Last night film critics group had their awards ceremony and no, wasn't able to watch it live; but here are the winners announced at their official site here.

La La Land is the big winner with eight (8) awards followed by Jackie and Manchester by the Sea with three (3) awards each.

As previously announced, Viola Davis received the first-ever #SeeHer Award presented by the Association of National Advertisers in conjunction with A&E Network and Ryan Reynolds was the recipient of Entertainment Weekly's Entertainer of the Year Award. 

Winners are in (*) BLUE.

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12/1/16

The Broadcast Film Critics Association (BFCA) has announced the film nominees for the 22^nd Annual Critics’ Choice Awards. “This year’s nominees showcase the best that Hollywood has to offer, spanning a wide array of genres, subject matters, time periods, and more,” said BFCA President Joey Berlin.  “We hope that they will serve as a roadmap for viewers, offering guidance for movie lovers and ticket buyers as we launch this awards season. We are so thrilled to be able to recognize these incomparable artists and look forward to bringing them together for an unforgettable evening!”

La La Land leads all films this year with twelve (12) nominations including Best Picture, Ryan Gosling for Best Actor, Emma Stone for Best Actress, Damien Chazelle for Best Director and Best Original Screenplay, Linus Sandgren for Best Cinematography, David Wasco and Sandy Reynolds-Wasco for Best Production Design, Tom Cross for Best Editing, Mary Zophres for Best Costume Design, Two Best Song Nominations for “Audition (The Fools Who Dream)” and “City of Stars,” and Justin Hurwitz for Best Score.

Arrival and Moonlight impressed with ten (10) nominations each, both in the running for Best Picture, Best Director, Best Cinematography, Best Editing, Best Score, among others. Manchester by the Sea earned eight (8) nominations, followed by Hacksaw Ridge with seven (7), and Doctor Strange, Fences, Hell or High Water, Jackie, and Lion all with six (6).

Best Picture
Arrival
Fences
Hacksaw Ridge
Hell or High Water
(*) La La Land
Lion
Loving
Manchester by the Sea
Moonlight
Sully

Best Director
(*) Damien Chazelle for La La Land
Mel Gibson for Hacksaw Ridge
Barry Jenkins for Moonlight
Kenneth Lonergan for Manchester by the Sea
David Mackenzie for Hell or High Water
Denis Villeneuve for Arrival
Denzel Washington for Fences

Best Actress
Amy Adams in Arrival
Annette Bening in 20^th Century Women
Isabelle Huppert in Elle
Ruth Negga in Loving
(*) Natalie Portman in Jackie
Emma Stone in La La Land

Best Supporting Actress
(*) Viola Davis in Fences 
Greta Gerwig in 20^th Century Women
Naomie Harris in Moonlight
Nicole Kidman in Lion
Janelle Monáe  in Hidden Figures
Michelle Williams in Manchester by the Sea

Best Actor
(*) Casey Affleck in Manchester by the Sea
Joel Edgerton in Loving
Andrew Garfield in Hacksaw Ridge
Ryan Gosling in La La Land
Tom Hanks in Sully
Denzel Washington in Fences

Best Supporting Actor
(*) Mahershala Ali in Moonlight
Jeff Bridges in Hell or High Water
Ben Foster in Hell or High Water
Lucas Hedges in Manchester by the Sea
Dev Patel in Lion
Michael Shannon in Nocturnal Animals

Best Young Actress/Actor
(*) Lucas Hedges in Manchester by the Sea
Alex R. Hibbert in Moonlight
Lewis MacDougall in A Monster Calls
Madina Nalwanga in Queen of Katwe
Sunny Pawar in Lion
Hailee Steinfeld in The Edge of Seventeen

Best Acting Ensemble
20^th Century Women
Fences
Hell or High Water
Hidden Figures
Manchester by the Sea
(*) Moonlight

Best Original Screenplay (tie)
(*) Damien Chazelle for La La Land
Barry Jenkins for Moonlight
Yorgos Lanthimos and Efthimis Filippou for The Lobster
(*) Kenneth Lonergan for Manchester by the Sea
Jeff Nichols for Loving
Taylor Sheridan for Hell or High Water

Best Adapted Screenplay
Luke Davies for Lion
Tom Ford for Nocturnal Animals
(*) Eric Heisserer for Arrival
Todd Komarnicki for Sully
Allison Schroeder and Theodore Melfi for Hidden Figures
August Wilson for Fences

Best Cinematography
Stéphane Fontaine for Jackie
James Laxton for Moonlight
Seamus McGarvey for Nocturnal Animals
(*) Linus Sandgren for La La Land
Bradford Young for Arrival

Best Production Design
Arrival – Patrice Vermette, Paul Hotte/André Valade
Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them– Stuart Craig/James Hambidge, Anna Pinnock
Jackie – Jean Rabasse, Véronique Melery
(*) La La Land – David Wasco, Sandy Reynolds-Wasco
Live by Night – Jess Gonchor, Nancy Haigh

Best Editing
(*) Tom Cross for La La Land
John Gilbert for Hacksaw Ridge
Blu Murray for Sully
Nat Sanders and Joi McMillon for Moonlight
Joe Walker for Arrival

Best Costume Design
Colleen Atwood for Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them
Consolata Boyle for Florence Foster Jenkins
(*) Madeline Fontaine for Jackie
Joanna Johnston for Allied
Eimer Ni Mhaoldomhnaigh for Love & Friendship
Mary Zophres for La La Land

Best Hair & Makeup
Doctor Strange
Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them
Hacksaw Ridge
(*) Jackie
Star Trek Beyond

Best Visual Effects
A Monster Calls
Arrival
Doctor Strange
Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them
(*) The Jungle Book

Best Foreign Language Film
(*) Elle
The Handmaiden
Julieta
Neruda
The Salesman
Toni Erdmann

To check the few feature film categories missing above as well as all TV categories go official press release here.

To check a few categories missing in list go to official site here.

The winners will be revealed live at the star-studded Critics’ Choice Awards gala, which will be broadcast from the Barker Hangar in Santa Monica on A&E on Sunday, December 11 at 8PM ET/ 5PM PT. The awards broadcast will immediately follow the “Critics’ Choice Red Carpet Live” on A&E. As previously announced, actor and comedian T.J. Miller will return as the show’s host.

Nominees by Picture

10 CLOVERFIELD LANE (1)
Best Sci-Fi/Horror Movie

20^TH CENTURY WOMEN (3)
Best Actress – Annette Bening
Best Supporting Actress – Greta Gerwig
Best Acting Ensemble

A MONSTER CALLS (2)
Best Young Actor/Actress – Lewis MacDougall
Best Visual Effects

ALLIED (1)
Best Costume Design – Joanna Johnston

ARRIVAL (10)
Best Picture
Best Actress – Amy Adams
Best Director – Denis Villeneuve
Best Adapted Screenplay – Eric Heisserer
Best Cinematography – Bradford Young
Best Production Design – Patrice Vermette, Paul Hotte/André Valade
Best Editing – Joe Walker
Best Visual Effects
Best Sci-Fi/Horror Movie
Best Score – Jóhann Jóhannsson

BATMAN V SUPERMAN: DAWN OF JUSTICE (1)
Best Actress In An Action Movie – Gal Gadot

CAPTAIN AMERICA: CIVIL WAR (3)
Best Action Movie
Best Actor In An Action Movie – Chris Evans
Best Actress In An Action Movie – Scarlett Johansson

CAPTAIN FANTASTIC (1)
Best Actor In A Comedy – Viggo Mortensen

CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE (2)
Best Comedy
Best Actor In A Comedy – Dwayne Johnson

DEADPOOL (4)
Best Action Movie
Best Actor In An Action Movie – Ryan Reynolds
Best Comedy
Best Actor In A Comedy – Ryan Reynolds

DOCTOR STRANGE (6)
Best Hair & Makeup
Best Visual Effects
Best Action Movie
Best Actor In An Action Movie – Benedict Cumberbatch
Best Actress In An Action Movie – Tilda Swinton
Best Sci-Fi/Horror Movie

DON’T BREATHE (1)
Best Sci-Fi/Horror Movie

DON’T THINK TWICE (1)
Best Comedy

ELLE (2)
Best Actress – Isabelle Huppert
Best Foreign Language Film

FANTASTIC BEASTS AND WHERE TO FIND THEM (4)
Best Production Design – Stuart Craig/James Hambidge, Anna Pinnock
Best Costume Design – Colleen Atwood
Best Hair & Makeup
Best Visual Effects

FENCES (6)
Best Picture
Best Actor – Denzel Washington
Best Supporting Actress – Viola Davis
Best Acting Ensemble
Best Director – Denzel Washington
Best Adapted Screenplay – August Wilson

FINDING DORY (1)
Best Animated Feature

FLORENCE FOSTER JENKINS (3)
Best Costume Design – Consolata Boyle
Best Actor In A Comedy – Hugh Grant
Best Actress In A Comedy – Meryl Streep

GHOSTBUSTERS (1)
Best Actress In A Comedy – Kate McKinnon

HACKSAW RIDGE (7)
Best Picture
Best Actor – Andrew Garfield
Best Director – Mel Gibson
Best Editing – John Gilbert
Best Hair & Makeup
Best Action Movie
Best Actor In An Action Movie – Andrew Garfield

HAIL, CAESAR! (1)
Best Comedy

HELL OR HIGH WATER (6)
Best Picture
Best Supporting Actor – Jeff Bridges
Best Supporting Actor – Ben Foster
Best Acting Ensemble
Best Director – David Mackenzie
Best Original Screenplay – Taylor Sheridan

HELLO, MY NAME IS DORIS (1)
Best Actress In A Comedy – Sally Field

HIDDEN FIGURES (3)
Best Supporting Actress – Janelle Monáe
Best Acting Ensemble
Best Adapted Screenplay – Allison Schroeder/Theodore Melfi

JACKIE (6)
Best Actress – Natalie Portman
Best Cinematography – Stéphane Fontaine
Best Production Design – Jean Rabasse, Véronique Melery
Best Costume Design – Madeline Fontaine
Best Hair & Makeup
Best Score – Micachu

JASON BOURNE (2)
Best Action Movie
Best Actor In An Action Movie – Matt Damon

JULIETA (1)
Best Foreign Language Film

KUBO AND THE TWO STRINGS (1)
Best Animated Feature

LA LA LAND (12)
Best Picture
Best Actor – Ryan Gosling
Best Actress – Emma Stone
Best Director – Damien Chazelle
Best Original Screenplay – Damien Chazelle
Best Cinematography – Linus Sandgren
Best Production Design – David Wasco, Sandy Reynolds-Wasco
Best Editing – Tom Cross
Best Costume Design – Mary Zophres
Best Song – Audition (The Fools Who Dream)
Best Song – City of Stars
Best Score – Justin Hurwitz

LION (6)
Best Picture
Best Supporting Actor – Dev Patel
Best Supporting Actress – Nicole Kidman
Best Young Actor/Actress – Sunny Pawar
Best Adapted Screenplay – Luke Davies
Best Score – Dustin O’Halloran, Hauschka

LIVE BY NIGHT (1)
Best Production Design – Jess Gonchor, Nancy Haigh

LOVE & FRIENDSHIP (2)
Best Costume Design– Eimer Ni Mhaoldomhnaigh
Best Actress In A Comedy – Kate Beckinsale

LOVING (4)
Best Picture
Best Actor – Joel Edgerton
Best Actress – Ruth Negga
Best Original Screenplay – Jeff Nichols

MANCHESTER BY THE SEA (8)
Best Picture
Best Actor – Casey Affleck
Best Supporting Actor – Lucas Hedges
Best Supporting Actress – Michelle Williams
Best Young Actor/Actress – Lucas Hedges
Best Acting Ensemble
Best Director – Kenneth Lonergan
Best Original Screenplay – Kenneth Lonergan

MOANA (2)
Best Animated Feature
Best Song – How Far I’ll Go

MOONLIGHT (10)
Best Picture
Best Supporting Actor – Mahershala Ali
Best Supporting Actress – Naomie Harris
Best Young Actor/Actress – Alex R. Hibbert
Best Acting Ensemble
Best Director – Barry Jenkins
Best Original Screenplay – Barry Jenkins
Best Cinematography – James Laxton
Best Editing – Nat Sanders/Joi McMillon
Best Score – Nicholas Britell

NERUDA (1)
Best Foreign Language Film

NOCTURNAL ANIMALS (3)
Best Supporting Actor – Michael Shannon
Best Adapted Screenplay – Tom Ford
Best Cinematography – Seamus McGarvey

QUEEN OF KATWE (1)
Best Young Actor/Actress – Madina Nalwanga

RULES DON’T APPLY (1)
Best Song – The Rules Don’t Apply

SING STREET (1)
Best Song – Drive It Like You Stole It

STAR TREK BEYOND (2)
Best Hair & Makeup
Best Sci-Fi/Horror Movie

SUICIDE SQUAD (1)
Best Actress In An Action Movie – Margot Robbie

SULLY (4)
Best Picture
Best Actor – Tom Hanks
Best Adapted Screenplay – Todd Komarnicki
Best Editing – Blu Murray

THE EDGE OF SEVENTEEN (3)
Best Young Actor/Actress – Hailee Steinfeld
Best Comedy
Best Actress In A Comedy – Hailee Steinfeld

THE HANDMAIDEN (1)
Best Foreign Language Film
THE JUNGLE BOOK (1)
Best Visual Effects

THE LOBSTER (1)
Best Original Screenplay – Yorgos Lanthimos/Efthimis Filippou

THE NICE GUYS (2)
Best Comedy
Best Actor In A Comedy – Ryan Gosling

THE RED TURTLE (1)
Best Animated Feature

THE SALESMAN (1)
Best Foreign Language Film

THE WITCH (1)
Best Sci-Fi/Horror Movie

TONI ERDMANN (1)
Best Foreign Language Film

TROLLS (2)
Best Animated Feature
Best Song – Can’t Stop the Feeling

ZOOTOPIA (1)
Best Animated Feature

HFPA President, Lorenzo Soria introduced Anna Kendrick, Laura Dern and Don Cheadle who announced today the nominations via online only for the first half and via major American TV networks the second half; announcement came from The Beverly Hilton Hotel in Los Angeles.

Will not be a major surprise to many when learning the film with more nominations, La La Land by Damien Chazelle which collected seven (7) nominations followed by Moonlight with six (6) and Manchester by the Sea with five (5).  No surprises here as three films are still the major contenders for the Academy Awards honors.  Perhaps the biggest surprise comes from Nocturnal Animals by Tom Ford becoming an interesting contender.

Surely nominations snubs are more interesting as there is no nomination to Fences as best drama, even when they nominated both actors, Viola Davis and Denzel Washington, who was snubbed from the directing category.  Wonder if the Hollywood Foreign press had a change of watching Silence by Martin Scorsese as was completely absent and yet, Andrew Garfiel got a nomination for his other great performance in Mel Gibson's Hacksaw Ridge.

This year there are some controversial nominations, like for example Anette Bening nomination in the Best Actress Musical or Comedy category and can't say that Rules Don't Apply and The Edge of Seventeen are comedies (more likely dramedys) or musicals; but the most ridiculous is to say The Lobster is a comedy.  Well, is the Globes (!) where around 90+ foreign film journalists decide what they like.  Truth is that as a TV show the Golden Globes tend to be fun-to-watch and hopefully this year with Jimmy Fallon hosting will be as fun as when Ricky Gervais was the host.

As we already know the Cecil B. deMille Award this year goes to Meryl Streep, who got a well-deserved nomination for her glorious performance in Florence Foster Jenkins.  Also this edition Miss Golden Globe 2017 is a trio, a Stallone trio; yes, three Silvester Stallone daughters: Scarlet, Sistine and Sophia, will walk the stage along presenters and winners.

Motion Picture Nominees

Best Motion Picture - Drama
Hacksaw Ridge
Hell or High Water
Lion
Manchester by the Sea
Moonlight

Best Motion Picture - Comedy or Musical
20th Century Women
Deadpool
Florence Foster Jenkins
La La Land
Sing Street

Best Animated Feature Film
Kubo and the Two Strings
Moana
Ma vie de Courgette (My Life as a Zucchini)
Sing
Zootopia

Best Foreign Language Film
Divines, Houda Benyamina, France and Qatar
Elle, Paul Verhoeven, France, Germany and Belgium
Neruda, Pablo Larrain, Chile, Argentina, France, Spain and USA
Forushande (The Salesman), Asghar Farhadi, France and Iran
Toni Erdmann, Maren Ade, Germany, Austria and Romania

Best Director
Damien Chazelle for La La Land
Tom Ford for Nocturnal Animals
Mel Gibson for Hacksaw Ridge
Barry Jenkins for Moonlight
Kenneth Lonergan for Manchester by the Sea

Best Actress - Drama
Amy Adams in Arrival
Jessica Chastain in Miss Sloane
Isabelle Huppert in Elle
Ruth Negga in Loving
Natalie Portman in Jackie



Best Actress - Comedy or Musical
Annette Bening in 20th Century Women
Lily Collins in Rules Don't Apply
Hailee Steinfeld in The Edge of Seventeen
Emma Stone in La La Land
Meryl Streep in Florence Foster Jenkins

Best Supporting Actress
Viola Davis in Fences
Naomie Harris in Moonlight
Nicole Kidman in Lion
Octavia Spencer in Hidden Figures
Michelle Williams in Manchester by the Sea

Best Actor - Drama
Casey Affleck in Manchester by the Sea
Joel Edgerton in Loving
Andrew Garfield in Hacksaw Ridge
Viggo Mortensen in Captain Fantastic
Denzel Washington in Fences

Best Actor - Comedy or Musical
Colin Farrell in The Lobster
Ryan Gosling in La La Land
Hugh Grant in Florence Foster Jenkins
Jonah Hill in War Dogs
Ryan Reynolds in Deadpool

Best Supporting Actor
Mahershala Ali in Moonlight
Jeff Bridges in Hell or High Water
Simon Helberg in Florence Foster Jenkins
Dev Patel in Lion
Aaron Taylor-Johnson in Nocturnal Animals

Best Screenplay
Damien Chazelle for La La Land
Tom Ford for Nocturnal Animals
Barry Jenkins for Moonlight
Kenneth Lonergan for Manchester by the Sea
Taylor Sheridan for Hell or High Water

Best Original Score 
Nicholas Britell for Moonlight
Justin Hurwitz for La La Land
Johann Johannsson for Arrival
Dustin O'Halloran and Hauschka for Lion
Hans Zimmer, Pharrell Williams and Benjamin Wallfisch for Hidden Figures

Best Original Song
Can't Stop the Feeling from Trolls, Music and Lyrics by Justin Timberlake, Max Martin and Shellback
City of Stars from La La Land, Music by Justin Hurwitz, Lyrics by Benj Pasek and Justin Paul
Faith from Sing, Musci and Lyrics by Ryan Tedder, Stevie Wonder and Francis Farewell Starlight
Gold from Gold, Music and Lyrics by Brian Burton, Stephen Gaghan, Daniel Pemberton and Iggy Pop
How Far I'll Go from Moana, Music and Lyrics by Lin-Manuel Miranda

To check official announcement (is a pdf file) plus nominees in TV categories go official site here or check here for posters and info.

Can't help but to comment the very noticeable TV snub of Orange is the New Black, a favorite of mine that had a terrific season with outstanding performances by sever of the actresses, sigh.  Still, the TV actresses with Drama nominations, all have outstanding performances.  It's impossible not to recognize that TV has changed so much that nowadays there are too-many shows with extraordinary performances by actors that do cinema but now now are incurssionating into the small screen with what I call "long-movies" like for example, mesmerizing Goliath, fun-to-watch Mozart in the Jungle, outstanding OITNB, puzzling Mr. Robot, awesome Susanne Bier's The Night Manager, and so many more, especially those that many awards still forget NOW, the amazing Nordic TV series (!!!) that imagine soon will come across the pond to America.

The awards ceremony will be on NBC on January 8, 2017 at 8:00pm EST.

Yesterday the Screen Actors Guild announced the nominations for outstanding performances in 2016 in five (5) film and eight (8) television categories, as well as the honors for outstanding action performances by film and television stunt ensembles.  This year the announcement was made by Sophia Bush and Common and after major film critics groups announcing their honors, these nominations come from the first group of actual Academy voters, the largest in the film industry indeed.

Somehow surprisingly Manchester by the Sea leads the most nominations with four (4), three in the individual categories and one for ensemble; Moonlight and Fences follows with three (3) each.

Spontaneously was surprised by the absence of Isabelle Huppert in the actress category; but after a while, guessed she probably does NOT belong to the guild so could not get a nomination.  Nevertheless, this is the category with more surprises as honors include Emily Blunt and Meryl Streep but snubbed Annette Bening and Ruth Negga.

Back in August, SAG announced Lily Tomlin as the recipient of the 23rd SAG Lifetime Achievement Award and she achieved a rare double as was also nominated for her performances in Grace & Frankie.  It is the second time this double honor happens; first time was James Garner in 2005.

Theatrical Motion Pictures

Outstanding Peformance by a Cast in a Motion Picture
Captain Fantastic: Annalise Basso, Shree Crooks, Ann Dowd, Kathryn Hahn, Nicholas Hamilton, Samantha Isler, Frank Langella, George MacKay, Erin Moriarty, Viggo Mortensen, Missi Pyle and Charlie Shotwell
Fences: Jovan Adepo, Viola Davis, Stephen McKinley Henderson, Russell Hornsby, Saniyya Sidney, Denzel Washinton and Mykelti Williamson
Hidden Figures: Mahershala Ali, Kevin Costner, Kirsten Dunst, Taraji P. Henson, Aldis Hodge, Janelle Monae, Jim Parsons, Glen Powell and Octavia Spencer
Manchester by the Sea: Casey Affleck, Matthew Broderick, Kyle Chandler, Lucas Hedges, Gretchen Mol and Michelle Williams
Moonlight: Mahershala Ali, Naomi Harris, Andre Holland, Jharrel Jerome, Janelle Monae, Trevante Rhodes and Ashton Sanders

Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Leading Role
Amy Adams in Arrival
Emily Blunt in The Girl on the Train
Natalie Portman in Jackie
Emma Stone in La La Land
Meryl Streep in Florence Foster Jenkins

Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Supporting Role
Viola Davis in Fences
Naomie Harris in Moonlight
Nicole Kidman in Lion
Octavia Spencer in Hidden Figures
Michelle Williams in Manchester by the Sea

Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Leading Role
Casey Afflec in Manchester by the Sea
Andrew Garfield in Hacksaw Ridge
Ryan Goslin in La La Land
Viggo Mortensen in Captain Fantastic
Denzel Washington in Fences

Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Supporting Role
Mahershala Ali in Moonlight
Jeff Bridges in Hell or High Water
Hugh Grant in Florence Foster Jenkins
Lucas Hedges in Manchester by the Sea
Dev Patel in Lion

Unlike the Golden Globes, Orange is the New Black has 2 nominations which clearly shows the relevance of the show; there are more pleasant surprises in TV, like all the nominations for The Crown, so if you wish to check film plus nominations at the official site go here.

The 23rd annual SAG Awards will be handed out on Sunday, Jan. 29. The ceremony airs live on TNT and TBS at 8:00 p.m. ET / 5:00 p.m.

Yesterday AMPAS announced the shortlist of nine (9) film that advance to the next round of voting in the Foreign-Language Film category.  Eighty-five (85) films had originally been considered in the category.

Foreign Language Film nominations are determined in two phases.  The Phase I committee, consisting of several hundred Los Angeles-based Academy members, screened the original submissions in the category between mid-October and December 12.  The group’s top six choices, augmented by three additional selections voted by the Academy’s Foreign Language Film Award Executive Committee, constitute the shortlist.

In Phase II, the shortlist will be winnowed down to the category’s five nominees by specially invited committees in New York, Los Angeles and London.  They will spend Friday, January 13, through Sunday, January 15, viewing three films each day and then casting their ballots.

There is no need to read the articles by industry journalists as with a bird's eye to the list found what will be highly controversial for the next days.  No, the Academy doesn't have an easy task selecting 9 films in a year with many extraordinary films in the list of 85; but, there are some omissions that are inexplicable like Pedro Almodovar's Julieta, Pablo Larrain's Neruda and let's also include a more controversial film, the winner of Venice Golden Lion, From Afar by Lorenzo Vigas.

Then we have Italy's submission and  Berlin Golden Bear winner, Fire at Sea by Gianfranco Rosi that didn't make it to the shortlist but there is always a chance that will get a Best Documentary nomination.  What puzzles me is the inclusion of Switzerland's submission My Life as a Zuchinni by Claude Barras as was expecting film to get a Best Animation Film nomination and now wonder if film has chances in the more visible animation category.

Every major industry film journalist/critic is talking about the omission of Elle by Paul Verhoeven; me, I understand it as didn't enjoyed film that much.  If film didn't had Isabelle Huppert as the lead, film would have been forgettable as French cinema and when I consider the many films by Huppert that I have seen, she has many more with better outstanding performances. So, it's understandable that film didn't advance in this category.  I'm still hoping Huppert to get a Best Actress nomination.

But the list has some films that I'm glad are honored with a pre-nomination accolade.  Most pleased with Xavier Dolan's film advancing as well as with Asghar Farhadi's latest; with all the European honors film is collecting Denmark's submission seems to deserve the place in the shortlist and not crazy about director but Russia's submission really looks like having great visuals and dramatic story.

Australia: Tanna, Martin Butler and Bentley Dean

Canada: Juste la fin du monde (It's Only the End of the World), Xavier Dolan

Denmark: Under sandet (Land of Mine), Martin Zandvliet

Germany: Toni Erdmann, Maren Ade

Iran: فروشنده Forushande (The Salesman), Asghar Farhadi

Norway: Kongens nei (The King's Choice), Erik Poppe
Russia:  Рай Rai (Paradise), Andrei Konchalovsky

Sweden: En man som heter Ove (A Man Called Ove), Hannes Holm

Switzerland: Ma Vie de Courgette (My Life as a Zucchini), Claude Barras

Considering the 9 films above, my crystal ball tells me the American Academy will do as the European Academy and succumb to Toni Erdman.  Not that I mind as will be great to have a female director winning the category, so hope to be right and AMPAS members will not snub film because of the same reason I wish could win. Sigh.

To check announcement at official site go here.  Nominations for the 2017 Oscars will be announced on Tuesday, January 24, 2017. The 89th Oscars will be held on Sunday, February 26, 2017, at the Dolby Theatre at Hollywood & Highland Center in Hollywood, and will be televised live on the ABC Television Network at 7 p.m. ET/4 p.m. PT. 

A few moments ago the foreign press based in Paris announced the nominations for the current edition of the award that honors French and Francophone films since 1996 and this edition has Elle by Paul Verhoeven, A Woman's Life by Stéphane Brizé, Staying Vertical by Alan Guiraudie, Frantz by François Ozon and Last Days of Louis XIV by Albert Sierra leading the pack with four (4) nominations each.

More than 80 films were reviewed by the 100+ film journalists from more than 20 countries; Lumières Academy members had the opportunity to also watch films in the Cinando /Le Marché du Film de Cannes video library, which registered more than 800 visits.  All theses figures are testimony of the interest that French Cinema generates around the world.

Maybe you'll agree that 2016 was not an outstanding year for French cinema as with a very-few exceptions most films leaned to the usual-average side of the scale.  Still worth mentioning that none of the six Best Film nominated films or nominated directors (they are the same) have won the award before and more relevant, this year selection is diverse with not one film standing out. 

Best actress category as always is interesting and this year has two of my most favorite actresses competing for the award, Marion Cotillard in From the Land of the Moon and Isabelle Huppert in Elle; but most interesting is the nomination of Soko in The Dancer and Lily-Rose Depp in same movie for Most Promising Actress (Female Revelation).

Best Film
Elle, Paul Verhoeven
La mort de Louis XIV (Last Days of Louis XIV), Albert Sierra
Nocturama, Bertrand Bonello
Les Ogres (Ogres),  Léa Fehner
Rester Vertical (Staying Vertical), Alain Guiraudie
Une vie (A Woman's Life),  Stéphane Brizé

Best First Film
Apnée, Jean-Christophe Meurisse
La Danseuse (The Dancer), Stéphanie di Giusto
Diamant noir (Dark Inclusion), Arthur Harari
Divines, Houda Benyamina
Gorge cœur ventre (Still Life), Maud Alpi
Mercenaire (Mercenary), Sacha Wolff

Best Francophone Film
Belgica, Felix van Groeningen, Belgium and France
La fille inconnue (The Unknown Girl, Jean Pierre and Luc Dardenne, Belgium and France
Hedi, Mohammed Ben Attia, Tunisia and Belgium
Juste la fin du monde (It's Only the End of the World), Xavier Dolan, Canada and France
Mimosas, Oliver Laxe, Spain, France Morocco and Qatar
Les Premiers, les Derniers (The First, The Last), Bouli Lanners, Belgium and France

Best Animated Film
La jeune fille sans mains (The Girl Without Hands), Sébastien Laudenbach
Louise en hiver (Louise by the Shore), Jean-François Laguionie
Ma vie de Courgette (My Life as a Zucchini), Claude Barras
La tortue rouge (The Red Turtle), Michael Dudok de Wit
Tout en haut du monde (Long Way North), Rémi Chayé

Best Documentary
Le bois dont les rêves sont faits (The Woods Dreams Are Made Of), Claire Simon
Dernières nouvelles du cosmos (Last News from the Cosmos), Julie Bertuccelli
Merci Patron!, François Ruffin
La sociologue et l’ourson, Etienne Chaillou and Mathias Théry
Swagger, Olivier Babinet
Voyage à travers le cinéma français (Journey Through French Cinema), Bertrand Tavernier

Best Director
Bertrand Bonello for Nocturama, Bertrand Bonello
Stéphane Brizé for Une vie (A Woman's Life)
Léa Fehner for Les Ogres (Ogres)
Alain Guiraudie for Rester Vertical (Staying Vertical)
Albert Serra for La mort de Louis XIV (Last Days of Louis XIV)
Paul Verhoeven for Elle

Best Actress
Judith Chemla in Une vie (A Woman's Life)
Marion Cotillard in Mal de pierres (From the Land of the Moon)
Virginie Efira in Victoria
Isabelle Huppert in Elle
Sidse Babett Knudsen in La fille de Brest
Soko in La Danseuse (The Dancer)

Best Actor
Pierre Deladonchamps in Le fils de Jean (A KId)
Gérard Depardieu in The End
Nicolas Duvauchelle in Je ne suis pas un salaud (A Decent Man)
Jean-Pierre Léaud in La mort de Louis XIV (Last Days of Louis XIV)
Omar Sy and James Thierrée in Chocolat
Gaspard Ulliel in Juste la fin du monde (It's Only the End of the World)

Most Promising Actress
Oulaya Amamra and Déborah Lukumuena in Divines
Paula Beer in Frantz
Lily Rose Depp in La Danseuse (The Dancer)
Manal Issa in Peur de rien (Parisienne)
Naomi Amarger and Noémie Merlant in Le ciel attendra (Heaven Will Wait)
Raph in Ma Loute (Slack Bay)

Most Promising Actor
Damien Bonnard in Rester Vertical (Staying Vertical)
Corentin Fila and Kacey Mottet Klein in Quand on a 17 ans (Being 17)
Finnegan Oldfield in Bang Gang (A Modern Love Story)
Toki Pilioko in Mercenaire (Mercenary)
Sadek in Tour de France
Niels Schneider in Diamant noir (Dark Inclusion)

Best Screenplay
David Birke for Elle
Léa Fehner, Catherine Paillé and Brigitte Sy for Les Ogres (Ogres)
Emilie Frèche and Marie-Castille Mention-Schaar for Le ciel attendra (Heaven Will Wait)
Alain Guiraudie for Rester Vertical (Staying Vertical)
François Ozon for Frantz
Céline Sciamma for Ma vie de Courgette (My Life as a Zucchini)

Best Cinematography
Christophe Beaucarne for Mal de pierres (From the Land of the Moon)
Benoît Debie for La Danseuse (The Dancer)
Antoine Héberlé for Une vie (A Woman's Life)
Léo Hinstin for Nocturama
Pascal Marti for Frantz
Jonathan Ricquebourg for La mort de Louis XIV (Last Days of Louis XIV)

Best Score
Sophie Hunger for Ma vie de Courgette (My Life as a Zucchini)
Ibrahim Maalouf for Dans les forêts de Sibérie (In the Forests of Siberia)
Laurent Perez del Mar for La tortue rouge (The Red Turtle)
ROB for Planétarium (Planetarium)
Philippe Rombi for Frantz
Gabriel Yared for Juste la fin du monde (It's Only the End of the World)

To Check the nominees at the official site go here.   Awards ceremony will be on January 30, 2017  at Théâtre de la Madeleine in Paris.

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced a while back that ten (10) films remain in the running in the Visual Effects category for the 2017 Oscars edition.

The Academy’s Visual Effects Branch Executive Committee determined the shortlist. All members of the Visual Effects Branch will now be invited to view 10-minute excerpts from each of the shortlisted films on Saturday, January 7, 2017.  Following the screenings, the members will vote to nominate five films for final Oscarconsideration.  Nominations will be announced on Tuesday, January 24, 2017.

Arrival
The BFG
Captain America: Civil War
Deepwater Horizon
Doctor Strange
Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them
The Jungle Book
Kubo and the Two Strings
Passengers
Rogue One: A Star Wars Story

The 89th Oscars will be held on Sunday, February 26, 2017, at the Dolby Theatre at Hollywood & Highland Center in Hollywood, and will be televised live on the ABC Television Network at 7 p.m. ET/4 p.m. PT.

Arrival
Denis Villeneuve’s Arrival is almost an anti-alien invasion film. It’s subtle and purposeful use of visual effects was orchestrated by vfx supe Louis Morin, who enlisted vendors including Hybride, Oblique FX, Rodeo FX, Framestore, Raynault VFX, Folks FX and Alchemy FX to render everything from odd-shaped spacecraft to even odder-shaped aliens. In this interview with vfxblog, Morin discusses the invisible nature of the effects work and some of the harder shots to pull off.



The BFG
Steven Spielberg's new movie, the 24-foot titular Big Friendly Giant is the creation of Mark Rylanceand Weta Digital and its four-time Oscar-winning senior visual effects supervisor Joe Letteri.



Captain America: Civil War



Deepwater Horizon
Pete Berg wanted everything to feel real… period. He knows from past experience what that means in a movie like this. He pushed everything as far as it could go in camera. The sets were as big and authentic as they could be, the special effects were as big and complex as they could be while maintaining safety for all involved but in the end, it’s real actors portraying an insanely dangerous situation so a lot has to be done in post.
What he was after from the visual effects was to absolutely plunge the audience into the chaos of the situation, to provide a visceral experience of just the kind of hell these people had to fight through to in their attempts to try to overt the disaster that would ultimately unfold and save the lives of everyone they could. He kept telling me that he knew ILM could do beautiful work, but that’s not what he wanted. He wanted it to be “dirty and nasty.” Everything from exposures to framing to lens artifacts – He wanted the audiences to be able to feel the heat and taste the smoke.



Doctor Strange
The effect was quite difficult to nail down, as to how far we should go with it, especially when our live-action characters had to be integrated within those scenes. Mark Wilson VFX Supervisor. The Astral Form was one of the hardest effects we’ve had to deal with at Framestore; finding the right balance of a look that was subtle but also beautiful. Alexis Wajsbrot CG Supervisor.



Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them
The Harry Potter prequel, Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, finds Eddie Redmayne performing a mating ritual in front of a massive computer-generated beast. Using a combination of puppets and CGI, a slew of effects houses were able to craft convincing monsters to populate J.K. Rowling’s imaginative world.



The Jungle Book
Although it’s grouped in with Disney’s recent slate of live-action remakes, The Jungle Book is made up almost entirely of CGI, with young Neel Sethi’s Mowgli serving as the only substantial “live-action” element. The studio has released a new series of photos that showcase the insane amount of work that went into the film’s impressive visual effects, and it might make you do a double-take.



Kubo and the Two Strings
From the opening minutes of Kubo and the Two Strings, directed by Travis Knight, it's clear that team at LAIKA broke new ground for the company with the vast amount of water effects in the film. That's not to say there hasn't been any water on screen in their previous films, but it was treated as a practical effect and not CGI.



Passengers


Rogue One: A Star Wars Story

Yesterday the American Cinema Editors Society announce the nominations for the 2017 EDDIE Awards and believe there are no surprises as the awards season has and could continue to honor the same films with nominations and awards.  Sigh.

Nevertheless the most interesting news come from who will be honored with the ACE Filmmaker of the Year Award as is none other that J. J. Abrams.

“J.J. Abrams is a once-in-a-generation artist who has been making his mark in cinema and television for over twenty years,” stated the ACE Board of Directors.  “Through his production company, Bad Robot, J.J. has engaged and delighted audiences around the world with his innovative brand of storytelling.  

Whether he’s reinventing a beloved franchise or creating something entirely new and groundbreaking — be it Star Trek, Star Wars, Westworld, Lost, Alias and many others — his name is synonymous with nothing less than spectacular entertainment. He is one of the most exciting voices working in our industry, and we’re thrilled to celebrate his body of work thus far.”
ACE, the entertainment industry’s honorary society of film editors, is comprised of over 850 accomplished editors working in film and television.  The ACE Eddie Awards recognize outstanding editing in ten categories of film, television and documentaries, listed below are the film and documentary categories.

Best Edited Feature Film Dramatic
Joe Walker for Arrival
John Gilbert for Hacksaw Ridge
Jake Roberts for Hell or High Water
Jennifer Lame for Manchester by the Sea
Nat Sander and Joi McMillion for Moonlight

Best Edited Feature Film Comedy 
Julian Clarke for Deadpool
Roderick Jaynes for Hail, Caesar!
Mark Livolsi for The Jungle Book
Tom Cross for La La Land
Yorgos Mavropsaridis for The Lobster

Best Edited Animated Feature Film
Christopher Murrie for Kubo and the Two Strings
Jeff Draheim for Moana
Fabienne Rawley and Jeremy Milton for Zootopia

Best Edited Feature Documentary
Spencer Averick for 13th
Matthew Hamachek for Amanda Knox
Paul Crowder for The Beatles: Eight Days a Week - The Touring Years
Bret Granato, Maya Mumma and Ben Sozanski for O.J.: Made in America

To check complete announcement with TV categories go official site here. Winners will be announced at the 67th Annual ACE Eddie Awards on Friday, January 27, 2017 in the International Ballroom of the Beverly Hilton Hotel. The ceremonies will be presided over by ACE President, Stephen Rivkin.

A few minutes ago the Art Directors Guild announced the nominations for the current edition that becomes quite unusual as out of the 11 categories there are two (2) that had ties and consequently have six (6) nominees, one category belongs to feature films and the other to television.  

The 21st Annual Excellence in Production Design Awards celebrating “Return to Hollywood” will take place on Saturday, February 11, 2017, at the Ray Dolby Ballroom at Hollywood and Highland.

As we know the guild recognizes work in three (3) motion picture categories: period, fantasy and contemporary film.

Period Film (tie)
Santo Loquasto for Café Society
David Gropman for Fences
Barry Robison for Hacksaw Ridge
Jess Gonchor for Hail, Caesar!
Wynn Thomas for Hidden Figures
Jean Rabasse for Jackie

Fantasy Film
Patrice Vermette for Arrival
Charles Wood for Doctor Strange
Stuart Craig for Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them
Guy Hendrix Dyas for Passengers
Doug Chiang and Neil Lamont for Rogue One: A Star Wars Story

Contemporary Film
Tom Duffield for Hell or High Water
David Wasco for La La Land
Chris Kennedy for Lion
Ruth de Jong for Manchester by the Sea
Shane Valentino for Nocturnal Animals

To check the press release go official site here; to check nominees in all categories go here and/or here, last link has info to be considered for production design for some of the nominees, includes video and design presentation, suggest to check them.

As previously announced, Gene Allen, Oscar-winning Production Designer behind My Fair Lady, A Star is Born and Les Girls, will be inducted into the Art Directors Guild (ADG) Hall of Fame.  ADG will also present four Lifetime Achievement Awards to Production Designer René Lagler, Scenic Artist Albert Obregon, Emmy-nominated Set Designer Cate Bangs and Senior Illustrator Joseph Musso.

Yesterday the Writers Guild of America, East (WGAE) and the Writers Guild of America, West (WGAW) announced the nominations for outstanding achievement in screenwriting during 2016; best news for me are the inclusion of films like Nocturnal Animals and Loving, two films that have been absent in most up-to-date film critics honors.

As announced previously the 2017 Screen Laurel Award goes to Oliver Stone and the Paddy Chayefsky Laurel Award for Television to Aaron Sorkin. The East group will honor John Waters with the WGAE's Career Achievement Award and Steve O'Donnell with receive the Herb Sargent Award for Comedy Excellence.

Feature films eligible for a Writers Guild Award were exhibited theatrically for at least one week in Los Angeles during 2016 and were written under the WGA’s Minimum Basic Agreement (MBA) or under a bona fide collective bargaining agreement of the Writers Guild of Canada, Writers’ Guild of Great Britain, Writers Guild of Ireland, Writers’ Guild of South Africa, New Zealand Writers Guild, Film Writers’ Association (India), La Guilde Francaise des Scénaristes (France), Scriptwriters Guild of Israel, Société des Auteurs de Radio, Télévision et Cinéma (Québec), or Verband Deutscher Drehbuchautoren (VDD/Germany), collectively known as affiliate Guilds.

Theatrical screenplays produced under the jurisdiction of the WGA or an affiliate Guild must have been submitted for Writers Guild Awards consideration.

Documentaries eligible for a Writers Guild Award featured an onscreen writing credit and were exhibited theatrically in Los Angeles or New York for one week during 2016. Theatrical documentaries must have been produced under the jurisdiction of the WGA or an affiliate Guild to be eligible for awards consideration.

The Writers Guild Awards honor outstanding writing in film, television, new media, videogames, news, radio, promotional, and graphic animation categories. The following are the nominees in the Feature Films categories.

Original Screenplay
Hell or High Water, Written by Taylor Sheridan
La La Land, Written by Damien Chazelle
Loving, Written by Jeff Nichols
Manchester by the Sea, Written by Kenneth Lonergan
Moonlight, Screenplay by Barry Jenkins, Story by Tarell McCraney

Adapted Screenplay
Arrival, Screenplay by Eric Heisserer; Based on the Story “Story of Your Life” by Ted Chiang
Deadpool, Written by Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick; Based on the X-Men Comic Books
Fences, Screenplay by August Wilson; Based on his Play
Hidden Figures, Screenplay by Allison Schroeder and Theodore Melfi; Based on the Book by Margot Lee Shetterly
Nocturnal Animals, Screenplay by Tom Ford; Based on the Novel Tony and Susan by Austin Wright

Documentary Screenplay
Author: The JT LeRoy Story, Written by Jeff Feuerzeig
Command and Control, Telescript by Robert Kenner & Eric Schlosser, Story by Brian Pearle and Kim Roberts; Based on the book Command and Control by Eric Schlosser;
Zero Days, Written by Alex Gibney

To check nominees in all categories go here.  The awards will be presented at concurrent ceremonies on Sunday, February 19, 2017, in Los Angeles at the Beverly Hilton and in New York City at the Edison Ballroom, WGA West awards ceremony will be hosted by Patton Oswalt and WGA East awards ceremony will be hosted by Lewis Black.

Early this morning Dominic Cooper and Sophie Turner at BAFTA's headquarters announced the nominations for Film Awards and now we have a different view of what the cinema industry could be honoring this year as by now have a clear idea of what film critics like, some idea of what American Guilds -with too-many regulations- could honor and as of this moment what British Academy members will honor this year.  Let's recall that some British Academy members are also AMPAS members and these nominations always give a necessary boost to some films and often resemble what Oscar nominations could look.

La La Land leads with eleven (11) nominations followed by Arrival and Nocturnal Animals with nine (9) nominations each, Manchester by the Sea has six (6), and with five (each) Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, Hacksaw Ridge, Lion and I, Daniel Blake.  Moonlight and Florence Foster Jenkins have both been nominated four (4) times.

Believe there are high probabilities Casey Affleck and Viola Davis will get an Oscar (well, if they win a BAFTA) but perhaps the most interesting is the boost that Tom Ford's Nocturnal Animals gets after today; film critics have not honor the film but seems the industry has better film evaluation, me, I saw 2 movies in Nocturnal Animals, one I loved, one I hated but can't deny that film captured me, put me inside the screen and allow me to feel all kind of good and bad feelings/emotions -not many films can do it.

These are the nominees.

Best Film
Arrival
I, Daniel Blake
La La Land
Manchester by the Sea
Moonlight

Outstanding British Film
American Honey
Denial
Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them
I, Daniel Blake
Notes on Blindness
Under the Shadow

Film Not in The English Language
Dheepan
Julieta
Mustang
Son of Saul
Toni Erdmann

Documentary
13th
The Beatles: Eight Days a Week - The Touring Years
The Eagle Huntress
Notes on Blindness
Weiner

Animated Film
Finding Dory
Kubo and the Two Strings
Moana
Zootropolis (aka Zootopia)

Director
Denis Villeneuve for Arrival
Ken Loach for I, Daniel Blake
Damien Chazelle for La La Land
Kenneth Lonergan for Manchester by the Sea
Tom Ford for Nocturnal Animals

Outstanding Debut by a British Writer, Director or Producer
Mike Carey (Writer) and Camille Gatin (Producer) for The Girl with All the Gifts
George Amponsah (Writer/Director/Producer) and Dionne Walker (Writer/Producer) for The Hard Stop
Pete Middleton (Writer/Director/Producer), James Spinney (Writer/Director) and Jo-Jo Ellison (Producer) for Notes on Blindness
John Donnelly (Writer) and Ben Williams (Director) for The Pass
Babak Anvari (Witer/Director) and Emily Leo, Oliver Roskill, Lucan Toh (Producers) for Under the Shadow

Leading Actress
Amy Adams in Arrival
Emily Blunt in The Girl on the Train
Emma Stone in La La Land
Meryl Streep in Florence Foster Jenkins
Natalie Portman in Jackie

Supporting Actress
Hayley Squires in I, Daniel Blake
Michelle Williams in Manchester by the Sea
Naomie Harris in Moonlight
Nicole Kindman in Lion
Viola Davis in Fences

Leading Actor
Andrew Garfiel in Hacksaw Ridge
Casey Affleck in Manchester by the Sea
Jake Gyllenhaal in Nocturnal Animals
Ryan Gosling in La La Land
Viggo Mortensen in Captain Fantastic

Supporting Actor
Aaron Taylor-Johnson in Nocturnal Animals
Dev Patel in Lion
Jeff Bridges in Hell or High Water
Hugh Grant in Florence Foster Jenkins
Mahershala Ali in Moonlight

Original Screenplay
Hell or High Water
I, Daniel Blake
La La Land
Manchester by the Sea
Moonlight

Adapted Screenplay
Arrival
Hacksaw Ridge
Hidden Figures
Lion
Nocturnal Animals

Cinematography
Arrival
Hell or High Water
La La Land
Lion
Nocturnal Animals

Special Visual Effects
Arrival
Doctor Strange
Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them
The Jungle Book
Rogue One: A Star Wars Story

Editing
Arrival
Hacksaw Ridge
La La Land
Nocturnal Animals
Manchester by the Sea

Production Design
Doctor Strange
Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them
Hail Caesar!
La La Land
Nocturnal Animals

Costume Design
Allied
Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them
Florence Foster Jenkins
Jackie
La La Land

Make Up & Hair
Florence Foster Jenkins
Doctor Strange
Hacksaw Ridge
Nocturnal Animals
Rogue One: A Star Wars Story

Sound
Arrival
Deepwater Horizon
Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them
Hacksaw Ridge
La La Land

Original Music
Arrival
Jackie
La La Land
Lion
Nocturnal Animals

British Short Animation
The Alan Dimension
A Love Story
Tough

British Short Film
Consumed
Home
Mouth of Hell
The Party
Standby

Rising Star
Anya Taylor-Joy
Laia Costa
Lucas Hedges
Ruth Negga
Tom Holland

To check nominees at official site go here. The awards ceremony will take place on Sunday February 12 at the Royal Albert Hall in London.  The ceremony will be hosted by Stephen Fry and NO, there is no live broadcast or streaming but winners are announced LIVE via official twitter.

A few moments ago the Cinema Audio Society (CAS) announced the nominees for the current edition of the awards that honor Outstanding Achievements in Sound Mixing in film and television as well as Technical Achievement in production and post-production.

“We are blessed this year with a rich portfolio of Cinema Audio art applied. As the creative contributions of sound mixing to modern filmmaking becomes more obvious to the world at large, these productions truly represent the talents of our community,” said Mark Ulano, CAS President. “We are proud to congratulate all our well deserving nominees for their stellar work. We also have the good news of announcing for the first time nominations for Outstanding Achievement in Sound Mixing for a Motion Picture Documentary.”



Yes, for the first time group will honor Sound Mixing in Documentary.  Perhaps the most surprising is the nom for Sully, a film that has escaped honors in the current award season.
 
The following are the nominations for the Motion Picture categories.

Live Action
Doctor Strange
Hacksaw Ridge
La La Land
Rogue One: A Star Wars Story
Sully

Animated
Finding Dory
Kubo and the Two Strings
Moana
The Secret Life of Pets
Zootopia

Documentary
13th
Eat That Question: Frank Zappa in His Own Words
Gleason
O. J.: Made in America
The Music of Strangers: Yo-Yo Ma and The Silk Road Ensemble


To check nominations for television and technical achievement awards go official site here.  Awards ceremony will be on February 18 in the Bunker Hill Ballroom of the OMNI Los Angeles Hotel at California Plaza.  During the ceremony the highest honor of the CAS, the CAS Career Achievement Award will be presented to Production Mixer John Pritchett and Jon Favreau will receive the CAS Filmmaker Award.

In a very busy day with lots of announcements the PGA released the motion picture nominations for the 28th Annual Producers Guild Awards. The categories are The Darryl F. Zanuck Award for Outstanding Producer of Theatrical Motion Pictures and The Award for Outstanding Producer of Animated Theatrical Motion Pictures.

This year, the Producers Guild will present special honors to Tom Rothman (Milestone Award), James L. Brooks (Norman Lear Achievement Award in Television), Irwin Winkler (David O. Selznick Achievement Award in Theatrical Motion Pictures), the feature film Loving (Stanley Kramer Award), and Megan Ellison (Visionary Award).

The 2017 Producers Guild Awards Co-Chairs are Donald De Line and Amy Pascal.  Last week, the PGA announced Producers Guild Awards nominations for the television series/specials, children’s programs, long-form television, sports programs, and digital series categories.

PGA nominations look like what nominees for Oscar could look in the Best Film category.  The three most-talked films of the season are being honored here as La La Land, Moonlight and Manchester by the Sea are listed below, what is interesting is the other films that made the list and the guessing game to predict which ones will get a nom and how many films will be in the Oscar category.

Perhaps the most unusual nomination goes to Deadpool a film I couldn't watch first time but surprise, the second time was able to watch and enjoy the movie!!!  Suppose that if there were an award for based on a comic book film, then surely this film has to be THE best but how can a film full of action, vfx's, foul language, etc compete against great movies?  Well, think I know, good performances and a fantastic screenplay!  Think chances are very low for an Oscar nomination, but there could be surprises if the number goes up to 10 nominees.

The 2017 Producers Guild Awards motion picture nominations are listed below in alphabetical order by category, along with eligible producers’ name.

The Darryl F. Zanuck Award for Outstanding Producer of Theatrical Motion Pictures
Arrival, Producers: Dan Levine, Shawn Levy, Aaron Ryder, David Linde
Deadpool, Producers: Simon Kinberg, Ryan Reynolds, Lauren Shuler Donner
Fences, Producers: Scott Rudin, Denzel Washington, Todd Black
Hacksaw Ridge, Producers: Bill Mechanic, David Permut
Hell or High Water, Producers: Carla Hacken, Julie Yorn
Hidden Figures, Producers: Donna Gigliotti, Peter Chernin & Jenno Topping, Pharrell Williams, Theodore Melfi
La La Land, Producers: Fred Berger, Jordan Horowitz, Marc Platt
Lion, Producers: Emile Sherman & Iain Canning, Angie Fielder
Manchester By the Sea, Producers: Matt Damon, Kimberly Steward, Chris Moore, Lauren Beck, Kevin Walsh
Moonlight, Producers: Adele Romanski, Dede Gardner & Jeremy Kleiner

The Award for Outstanding Producer of Animated Theatrical Motion Pictures
Finding Dory, Producer: Lindsey Collins
Kubo and the Two Strings, Producers: Arianne Sutner, Travis Knight
Moana, Producer: Osnat Shurer
The Secret Life of Pets, Producers: Chris Meledandri, Janet Healy
Zootopia, Producer: Clark Spencer

The Award for Outstanding Producer of Documentary Theatrical Motion Pictures
Dancer, Producer: Gabrielle Tana
The Eagle Huntress, Producers: Stacey Reiss, Otto Bell
Life, Animated, Producers: Julie Goldman, Roger Ross Williams
O.J.: Made in America, Producers: Ezra Edelman, Caroline Waterlow
Tower, Producers: Keith Maitland, Susan Thomson, Megan Gilbride

To check the announcement at the official site, plus check nominations in television and other tech categories go official site here.  All 2017 Producers Guild Award winners will be announced on Saturday, January 28, 2017 at the Beverly Hilton Hotel in Los Angeles.

In 1990, the Producers Guild held the first-ever Golden Laurel Awards, which were renamed the Producers Guild Awards in 2002. Richard Zanuck and Lili Fini Zanuck took home the award for Best Produced Motion Picture for Driving Miss Daisy, establishing the Guild’s awards as a bellwether for the Oscars.

The Visual Effect Society Awards recognizes and honors most outstanding visual effects work of the year and honors the artists who create them and today announced the nominees in film, animation, television, commercials and video games and the VFX supervisors, VFX producers and hands-on artists who bring this work to life.

The VES Awards will herald the organization’s milestone 20th anniversary.  The VES Awards will be held on February 7th at the Beverly Hilton Hotel. As previously announced, the Lifetime Achievement Award will be presented to multiple Academy Award-winning visual effects pioneer Ken Ralston. The Visionary Award will be presented to acclaimed producer and Marvel Studios Executive Vice President of Physical Production Victoria Alonso.

“The artistry, ingenuity and passion of visual effects practitioners around the world have come together to create truly remarkable imagery in a variety of media,” said Mike Chambers, VES Chair. “We are seeing best in field work that elevates the art of storytelling and engages the audience in new and innovative ways. The VES Awards is the only venue that showcases and honors these outstanding artists across a wide range of disciplines, and we are extremely proud of all our nominees!”

“The VES Student Award presented by Autodesk spotlights the year's most stellar work from budding VFX artists and innovators around the world, and we're proud to be a sponsor of the award again this year. The nominees' submissions are outstanding, and we look forward to collaborating with this fantastic organization to recognize and celebrate this next generation of filmmakers," said Chris Bradshaw, Autodesk’s Senior Vice President, Media & Entertainment, Education Experiences, and Impact.

Rogue One: A Star Wars Story leads with seven (7) nominations followed by Doctor Strange and The Jungle Book with six (6) each; also with six nominations is the top animated film contender, Kubo and the Two Strings.

Nominees in 24 categories were selected by VES members via events hosted by its ten sections, including Australia, Bay Area, London, Los Angeles, Montreal, New York, Toronto and Vancouver.  Here are the nominees in the Motion Picture categories.

Live Action Feature Motion Picture(Photoreal Feature)

Outstanding Visual Effects
Doctor Strange
Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them
Miss Peregrine's Home For Peculiar Children
Rogue One: A Star Wars Story
The Jungle Book

Outstanding Supporting Visual Effects
Allied
Deepwater Horizon
Jason Bourne
Silence
Sully

Outstanding Created Environment
Deadpool, Freeway Assault
Doctor Strange, London
Doctor Strange, New York City
Rogue One: A Star Wars Story,  Scarif Complex

Outstanding Animated Performance
Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, Niffler
Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, Grand Moff Tarkin
The Jungle Book, King Louie
The Jungle Book, Shere Khan
Warcraft, Durotan

Outstanding Virtual Cinematography
Doctor Strange, New York Mirror Dimension
Game of Thrones, Battle of Bastards
Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, Space Battle
The Jungle Book

Outstanding Compositing
Doctor Strange, New York City
Independence Day: Resurgence, Under the Mothership
The Jungle Book
X-Men: Apocalypse, Quicksilver Rescue

Outstanding Effects Simulations
Alice Through the Looking Glass, Rust
Doctor Strange, Hong Kong Reverse Destruction
Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, Jedha Destruction
The Jungle Book, Nature Effects

Outstanding Model in a Photoreal or Animated Project
Deepwater Horizon, Deepwater Horizon Rig
Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, Princess Leia
Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, Star Destroyer
Star Trek Beyond, Enterprise

Animated Motion Picture

Outstanding Visual Effects
Finding Dory
Kubo and the Two Strings
Moana
The Little Prince
Zootopia

Outstanding Animated Performance
Finding Dory, Hank
Kubo and the Two Strings, Kubo
Kubo and the Two Strings, Monkey
Moana, The Mighty Maui

Outstanding Created Environment
Finding Dory, Open Ocean Exhibit
Kubo and the Two Strings, Hanzo's Fortress
Kubo and the Two Strings, Waves
Moana, Motonui Island

Outstanding Effect Simulations
Finding Dory
Kubo and the Two Strings, Water
Moana
Zootopia

To read nominees in TV and other media go official site here. Awards ceremony will be on February 7 at the Beverly Hilton Hotel.

Today Sue Cabral-Ebert, President of the Make-up Artists and Hair Stylistst Guild (MUAHS), announced the nominees in twenty-three (23) categories honoring make-up artists and hair stylists outstanding achievements in motion pictures, television, commercials and live theater.

Said Cabral-Ebert, “This year’s record entries for the Make-Up Artists and Hair Stylists Guild Awards from the talented global community of artisans is very exciting, and we look forward to celebrating their unique achievements and exceptional bodies of work. Congratulations to all the nominees who should be very proud of their extraordinary creations!”

Feature-Length Motion Pictures

Best Contemporary Make-Up
Captain Fantastic
La La Land
Manchester by the Sea
Nocturnal Animals
Zoolander 2

Best Period and/or Character Make-Up
Doctor Strange
Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them
Hail, Caesar!
Loving
Suicide Squad

Best Special Make-Up Effects
Deadpool
Doctor Strange
Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them
Star Trek Beyond
Suicide Squad

Best Period and/or Character Hair Styling
Fantastic Beast and Where to Find Them
Florence Foster Jenkins
Hail, Caesar!
Jackie
Loving

To check nominations in all media categories go official site here.  As previously announced, Ryan Murphy, producer, director and screenwriter, will receive this year’s Distinguished Artisan Award. Make-up artist Leonard Engelmanand hair stylist Barbara Lorenz, will receive the Guild’s Lifetime Achievement Awards.  Final ballot on-line voting closes on February 10, 2017. Winners will be announced on February 19 at the Awards gala and live on Twitter via @Local_706 (#MUAHSawards).

The USC Libraries have named the authors and screenwriters of Arrival, Fences, Hidden Figures, Lion and Moonlight as finalists for the 29th annual Scripter Award.

Since 1988, Scripter has honored the authors of printed works alongside the screenwriters who adapt their stories. Last year, the USC Libraries inaugurated a new Scripter award, for television adaptation. Television and film finalists compete in separate categories.

Chaired by Howard Rodman, USC professor and president of the Writers Guild of America, West, the 2017 Scripter selection committee selected the finalists from a field of 80 film and 45 television adaptations.

These are the finalists for film adaptation.

Screenwriter Eric Heisserer for Arrival, adapted from the novella “Story of Your Life” by Ted Chiang
August Wilson for the play and screenplay of Fences
Screenwriters Allison Schroeder and Theodore Melfi for Hidden Figures, based on the nonfiction book by Margot Lee Shetterly
Luke Davies for the screenplay for Lion, adapted from the nonfiction book A Long Way Home by Saroo Brierley
Barry Jenkins for Moonlight, adapted from In Moonlight Black Boys Look Blue, by Tarell Alvin McCraney

Serving on the selection committee, among many others, are film critics Leonard Maltin, Anne Thompson and Kenneth Turan; authors Lisa Belkin, Michael Ondaatje and Mona Simpson; screenwriters Geoffrey Fletcher and Erin Cressida Wilson; producers Lawrence Kasdan and Paula Wagner; and USC deans Elizabeth Daley of the USC School of Cinematic Arts and Catherine Quinlan of the USC Libraries.  To check nominees in television go to press release at official site here.

The USC Libraries will announce the winning authors and screenwriters at a ceremony on February 11 at USC’s Doheny Memorial Library.

A few minutes ago the American Society of Cinematographers announced their nominees for the current edition of their awards that honor Outstanding Achievement in Cinematography.
 
“Each of the nominated films offers a unique vision on the part of the director of photography,” said Kees van Oostrum, ASC President. “These movies also represent a less formulaic or traditional photographic style, and some of their stories highlight socially conscious subject matter that drives a strong surge in photographic realism.”

Introduced by Society vice-president Bill Bennett, ASC, former ASC president Richard Crudo presented the nominations in these two categories before a luncheon held on January 11 at the ASC Clubhouse in Hollywood.

As announced before the Lifetime Achievement Award goes to Edward Lachman, the Board of Governors Award to Denzel Washington, the Career Achievement in Television Award to Ron Garcia, the International Award to Phillipe Rousselot and the Presidents Award to Nancy Schreiber.

The ASC Vilmos Zsigmond Heritage Awards are for Undergraduate is Emmett Sutherland for Closer and for Graduate is Andrew Jeric for Prisoner. The ASC Haskell Wexler Student Documentary Award winner is Colin F. Shepherd for Into the Microscope.

Nominees add momentum to award season front-runners La La Land and Moonlight but also give a necessary push to Lion and Arrival; yes Silence is also nominated but film for whatever reasons has been shutout from the current awards season and not imagine this nomination could change the trend.

Theatrical Release 
Greig Fraser for Lion
James Laxton for Moonlight
Rodrigo Prieto for Silence
Linus Sandgren for La La Land
Bradford Young for Arrival

Let's recall that the Spotlight Award recognizes outstanding achievement in cinematography in a feature film that was exhibited at a film festival, internationally or in limited theatrical release.

Spotlight Award
Lol Crawley for Childhood of a Leader
Gorka Gómez Andreu for House of Others
Ernesto Pardo for Tempestad
Juliette van Dormael for Mon Ange (My Angel)

As a reference Childhood of a Leader was at 2015 Venice Film Festival where director Brady Corbet won the Luigi De Laurentiis Award. Russudan Glurijdze's House of Others won the East of West Award at 2016 Karlovy Vary and was Georgia's submission to 2016 Academy Awards Foreign-Language category.

Tempestad by Tatiana Huezo is a documentary that won the Golden Frog at 2016 Camerimage plus the Tim Hetherington Award at 2016 Sheffield International Documentary Festival;  also won three Fenix Film Awards.

Mon Ange by Harry Cleven was also honored at 2016 Camerimage where Juliette van Dormael won Best Cinematography Debut award.

To check nominees in other media categories go official site here.The awards ceremony will be on February 4 at Hollywood & Highland's Ray Dolby Ballroom.

The Costume Designers Guild announced today the nominees for the 2017 edition of the awards that honor Excellence in costume design in film, television, and short-form programs.

As previously announce Jeffrey Kurland will be honored with the Career Achievement Award and none other than Meryl Streep will receive the Distinguished Collaborator Award.

The guild also announced that Mandy Moore will host the awards gala.   “I am honored to be hosting this year’s ceremony,” she said. “I’ve always been in awe of my Costume Designers and am especially thrilled to be working with the brilliant Hala Bahmet on our series ‘This Is Us.’ I’m excited to join in celebrating the art of costume design and help shine a spotlight on the artists who are so essential to character creation.”

Excellence in Contemporary Film
Rebecca Hale for Absolutely Fabulous: The Movie
Courtney Hoffman for Captain Fantastic
Mary Zophres for La La Land
Cappi Ireland in Lion
Arianne Phillips in Nocturnal Animals

Excellence in Period Film
Marion Boyce and Margot Wilson for The Dressmaker
Consolata Boyle for Florence Foster Jenkins
Mary Zophres for Hail, Caesar!
Renee Ehrlich Kalfus for Hidden Figures
Madeline Fontaine for Jackie

Excellence in Fantasy Film
Alexandra Byrne for Doctor Strange
Colleen Atwood for Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them
Deborah Cook for Kubo and the Two Strings
Colleen Atwood for Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children
David Crossman and Glyn Dillion for Rogue One: A Star Wars Story

To read nominees in other media categories go official site here or official twitter here.  Awards ceremony will be held on Tuesday, February 21 at the Beverly Hilton Hills in California.

Directors Guild of America President Paris Barclay today announced the five nominees for the DGA Award for Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Feature Film for 2016.

“These phenomenal filmmakers have captured our hearts and minds, breathing life into stories rarely told and revealing worlds rarely seen,” said Barclay. “What makes this recognition truly special is the knowledge that these five directors have made a lasting impression on their peers – directors and members of the director’s team who intimately understand the blood, sweat and tears necessary to create a feature film.”

Nominees for First-Time Feature Film Director category were also announced and is in this category where we find an earlier strong contender that disappeared from the awards season to make a comeback among the directors guild.  Yes, talking about Nate Parker and his film, The Birth of a Nation.

There are no surprises in the main category as the five honored directors are the ones with high buzz, especially front-runners Damien Chazelle and Barry Jenkins.  What it's surprising is that this is Chazelle's first DGA Award nomination, as he deserved multiple honors with his outstanding Whiplash; but then consider that all five are first timers with only Garth Davis having a previous DGA nomination in Commercials category, which is incredible as to name only one, Denis Villeneuve is one of my very favorite contemporary directors and it's hard for me to understand why his outstanding Canadian films were not honored before, sigh.

But most amazing is the double-nomination to Garth Davis as he is honored in the main category as well as in the second category. Congratulations for a very unusual achievement.

Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Feature Film
Damien Chazelle for La La Land
Garth Davis for Lion
Barry Jenkins for Moonlight
Kenneth Lonergan for Manchester by the Sea
Denis Villeneuve for Arrival

Outstanding Directorial Achievement of a First-Time Feature Film
Garth Davis for Lion
Kelly Fremon Craig for The Edge of Seventeen
Tim Miller for Deadpool
Nate Parker for The Birth of a Nation
Dan Trachtenberg for 10 Cloverfield Lane

Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Documentary
Otto Bell for The Eagle Huntress
Ezra Edelman for O.J.: Made in America
Josh Kriegman and Elyse Steinberg for Weiner
Raoul Peck for I Am Not Your Negro
Roger Ross Williams for Life, Animated

To check nominations in other categories go official site here.  Awards ceremony will be on February 4 at the Beverly Hilton Hotel.

Today I start the VERY LONG annual post with (almost) ALL movies in the current edition of the Berlin International Film Festival, better-known as Berlinale. Since late last year, festival organizers have been releasing information in drop by drop basis but recently the press releases started to pour with selections in the multiple fest sections.

As every year post will be in progress until the fest uploads films to their official site, until then post will have updates with whatever new info becomes available,

On Friday, January 20th fest organizers released the last press release with all films in competition and in Berlinale Special section, so we can assume that the final count is twenty-four (24) films in the festival main selection with eighteen (18) in competition and six (6) out of competition.

The selection has quite a few well-know directors like Hong Sangsoo, Calin Peter Netzer, Alex de la Iglesia, Agnieszka Holland, Danny Boyle, Sally Potter, Sebastian Lelio and more; but, none excites me as much as one of my most-favorite director.  Yes, Aki Kaurismäki has a new movie that's in competition at Berlinale 2017 and I'm already dying to watch it!

But there are some interesting news like the two directors that have their first feature film opening in a major film festival as Etienne Comar from France and Josef Hader from Austria are premiering their first opus in Berlinale 2017.  But perhaps more interesting is that both new directors have a strong trajectory in filmmaking as Etienne Comar has a long filmography as a producer and also is the screenwriter of such great films as Mon Roi, La rançon de la gloire and Des hommes et des dieux.  Then Josef Hader has an extensive filmography as an actor and perhaps many will recall him in Stefan Zweig: Farewell to Europe.  Yes, I'm curious to find how they will translate their knowledge into directing.

While Cannes is considering to do a Television Festival independent from the film festival, Berlinale 2017 already has a great selection of European TV series; perhaps what I miss most are some samples from outstanding Nordic TV series, sigh.  Just recall the awesome Berlinale 2016 Series Lineup that included fantastic The Night Manager by Susanne Bier. So Berlinale has been promoting TV before and as most of us already know and agree, nowadays TV series are like long-form films that you can watch -or should I say binge- one episode after the other.

Competition
Opening Film: (*) Django, Etienne Comar, France
Ana, mon amour, Călin Peter Netzer, Romania, Germany and France
Bamui haebyun-eoseo honja (On the Beach at Night Alone), Hong Sangsoo, South Korea
Beuys, Andres Veiel, Germany (documentary)
Colo, Teresa Villaverde, Portugal and France
Félicité, Alain Gomis, France, Senegal, Belgium, Germany and Lebanon
Hao ji le (Have a Nice Day), Liu Jian, China (animation)
Helle Nächte (Bright Nights), Thomas Arslan, Germany and Norway
Joaquim, Marcelo Gomes, Brazil and Portugal
ミスター・ロン Mr. Long, Sabu, Japan, Germany, Hong Kong, China and Taiwan
Pokot (Spoor), Agnieszka Holland, Poland, Germany, Czech Republic, Sweden and Slovakia
Rückkehr nach Montauk (Return to Montauk), Volker Schlöndorff, Germany, France and Ireland
Teströl és lélekröl (On Body and Soul), Ildikó Enyedi, Hungary
The Dinner, Oren Moverman, USA
The Party, Sally Potter, UK
Toivon tuolla puolen (The Other Side of Hope), Aki Kaurismäki, Finland and Germany
Una mujer fantástica (A Fantastic Woman), Sebastián Lelio, Chile, Germany, USA and Spain
(*) Wilde Maus (Wild Mouse), Josef Hader, Austria

Out of Competition
El Bar (The Bar), Alex de la Iglesia, Spain
Final Portrait, Stanley Tucci, UK and France
Logan, James Mangold, USA
Sage femme (The Midwife), Martin Provost, France and Belgium
T2 Trainspotting, Danny Boyle, UK
Viceroy's House, Gurinder Chadha, India and UK

International Jury
President: Paul Verhoeven, screenwriter and director, Netherlands

Berlinale Special
Topical works by contemporary filmmakers, documentaries and extraordinary formats

TV Series
4 Blocks, Marvin Kren, Germany (6 episodes)
Acht Stunden sind kein Tag (Eight Hours Don't Make a Day), Rainer Werner Fassbinder, Germany, 1972 ( 5 episodes)
Der gleiche Himmel (The Same Sky), Oliver Hirschbiege, Germany and Czech Republic (9 episodes)
Gidseltagningen(Below The Surface), Kasper Barfoed, Germany (8 episodes)
Patriot, Steve Conrad, USA (10 episodes)
SS-GB, Philipp Kadelbach, UK (5 episodes)
Zone Blanche (Black Spot), Thierry Poiraud and Julien Despaux, France and Belgium (8 episodes)

Feature Films
Es war einmal in Deutschland... (Bye Bye Germany), Sam Garbarski, Germany, Luxembourg and Belgium
In Zeiten des abnehmenden Lichts (In Times of Fading Light), Matti Geschonneck, Germany
La Libertad del Diablo (Devil's Freedom), Everardo González, Mexico (documentary)
La Reina de España (The Queen of Spain), Fernando Trueba, Spain
Le jeune Karl Marx (The Young Karl Marx), Raoul Peck, France, Germany and Belgium
Masaryk (A Prominent Patient), Julius Sevcík, Czech Republic and Slovakia
Maudie, Aisling Walsh, Canada and Ireland
Nema-ye nazdik (Close Up), Abbas Kiarostami, Iran, 1990
the bomb, Kevin Ford, Smriti Keshari and Eric Schlosser, USA (experimental film)
The Lost City of Z, James Gray, USA
The Trial: The State of Russia vs Oleg Sentsov, Askold Kurov, Estonia, Poland and Czech Republic (documentary)
Últimos días en La Habana (Last Days in Havana), Fernando Pérez, Cuba and Spain

Panorama

The Special TEDDY Award is presented by the friends’ association TEDDY e.V. to a filmmaker whose accomplishments have made an especially significant contribution to the characterization of queer filmmaking over the years. This year the award goes to none other than outstanding director Monika Treut.

Main Program
Opening Film: Inxeba (The Wound), John Trengove, South Africa, Germany, Netherlands and France
Centaur, Aktan Arym Kubat, Kyrgyzstan, France, Germany and Netherlands
(*) Munmo Tashi Khyidron (Honeygiver Among the Dogs), Dechen Roder, Bhutan
Pendular, Julia Murat, Brazil, Argentina and France
Vazante, Daniela Thomas, Brazil and Portugal

Panorama Special

Panorama Dokumente
Opening Film: Belinda, Marie Dumora, France
Bones of Contention, Andrea Weiss, USA
Casting JonBenet, Kitty Green, USA and Australia
Chavela, Catherine Gund and Daresha Kyi, USA
Combat au bout de la nuit (Fighting Through the Night), Sylvain L’Espérance, Canada
Denk ich an Deutschland in der Nacht (If I Think of Germany at Night), Romuald Karmakar, Germany
Dream Boat, Tristan Ferland Milewski, Germany
(*) El Pacto de Adriana (Adriana's Pact), Lissette Orozco, Chile
Erase and Forget, Andrea Luka Zimmerman, UK
Fünf Sterne (Five Stars), Annekatrin Hendel, Germany
I Am Not Your Negro, Raoul Peck, France, USA, Belgium and Switzerland
Istiyad Ashbah (Ghost Hunting), Raed Andoni, France, Palestine, Switzerland and Qatar
Mein wunderbares West-Berlin (My Wonderful West Berlin), Jochen Hick, Germany
No Intenso Agora (In the Intense Now), João Moreira Salles, Brazil
Política, manual de instrucciones (Politics, instructions manual), Fernando León de Aranoa, Spain
Revolution of Sound, Tangerine Dream, Margarete Kreuzer, Germany
日常對話 Ri Chang Dui Hua (Small Talk), Hui-chen Huang, Taiwan
Strong Island, Yance Ford, USA and Denmark
Tahqiq fel djenna (Investigating Paradise), Merzak Allouache, France and Algeria
Tania Libre, Lynn Hershman Leeson, USA
Untitled, Michael Glawogger and Monika Willi, Austria and Germany

Forum
The 47th Berlinale Forum is showing 43 films in its main program, 29 of which as world premieres and 10 as international premieres.

Main Program

Feature Films
(*)Adiós Entusiasmo (So Long Enthusiasm), Vladimir Durán, Argentina and Colombia
At Elske Pia (Loving Pia), Daniel Joseph Borgmann, Denmark
춘천, 춘천 Autumn, Autumn, Jang Woo-jin, Republic of Korea
Barrage, Laura Schroeder, Luxembourg, Belgium and France
Casting, Nicolas Wackerbarth, Germany
Chemi bednieri ojakhi (My Happy Family), Nana Ekvtimishvili and Simon Groß, Germany, Georgia and France
Dayveon, Amman Abbasi, USA
Drôles d’oiseaux (Strange Birds), Elise Girard, France
Golden Exits, Alex Ross Perry, USA
Jassad gharib (Foreign Body), Raja Amari, Tunisia and France
מנשה Menashe, Joshua Z Weinstein, USA and Israel
三つの光 Mittsu no hikari (Three Lights), Kohki Yoshida, Japan
מוצא אל הים Motza el yam (Low Tide), Daniel Mann, Israel and France
Newton, Amit V Masurkar, India
(*) Occidental, Neïl Beloufa, France
Rifle, Davi Pretto, Brazil and Germany
(*)تمارض   Tamaroz (Simulation), Abed Abest, Iran
Tiere (Animals), Greg Zglinski, Switzerland, Austria and Poland
Werewolf, Ashley McKenzie, Canada
夜空はいつでも最高密度の青色だ  Yozora ha itsudemo saikou mitsudo no aoiro da (The Tokyo Night Sky Is Always the Densest Shade of Blue) by Yuya Ishii, Japan – WP

Documentaries
2+2=22 [The Alphabet], Heinz Emigholz, Germany
Aus einem Jahr der Nichtereignisse (From a Year of Non-Events), Ann Carolin Renninger and René Frölke, Germany
Bickels [Socialism], Heinz Emigholz, Germany and Israel
Casa Roshell, Camila José Donoso, Mexico and Chile
Cuatreros (Rustlers), Albertina Carri, Argentina
Dieste [Uruguay], Heinz Emigholz, Germany
El mar nos mira de lejos (The Sea Stares at Us from Afar), Manuel Muñoz Rivas, Spain and Netherlands
For Ahkeem, Jeremy Levine, Landon Van Soest, USA
Loktak Lairembee (Lady of the Lake), Haobam Paban Kumar, India
Maman Colonelle (Mama Colonel), Dieudo Hamadi, Congo and France
หมอนรถไฟ Mon rot fai (Railway Sleepers), Sompot Chidgasornpongse, Thailand
Motherland (Bayang Ina Mo), Ramona S. Diaz, USA and The Philippines
მზის ქალაქი Mzis qalaqi (City of the Sun), Rati Oneli, Georgia, USA, Netherlands and Qatar
Qiu (Inmates), Ma Li, China
Río Verde. El tiempo de los Yakurunas (Green River. The Time of the Yakurunas), Alvaro Sarmiento and Diego Sarmiento, Peru
Shu'our akbar min el hob (A Feeling Greater than Love) by Mary Jirmanus Saba, Lebanon

Spell Reel, Filipa César, Germany, Portugal, France and Guinea-Bissau
Streetscapes [Dialogue], Heinz Emigholz, Germany
Tigmi Nigren (House in the Fields), Tala Hadid, Morocco and Qatar
Tinselwood, Marie Voignier, France

Special Screenings
El mar la mar, J.P. Sniadecki and Joshua Bonnetta, USA
El teatro de la desaparición (The Theatre of Disappearance), Adrián Villar Rojas, Argentina
Somniloquies, Véréna Paravel, Lucien Castaing-Taylor, France and USA

Forum Expanded
The selection process for the 12th Forum Expanded has been finalized. This year’s theme is “The Stars Down to Earth”. There are forty-four (44) artistic works from a total of twenty-one (21) countries have been invited, including twenty-eight (28) films of various lengths, fifteen (15) installations and a performance. The opening of the group exhibition at the Akademie der Künste at the Hanseatenweg already takes place on February 8, one day before the start of the Berlinale. Thirteen (13) video and sound installations are being shown there, once again supplemented by film screenings from February 10 onward. SAVVY Contemporary present the exhibition "The Law of the Pursuer" by Amos Gitai and the multichannel sound installation Lago by Joshua Bonnetta is being exhibited at the Marshall McLuhan Salon of the Embassy of Canada.

Feature Films
Aapothkalin Trikalika (The Kali of Emergency), Ashish Avikunthak, India and Germany, 79’
Seif Tagreeby (Experimental Summer), Mahmoud Lotfy, Egypt, 69’
Serce Miłości – Director‘s Cut (A Heart of Love – Director‘s Cut), Łukasz Ronduda, Poland, 88’
SPIN by Ginan Seidl (Germany, 80’)

Medium-length and Short Films
Asbestos, Sasha Litvintseva and Graeme Arnfield, UK, 20’
A Tall Tale, Maya Schweizer, Germany and Ireland, 16’
The Brick House, Eliane Esther Bots, Netherlands, 16’
Camera Threat, Bernd Lützeler, Germany and India, 30’
Dark Adaption,Chris Gehman, Canada, 14’
HASHTI Tehran, Daniel Kötter, Iran, 59’
Heliopolis Heliopolis, Anja Dornieden and Juan David González Monroy, Germany, 26’
Im Gehäus (In His Room), Eva C. Heldmann, Germany, 27’
Jokinen, Laura Horelli, Finland, 45’
Not Every Day is Spring, Haig Aivazian, Lebanon, 46’
Off Frame AKA Revolution until Victory, Mohanad Yaqubi, Palestine, France and Qatar, 63’
One Plus One Makes a Pharaoh's Chocolate Cake, Marouan Omara, Islam Kamal, Egypt and Switzerland, 37’
Popeye Sees 3D, Ken Jacobs, USA, 21’
Ride Like Lightning, Crash Like Thunder, Fern Silva, USA, 9’
Rudzienko, Sharon Lockhart, Poland and USA, 53’
Set, Peter Miller, Germany, 10’
The Shortest Day, Karø Goldt, Austria, 3’
Sokun Al Sulhufat (Turtles are Always Home), Rawane Nassif, Qatar and Lebanon, 12’
Tashlikh (Cast Off), Yael Bartana, Israel and Netherlands, 12’
Ten Mornings Ten Evenings and One Horizon,Tomonari Nishikawa, Japan, 10’
Studies on the Ecology of Drama, Eija-Liisa Ahtila,Finland, 26’
Ulrike‘s Brain, Bruce LaBruce, Germany and Canada, 55’
Ulysses in the Subway, Paul Kaiser, Marc Downie, Ken and Flo Jacobs, USA, 59’
The Welfare of Thomás Ó Hallissy, Duncan Campbell, UK and Ireland, 31’

Performance
Confessions of an Actress, Susanne Sachsse, Germany
Group Exhibition at the Akademie der Künste am Hanseatenweg
Bawabet Yafa (Jaffa Gate) by RIWAQ (Conzept: Khaldun Bshara), Palestine
Constructed Futures: Haret Hreik by Sandra Schäfer, Germany
Hawamesh Aan Al-Hegra (Footnotes on Migration) by Take to the Sea, Egypt
Isla Santa Maria 3D by Oliver Husain (Canada)
Izadora (listening to versions of herself) by Merle Kröger, Izadora Nistor, Philip Scheffner, Germany
Pana Ha'Geshem (The Rain is Gone) by Noam Enbar, Israel and France
Purple, Bodies in Translation - Part II of A Yellow Memory from the Yellow Age by Joe Namy, Lebanon
Twelve by Jeamin Cha, Republic of Korea
UHF42 E01+E02 by Mike Crane, USA and Palestine
Untitled Fragments by James Benning, USA
When Things Occur by Oraib Toukan, Palestine and UK
Wutharr, Saltwater Dreams by Karrabing Film Collective, Australia
Towards Memory, Katrin Winkler, Germany
Marshall McLuhan Salon of the Embassy of Canada
Lago, Joshua Bonnetta, Canada and USA
SAVVY Contemporary
The Law of the Pursuer, Amos Gitai, Israel
Think Film No. 5: Archival Constellations
Material to Investigate the Present, the Future Past - An Encounter with the Archive by the Harun Farocki Institut
Lab Space – Film Lab as Physical Space and Its Influence on Creative Process, Lisabona Rahman, Indonesia
Reclaiming History, Unveiling Memory Part II, Didi Cheeka, Nigeria

Generation
Generation is celebrating 40 years of film programming for Young Audiences. Congrats.

In 2017, a grand total of 62 short and feature-length films hailing from 41 countries of production will take part in the Generation Kplus and Generation 14plus competitions. Both programs feature a wide range of thematic concerns and aesthetic approaches. Animated productions rich in contrast, quiet observations, iconoclastic collages and sensitive dramas signalize the program.  The program is enriched by a great variety of approaches to documentary filmmaking.

In the short film competitions, Generation is presenting productions from a total of 28 countries. The three Kplus short film programs are colourful, sensitive and serious; the young protagonists face the challenges life has set before them with great bravery, staking out new spaces for themselves with growing self-confidence. With strong contrasts and brisk pacing, explosive and soothing moments and no lack of twists and turns, the two 14plus short film programmes also pay tribute to the contradictory nature of our world.

Generation Kplus

Feature Films
Opening Film: Red Dog: True Blue, Kriv Stenders, Australia
Amelie rennt (Mountain Miracle - An Unexpected Friendship), Tobias Wiemann, Germany and Italy
As duas Irenes (Two Irenes), Fabio Meira, Brazil
Becoming Who I Was, Moon Chang-yong and Jeon Jin, Republic of Korea
Die Häschenschule - Jagd nach dem Goldenen Ei (Rabbit School - Guardians of the Golden Egg), Ute von Münchow-Pohl, Germany
Estiu 1993 (Summer 1993), Carla Simón, Spain
Oskars Amerika (Oskar's America), Torfinn Iversen, Norway and Sweden
Piata Lod' (Little Harbour), Iveta Grófová, Slovakia, Czech Republic and Hungary
Primero Enero (January),  Darío Mascambroni, Argentina
Richard the Stork, Toby Genkel and Reza Memari, Germany, Belgium, Luxemburg and Norway
Tesoros,  María Novaro, Mexico
Shi Tou (Stonehead), Xiang Zhao, China
Uilenbal (Owls & Mice), Simone van Dussledorp, Netherlands
Upp i det blå (Up in the Sky), Petter Lennstrand, Sweden
Wallay, Berni Goldblat, France, Burkina Faso and Qatar

Short Films
1Minuutje natuur (1Minute of Nature), Netherlands, Stefanie Visjager, Katinka Baehr - IP
Aaba (Grandfather), India, Amar Kaushik - WP
Der kleine Vogel und die Raupe (The Little Bird and the Caterpillar), Switzerland, Lena von Döhren - WP
Dziedošais Hugo un viņa neticamie piedzīvojumi (Singing Hugo and His Incredible Adventures), Latvia, Reinis Kalnaellis - WP
Em busca da terra sem males (In Search of the Land Without Evil), Brazil, Anna Azevedo - WP
Engiteng‘ Narok Lukunya (Black Head Cow), USA, Elizabeth Nichols - EP
Hedgehog´s Home, Canada / Croatia, Eva Cvijanovic - WP
Jazzoo, Sweden, Adam Marko-Nord - IP
Li.le, Georgia, Natia Nikolashvili - WP
Min Homosyster (My Gay Sister), Sweden / Norway, Lia Hietala - IP
Odd er et egg (Odd is an Egg), Norway / Portugal, Kristin Ulseth - IP
Promise, USA, Xie Tian - IP
Sabaku, Netherlands, Marlies van der Wel - IP
Terrain de jeux (Playground), France, Maxence Lemonnier - WP
The Catch, Canada, Holly Brace-Lavoie - WP
The Dress on Her, Taiwan, Wen Chih Yi- WP
Vulkánsziget (Volcanoisland), Hungary, Anna Katalin Lovrity - WP
Xalé Bu Rérr (Lost Child), Senegal, Abdou Khadir Ndiaye - WP

Generation Kplus Jury

Generation 14plus

Feature Films
Almost Heaven, Carol Salter, UK
Ben Niao (The Foolish Bird), Huang Ji and Ryuji Otsuka, China
Butterfly Kisses, Rafael Kapelinski, UK
Ceux qui font les révolutions à moitié n'ont fait que se creuser un tombeau (Those Who Make Revolution Halfway Only Dig Their Own Graves, Mathieu Denis and Simon Lavoie, Canada
Emo the Musical, Neil Triffett, Australia
Freak Show, Trudie Styler, USA
Krolewicz Olch (The Erlprince), Kuba Czekaj, Poland
Loving Lorna, Annika Karlsoon and Jessica Karlsson, Sweden
Mulher do pai (Nalu on the Border), Christiane Oliveira, Brazil and Uruguay
My Entire High School Sinking into the Sea, Dash Shaw, USA
Não devore meu coração! (Don't Swallow My Heart, Alligator Girl!), Felipe Bragança, Netherlands, France and Brazil
Poi E: The Story of Our Song, Tearepa Kahi, New Zealand
The Inland Road, Jackie van Beek, New Zealand
Shkola nomer 3 (School Number 3), Yelizaveta Smith and Georg Genoux, Ukraine and Germany
Soldado (Soldier), Manuel Abramovich, Argentina
Weirdos, Bruce McDonald, Canada

Out of Competition
Opening Film: On the Road, Michael Winterbottom, UK

Short Films
After the Smoke, Australia, Nick Waterman - WP
In a Nutshell, Switzerland, Fabio Friedli - WP
La prima sueca (Swedish Cousin), Argentina, Inés María Barrionuevo, Agustina San Martín - WP
Libélula (Firefly), Mexico, José Pablo Escamilla González Aragón - IP
Milk, Russian Federation / Lithuania, Daria Vlasova - WP
Morning Cowboy, Spain, Fernando Pomares - WP
Sheva Dakot (Seven Minutes), Israel, Assaf Machnes - IP
Sirens, Monaco, Emmanuel Trousse, screening out of competition - WP
Smashed, Australia, Sean Lahiff - WP
SNIP, Canada, Terril Calder - EP
The Jungle Knows You Better Than You Do, Belgium / Colombia, Juanita Onzaga – WP
U Plavetnilo (Into the Blue), Croatia / Slovenia / Sweden, Antoneta Alamat Kusijanovic - WP
White Riot: London, United Kingdom, Rubika Shah - EP
Wolfe, Australia, Claire Randall - WP

Generation 14plus Jury

Perspektive Deutsches Kino

(*) First Feature in Competition for the Best First Feature Award

Berlinale Shorts
Twenty-three (23) films from nineteen (19) countries will be competing for the Golden and the Silver Bear as well as the Audi Short Film Award and a nomination for the 2017 European Film Awards.

Altas Cidades de Ossadas (High Cities of Bone), João Salaviza, Portugal, 19'
Avant l'envol, Laurence Bonvin, Switzerland, 20’
The Boy from H2, Helen Yanovsky, Israel and Palestine, 21'
Call of Cuteness, Brenda Lien, Germany, 4’
Centauro (Centaur), Nicolás Suárez, Argentina, 14’
Cidade Pequena (Small Town), Diogo Costa Amarante, Portugal, 19’
Coup de Grâce, Salomé Lamas, Portugal, 26’
The Crying Conch, Vincent Toi, Canada, 20’
Ensueño en la Pradera (Reverie in the Meadow), Esteban Arrangoiz Julien, Mexico, 17’
Estás vendo coisas (You are seeing things), Bárbara Wagner and Benjamin de Burca, Brazil, 18’
Everything, David OReilly, USA and Ireland, 11’
Le film de l'été (The Summer Movie), Emmanuel Marre, France / Belgium, 30’
Fishing Is Not Done On Tuesdays, Lukas Marxt and Marcel Odenbach, Germany / Austria, 15’
Fuera de Temporada (Out of Season), Sabrina Campos, Argentina, 23’
Hiwa, Jacqueline Lentzou, Greece, 11’
Os Humores Artificiais (The Artificial Humors), Gabriel Abrantes, Portugal, 30’
keep that dream burning, Rainer Kohlberger, Germany / Austria, 8’
Kometen (The Comet), Victor Lindgren, Sweden, 11’
Martin Pleure (Martin Cries), Jonathan Vinel, France, 16’
Miss Holocaust, Michalina Musielak, Poland and Germany, 22’
Oh Brother Octopus, Florian Kunert, Germany, 27’
The Rabbit Hunt, Patrick Bresnan, USA and Hungary, 12’
Street of Death, Karam Ghossein, Libanon and Germany, 23’

Out of Competition
Monangambeee, Sarah Maldoror, Algeria, 18’

Berlinale Shorts Jury
Christian Jankowski, Artist and Art Professor, Germany
Kimberly Drew, New York Metropolitan Museum of Art curator and social media manager, USA
Carlos Núñez, Festival programmer and film producer, Chile

Live stream will start at 8:18 am, tomorrow, Tuesday, January 24