopher Boyes, Michael Hedges, Michael Semanick, Brent Burge, Chris Ward
• LES MISÉRABLES - Simon Hayes, Andy Nelson, Mark Paterson, Jonathan Allen, Lee Walpole, John Warhurst
• LIFE OF PI - Drew Kunin, Eugene Gearty, Philip Stockton, Ron Bartlett, D. M. Hemphill
• SKYFALL - Stuart Wilson, Scott Millan, Greg P. Russell, Per Hallberg, Karen Baker Landers

SPECIAL VISUAL EFFECTS
• THE DARK KNIGHT RISES - Paul Franklin, Chris Corbould, Peter Bebb, Andrew Lockley
• THE HOBBIT: AN UNEXPECTED JOURNEY - Joe Letteri, Eric Saindon, David Clayton, R. Christopher White
• LIFE OF PI - Bill Westenhofer, Guillaume Rocheron, Erik-Jan De Boer
• MARVEL AVENGERS ASSEMBLE - Nominees TBC
• PROMETHEUS - Richard Stammers, Charley Henley, Trevor Wood, Paul Butterworth

MAKE UP & HAIR
ANNA KARENINA - Ivana Primorac
HITCHCOCK - Julie Hewett, Martin Samuel, Howard Berger
THE HOBBIT: AN UNEXPECTED JOURNEY - Peter Swords King, Richard Taylor, Rick Findlater
LES MISÉRABLES - Lisa Westcott
LINCOLN - Lois Burwell, Kay Georgiou

SHORT ANIMATION
HERE TO FALL - Kris Kelly, Evelyn McGrath
I’M FINE THANKS - Eamonn O'Neill
THE MAKING OF LONGBIRD - Will Anderson, Ainslie Henderson

SHORT FILM
THE CURSE - Fyzal Boulifa, Gavin Humphries
GOOD NIGHT - Muriel d'Ansembourg, Eva Sigurdardottir
SWIMMER - Lynne Ramsay, Peter Carlton, Diarmid Scrimshaw
TUMULT - Johnny Barrington, Rhianna Andrews
THE VOORMAN PROBLEM - Mark Gill, Baldwin Li

EE RISING STAR AWARD
Elizabeth Olsen
Andrea Riseborough
Suraj Sharma
Juno Temple
Alicia Vikander

http://www.bafta.org/

Wednesday, January 9, 2013

Seth MacFarlane and Emma Stone to Announce Oscar Noms

Oscar® Host Seth MacFarlane Joins Emma Stone To Announce Oscar Nominations

BEVERLY HILLS, CA – Nominations for the 85th Academy Awards® will be announced by the show's host, Seth MacFarlane, and actress Emma Stone on Thursday, January 10. This will be the first time since 1972 that an Oscar show host has participated in the nominations announcement.

MacFarlane and Stone will unveil the nominations at a 5:30 a.m. PT news conference at the Academy's Samuel Goldwyn Theater in Beverly Hills, where hundreds of media representatives from around the world will be gathered.

Since the first nominations announcement in 1964, the Academy president has been joined by one or more co-announcers at the event. This year the Academy will break with tradition when MacFarlane, who was named Oscar show host in October, joins Stone on Oscar nominations morning. Charlton Heston (1972) was the only other show host to participate in the nominations announcement.

Stone starred in the 2011 Best Picture nominee "The Help" and the summer release "The Amazing Spider-Man." Her other film credits include "Superbad," "Zombieland," "Easy A" and "Crazy, Stupid, Love." Stone will be seen in "Gangster Squad" later this month and in "The Croods," due out in March.

Nominations information for all categories will be distributed to news media in attendance and via the Internet on the official Academy Awards website, www.oscar.com.

Academy Awards for outstanding film achievements of 2012 will be presented on Oscar Sunday, February 24, 2013, at the Dolby Theatre™ at Hollywood & Highland Center®, and televised live on the ABC Television Network. The Oscar presentation also will be televised live in more than 225 countries worldwide.

Tuesday, January 8, 2013

18th Annual Critics' Choice Movie Award Nominations

The Broadcast Film Critics Association (BFCA) is the largest film critics organization in the United States and Canada, representing 250 television, radio and online critics. BFCA members are the primary source of information for today's film going public. The very first opinion a moviegoer hears about new releases at the multiplex or the art house usually comes from one of its members.

The BFCA has announced the nominees for the 18th annual Critics' Choice Movie Awards. The winners will be announced at the Critics' Choice Movie Awards ceremony on Thursday, January 10, 2013 to be aired on the CW network.

18th Annual Critics' Choice Awards: Complete List of Nominees for the Year in Film – 2012:

BEST PICTURE
Argo
Beasts of the Southern Wild
Django Unchained
Les Misérables
Life of Pi
Lincoln
The Master
Moonrise Kingdom
Silver Linings Playbook
Zero Dark Thirty

BEST ACTOR
Bradley Cooper – “Silver Linings Playbook”
Daniel Day-Lewis – “Lincoln”
John Hawkes – “The Sessions”
Hugh Jackman – “Les Misérables”
Joaquin Phoenix – “The Master”
Denzel Washington – “Flight”

BEST ACTRESS
Jessica Chastain – “Zero Dark Thirty”
Marion Cotillard – “Rust and Bone”
Jennifer Lawrence – “Silver Linings Playbook”
Emmanuelle Riva – “Amour”
Quvenzhané Wallis – “Beasts of the Southern Wild”
Naomi Watts – “The Impossible”

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
Alan Arkin – “Argo”
Javier Bardem – “Skyfall”
Robert De Niro – “Silver Linings Playbook”
Philip Seymour Hoffman – “The Master”
Tommy Lee Jones – “Lincoln”
Matthew McConaughey – “Magic Mike”

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Amy Adams – “The Master”
Judi Dench – “Skyfall”
Ann Dowd – “Compliance”
Sally Field – “Lincoln”
Anne Hathaway – “Les Misérables”
Helen Hunt – “The Sessions”

BEST YOUNG ACTOR/ACTRESS
Elle Fanning – “Ginger & Rosa”
Kara Hayward – “Moonrise Kingdom”
Tom Holland – “The Impossible”
Logan Lerman – “The Perks of Being a Wallflower”
Suraj Sharma – “Life of Pi”
Quvenzhané Wallis – “Beasts of the Southern Wild”

BEST ACTING ENSEMBLE
Argo
The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel
Les Misérables
Lincoln
Moonrise Kingdom
Silver Linings Playbook

BEST DIRECTOR
Ben Affleck – “Argo”
Kathryn Bigelow – “Zero Dark Thirty”
Tom Hooper – “Les Misérables”
Ang Lee – “Life of Pi”
David O. Russell – “Silver Linings Playbook”
Steven Spielberg – “Lincoln”

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
Quentin Tarantino – “Django Unchained”
John Gatins – “Flight”
Rian Johnson – “Looper”
Paul Thomas Anderson – “The Master”
Wes Anderson & Roman Coppola – “Moonrise Kingdom”
Mark Boal – “Zero Dark Thirty”

BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
Chris Terrio – “Argo”
David Magee – “Life of Pi”
Tony Kushner – “Lincoln”
Stephen Chbosky – “The Perks of Being a Wallflower”
David O. Russell – “Silver Linings Playbook”

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
“Les Misérables” – Danny Cohen
“Life of Pi” – Claudio Miranda
“Lincoln” – Janusz Kaminski
“The Master” – Mihai Malaimare Jr.
“Skyfall” – Roger Deakins

BEST ART DIRECTION
“Anna Karenina” – Sarah Greenwood/Production Designer; Katie Spencer/Set Decorator

“The Hobbit” – Dan Hennah/Production Designer; Ra Vincent & Simon Bright/Set Decorators

“Les Misérables” – Eve Stewart/Production Designer; Anna Lynch-Robinson/Set Decorator

“Life of Pi” – David Gropman/Production Designer; Anna Pinnock/Set Decorator

“Lincoln” – Rick Carter/Production Designer; Jim Erickson/Set Decorator

BEST EDITING
“Argo” – William Goldenberg
“Les Misérables” – Melanie Ann Oliver and Chris Dickens
“Life of Pi” – Tim Squyres
“Lincoln” – Michael Kahn
“Zero Dark Thirty” – William Goldenberg and Dylan Tichenor

BEST COSTUME DESIGN
“Anna Karenina” – Jacqueline Durran
“Cloud Atlas” – Kym Barrett and Pierre-Yves Gayraud
“The Hobbit” – Bob Buck, Ann Maskrey and Richard Taylor
“Les Misérables” – Paco Delgado
“Lincoln” – Joanna Johnston

BEST MAKEUP
Cloud Atlas
The Hobbit
Les Misérables
Lincoln

BEST VISUAL EFFECTS
The Avengers
Cloud Atlas
The Dark Knight Rises
The Hobbit
Life of Pi

BEST ANIMATED FEATURE
Brave
Frankenweenie
Madagascar 3
ParaNorman
Rise of the Guardians
Wreck-It Ralph

BEST ACTION MOVIE
The Avengers
The Dark Knight Rises
Looper
Skyfall

BEST ACTOR IN AN ACTION MOVIE
Christian Bale – “The Dark Knight Rises”
Daniel Craig – “Skyfall”
Robert Downey Jr. – “The Avengers”
Joseph Gordon-Levitt – “Looper”
Jake Gyllenhaal – “End of Watch”

BEST ACTRESS IN AN ACTION MOVIE
Emily Blunt – “Looper”
Gina Carano – “Haywire”
Judi Dench – “Skyfall”
Anne Hathaway – “The Dark Knight Rises”
Jennifer Lawrence – “The Hunger Games”

BEST COMEDY
Bernie
Silver Linings Playbook
Ted
This Is 40
21 Jump Street

BEST ACTOR IN A COMEDY
Jack Black – “Bernie”
Bradley Cooper – “Silver Linings Playbook”
Paul Rudd – “This Is 40”
Channing Tatum – “21 Jump Street”
Mark Wahlberg – “Ted”

BEST ACTRESS IN A COMEDY
Mila Kunis – “Ted”
Jennifer Lawrence – “Silver Linings Playbook”
Shirley MacLaine – “Bernie”
Leslie Mann – “This Is 40”
Rebel Wilson – “Pitch Perfect”

BEST SCI-FI/HORROR MOVIE
The Cabin in the Woods
Looper
Prometheus

BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM
Amour (Austria)
The Intouchables (France)
A Royal Affair (Denmark)
Rust and Bone (Belgium)

BEST DOCUMENTARY FEATURE
Bully
The Central Park Five
The Imposter
The Queen of Versailles
Searching for Sugar Man
West of Memphis

BEST SONG
“For You” – performed by Keith Urban; written by Monty Powell & Keith Urban – Act of Valor

“Learn Me Right” – performed by Birdy with Mumford & Sons; written by Mumford & Sons – Brave

“Skyfall” – performed by Adele; written by Adele Adkins & Paul Epworth – Skyfall

“Still Alive” – performed by Paul Williams; written by Paul Williams – Paul Williams Still Alive

“Suddenly” – performed by Hugh Jackman; written by Claude-Michel Schonberg & Alain Boublil & Herbert Kretzmer – Les Misérables

BEST SCORE
“Argo” – Alexandre Desplat
“Life of Pi” – Mychael Danna
“Lincoln” – John Williams
“The Master” – Jonny Greenwood
“Moonrise Kingdom” – Alexandre Desplat

http://www.bfca.org/

Alliance of Women Film Journalists Choose "Zero Dark Thirty" as 2012's Best

2012 EDA Award Winners (from the Alliance of Women Film Journalists):

EDA ANNUAL ACHIEVEMENT AWARDS

Best Film
Zero Dark Thirty

Best Director
Kathryn Bigelow - Zero Dark Thirty

Best Screenplay, Original
Zero Dark Thirty - Mark Boal

Best Screenplay, Adapted
Argo - Chris Terrio

Best Documentary
Searching For Sugar Man - Malik Bendjelloul

Best Animated Film
ParaNorman

Best Actress
Jessica Chastain - Zero Dark Thirty

Best Actress in a Supporting Role
Anne Hathaway - Les Miserables

Best Actor
Daniel Day Lewis - Lincoln

Best Actor in a Supporting Role
Phillip Seymour Hoffman - The Master

Best Ensemble Cast
Silver Linings Playbook

Best Editing
Zero Dark Thirty - William Goldenberg, Dylan Tichenor

Best Cinematography
Life of Pi - Claudio Miranda

Best Film Music Or Score
Beasts of the Southern Wild - Dan Romer, Benh Zeitlin

Best Non-English-Language Film
Amour (from Austria)

EDA FEMALE FOCUS AWARDS – These awards honor WOMEN only.

Best Woman Director
Kathryn Bigelow - Zero Dark Thirty

Best Woman Screenwriter
Lucy Alibar (and Benh Zeitlin) - Beasts of the Southern Wild

Kick Ass Award For Best Female Action Star
Jennifer Lawrence - The Hunger Games

Best Animated Female
Brave - Merida - Kelly Macdonald

Best Breakthrough Performance
Quvenzhané Wallis - Beasts of the Southern Wild

Actress Defying Age and Ageism
Judi Dench - Skyfall

AWFJ Award For Humanitarian Activism - Female Icon Award
(Presented to an actress for the portrayal of the most positive female role model, or for a role in which she takes personal and/or career risks to plumb the female psyche and therefore gives us courage to plumb our own, and/or for putting forth the image of a woman who is heroic, accomplished, persistent, demands her rights and/or the rights of others.)

Jessica Chastain - Zero Dark Thirty

This Year’s Outstanding Achievement By A Woman In The Film Industry
(Presented only when warranted to a female who has had a banner-making, record-breaking, industry-changing achievement during any given year — such as Kathryn Bigelow’s Best Director Oscar win, or for an actress having multiple outstanding films released during one year.)

Women Documentary Filmmakers, including Heidi Ewing and Rachel Grady (Detropia), Lauren Greenfield (Queen of Versailles), Alison Klayman (Ai Weiwei Never Sorry) and Sarah Burns (The Central Park Five).

EDA SPECIAL MENTION AWARDS

AWFJ Hall Of Shame Award
Sean Anders for That’s My Boy

Actress Most in Need Of A New Agent (Tie)
Katherine Heigl - One For The Money
Reese Witherspoon - This Means War

Movie You Wanted To Love But Just Couldn’t
Anna Karenina

Unforgettable Moment Award (Tie)
Les Miserables - Anne Hathaway as Fantine singing I Dreamed A Dream
Zero Dark Thirty - Jessica Chastain as Maya says, “I’m the mother…”

Best Depiction Of Nudity, Sexuality, or Seduction
The Sessions - Helen Hunt and John Hawkes

Sequel or Remake That Shouldn’t Have Been Made Award (Tie)
Red Dawn
Total Recall

Most Egregious Age Difference Between The Leading Man and The Love Interest Award
Flight - Denzel Washington and Kelly Reilly,..and Nadine Velazquez

Monday, January 7, 2013

2013 Producers Guild Award Nominations Announced

The Producers Guild of America (PGA) describes itself as “the non-profit trade group that represents, protects and promotes the interests of all members of the producing team in film, television and new media.” Film fans know the organization because of its annual PGA Awards.

The PGA recently announced the motion picture nominations for the 24th Annual Producers Guild Awards.

All 2013 Producers Guild Award winners will be announced on January 26, 2013 at the Beverly Hilton Hotel. This year, the Producers Guild will also present special honors to Bob and Harvey Weinstein (Milestone Award), Tim Bevan and Eric Fellner (David O. Selznick Achievement Award in Theatrical Motion Pictures), J.J. Abrams (Norman Lear Achievement Award in Television), Russell Simmons (Visionary Award) and BULLY (Stanley Kramer Award).

The 2013 Producers Guild Awards Chair is Michael De Luca.

The 2013 Producers Guild nominated films are listed below in alphabetical order by category, along with producers. The producers’ names listed for each nominated production are listed in alphabetical order and are not necessarily the proper order of credits.

2013 Producers Guild Awards theatrical motion picture nominees are:

The Darryl F. Zanuck Award for Outstanding Producer of Theatrical Motion Pictures:

"Argo” (Warner Bros.)
Producers: Ben Affleck, George Clooney, Grant Heslov

"Beasts of the Southern Wild” (Fox Searchlight Pictures)
Producers: Michael Gottwald, Dan Janvey, Josh Penn

"Django Unchained” (The Weinstein Company)
Producers: Reginald Hudlin, Pilar Savone, Stacey Sher

"Les Misérables” (Universal Pictures)
Producers: Tim Bevan & Eric Fellner, Debra Hayward, Cameron Mackintosh

Life of Pi” (Fox 2000 Pictures)
Producers: Ang Lee, Gil Netter, David Womark

"Lincoln” (Touchstone Pictures)
Producers: Kathleen Kennedy, Steven Spielberg

"Moonrise Kingdom” (Focus Features)
Producers: Wes Anderson & Scott Rudin, Jeremy Dawson, Steven Rales

"Silver Linings Playbook” (The Weinstein Company)
Producers: Bruce Cohen, Donna Gigliotti, Jonathan Gordon

"Skyfall” (MGM/Columbia Pictures)
Producers: Barbara Broccoli, Michael G. Wilson

"Zero Dark Thirty” (Columbia Pictures)
Producers: Kathryn Bigelow, Mark Boal, Megan Ellison

The Award for Outstanding Producer of Animated Theatrical Motion Pictures:

"Brave” (Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures)
Producer: Katherine Sarafian

"Frankenweenie” (Walt Disney Pictures)
Producers: Allison Abbate, Tim Burton

"ParaNorman” (Focus Features)
Producers: Travis Knight, Arianne Sutner

"Rise of the Guardians” (Paramount Pictures)
Producers: Nancy Bernstein, Christina Steinberg

"Wreck-It Ralph” (Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures)
Producer: Clark Spencer

The Award for Outstanding Producer of Documentary Theatrical Motion Pictures (Previously announced November 2012):

"A People Uncounted” (Urbinder Films)
Producers: Marc Swenker, Aaron Yeger

"The Gatekeepers” (Sony Pictures Classics)
Producers: Estelle Fialon, Philippa Kowarsky, Dror Moreh

"The Island President” (Samuel Goldwyn Films)
Producers: Richard Berge, Bonni Cohen

"The Other Dream Team” (The Film Arcade)
Producers: Marius Markevicius, Jon Weinbach

"Searching For Sugar Man” (Sony Pictures Classics)
Producers: Malik Bendjelloul, Simon Chinn


2013 WGA Screenplay Nominations Announced

by Leroy Douresseaux

The Writers Guild of America is a labor union representing film, television, radio, and new media writers. The Writers Guild of America Award acknowledges outstanding achievements in film, television, and radio and has been presented annually by the Writers Guild of America, East and Writers Guild of America, West since 1949.

There are several categories, but I only focus on the film categories. I sometimes list the winners from other categories when they are announced.

The Writers Guild of America, West (WGAW) and the Writers Guild of America, East (WGAE) recently announced nominations for outstanding achievement in writing for the screen during the year 2012. The winners in the following categories will be honored at the 2013 Writers Guild Awards on Sunday, February 17, 2013, during simultaneous ceremonies held in both Los Angeles and New York.

2013 Writers Guild Awards Screen Nominations:

ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY:
Flight, Written by John Gatins; Paramount Pictures

Looper, Written by Rian Johnson; TriStar Pictures

The Master, Written by Paul Thomas Anderson; The Weinstein Company

Moonrise Kingdom, Written by Wes Anderson & Roman Coppola; Focus Features

Zero Dark Thirty, Written by Mark Boal; Columbia Pictures

ADAPTED SCREENPLAY:
Argo, Screenplay by Chris Terrio; Based on a selection from The Master of Disguise by Antonio J. Mendez and the Wired Magazine article “The Great Escape” by Joshuah Bearman; Warner Bros. Pictures

Life of Pi, Screenplay by David Magee; Based on the novel by Yann Martel; 20th Century Fox

Lincoln, Screenplay by Tony Kushner; Based in part on the book Team of Rivals: The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln by Doris Kearns Goodwin; DreamWorks Pictures

The Perks of Being a Wallflower, Screenplay by Stephen Chbosky; Based on his book; Summit Entertainment

Silver Linings Playbook, Screenplay by David O. Russell; Based on the novel by Matthew Quick; The Weinstein Company

DOCUMENTARY SCREENPLAY:
The Central Park Five, Written by Sarah Burns and David McMahon and Ken Burns; Sundance Selects

The Invisible War, Written by Kirby Dick; Cinedigm Entertainment Group

Mea Maxima Culpa: Silence in the House of God, Written by Alex Gibney; HBO Documentary Films

Searching for Sugar Man, Written by Malik Bendjelloul; Sony Pictures Classics

We Are Legion: The Story of the Hacktivists, Written by Brian Knappenberger; Cinetic Media

West of Memphis, Written by Amy Berg & Billy McMillin; Sony Pictures Classics

Sunday, January 6, 2013

Review: "ParaNorman" Thankfully Not Normal


TRASH IN MY EYE No. 2 (of 2013) by Leroy Douresseaux

ParaNorman (2012)
Running time: 92 minutes (1 hour, 32 minutes)
MPAA – PG for scary action and images, thematic elements, some rude humor and language
DIRECTORS: Chris Butler and Sam Fell
WRITER: Chris Butler
PRODUCERS: Travis Knight and Arianne Sutner
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Tristan Oliver
EDITORS: Christopher Murrie
COMPOSERS: Jon Brion

ANIMATION/FANTASY/COMEDY/HORROR/FAMILY

Starring: (voices) Kodi Smit-McPhee, Tucker Albrizzi, Anna Kendrick, Casey Affleck, Christopher Mintz-Plasse, Leslie Mann, Jeff Garlin, Elaine Stritch, Bernard Hill, Jodelle Ferland, Tempestt Bledsoe, Alex Borstein, and John Goodman

ParaNorman is a 2012 American, 3D, stop-motion animated, comic-horror film. The film is a production of Laika, the stop-motion animation studio behind the 2009 film, Coraline. ParaNorman focuses on a misunderstood boy, who talks to ghosts, and his quest to save his town from a centuries-old curse.

Not many people in the town of Blithe Hollow, Massachusetts seem to understand or even like 11-year-old Norman Babcock (Kodi Smit-McPhee), except his dear mother, Sandra (Leslie Mann), of course. Norman can talk to ghosts. This claim infuriates his father, Perry (Jeff Garlin), because he thinks his son is too weird, and it annoys his sister, Courtney (Anna Kendrick), who is embarrassed by her brother. Norman even has a classmate dedicated to bullying him, the break dancer wannabe, Alvin (Christopher Mintz-Plasse). Norman does have one friend, a chubby, eccentric kid named Neil Downe (Tucker Albrizzi).

Oh, there is one other person interested in Norman. That would be the town crazy, Mr. Prenderghast (John Goodman), who is also Norman’s uncle. He claims that Norman is the only person who can save the town from a centuries-old curse put upon it three hundred years ago by a vengeful witch. Pursued by zombies, Norman races to stop the curse with only Neil, a reluctant Courtney, and Mitch (Casey Affleck), Neil’s brother, by his side. But stopping the curse means having the right information/the real story, and Norman is having trouble getting that.

ParaNorman is not only one of the best animated films of the year, but it is also one of 2012’s best movies. This film looks like a Tim Burton movie, but is darker and less whimsical than most of Burton’s movies; ParaNorman is probably more in line and closer in tone with Burton’s Sleepy Hollow (1999).

One of my college professors said that books which contained controversial ideas often ended up in the children’s literature section, To Kill a Mockingbird and Lord of the Flies, being examples she used. ParaNorman is kind of like that; in fact, it is like one of those children’s classics (film or storybook) with something to say. It runs the gamut of themes and ideas: the destruction of revenge, bullying, parental acceptance, the cycle in which parents pass on their fears and prejudices to their children or even project those onto their children, the fear of being different, how easy it is for a person to isolate himself because he is persecuted for being different, the mob mentality, the quest for redemption, etc. ParaNorman has so many ideas and themes that I lost count. It does not aspire to be more than a kid’s movie; it just wants to be more than the average children’s movie.

The film is such a feast of dark colors and fantastic visual elements that it is easy to miss the substance. The stop-motion animation and production values in ParaNorman exceed Coraline; it’s not even close. The character design alone is way ahead in terms of imagination and diversity than many animated feature films. The characters are caricatures of real-life human body types, but in an amusing way that celebrates all the big hips, thunder thighs, scrawny necks, big butts, fat bodies, etc. without being cruel for the sake of cheap laughs.

There is a lot more to say, but I don’t want to run on (longer than I usually do). This hand-crafted movie is a miracle. It celebrates being different, but also enjoying being different from other people. There is a surprise reveal about one of the characters near the end of the film that makes ParaNorman extra, extra-special.

9 of 10
A+

Friday, January 04, 2013