2025 AWARD SEASON BEGINS

It's December which means that award season is now in full effect. The prizes are coming fast and furious with several critics groups have selected their winners or nominees for the best in cinema of this year. Here is a round-up of the early picks from various groups:

"One Battle After Another" took the top prize of Best Film from the 91st New York Film Critics Circle on December 2nd. The over fifty member, New York-based critics organization also selected Benicio Del Toro's performance for Best Supporting Actor from this film. Kleber Mendonça Filho’s "The Secret Agent" received Best International Film and star, Wagner Moura won Best Actor. Best Director went to Iranian director Jafar Panahi for his Cannes Palme d’Or-winning drama, "It Was Just an Accident" and Amy Madigan received Best Supporting Actress for her wild turn in the horror-drama, "Weapons".
Here are the winners of the 2025 New York Film Critics Circle:

Best Film: "One Battle After Another"
Best Director: Jafar Panahi, "It Was Just an Accident"
Best Screenplay: Josh Safdie and Ronald Bronstein, "Marty Supreme"
Best Actor: Wagner Moura, "The Secret Agent"
Best Actress: Rose Byrne, "If I Had Legs I’d Kick You"
Best Supporting Actor: Benicio Del Toro, "One Battle After Another"
Best Supporting Actress: Amy Madigan, "Weapons"
Best Cinematography: Autumn Durald Arkapaw, "Sinners"
Best Animated Film: "KPop Demon Hunters"
Best Non-Fiction Film: "My Undesirable Friends: Part I – Last Air in Moscow"
Best International Film: "The Secret Agent"
Best First Film: "Eephus"
Special Prizes: Museum of Moving Image; Screen Slate

The National Board of Review also selected "One Battle After Another" as their Best Film on December 3rd. This group of filmmakers, academics and fans gave Paul Thomas Anderson's crime-drama five awards including Best Director, Best Actor for Leonardo DiCaprio, Benicio Del Toro as Best Supporting Actor and Chase Infiniti for Breakthrough Performer Award. Other winners include Rose Byrne taking Best Actress for "If I Had Legs I’d Kick You" and Jafar Panahi's "It Was Just an Accident" was named Best International Film with both receiving these awards from NYFCC. Here are the winners of the 2025 National Board of Review:

Best Film: "One Battle After Another"
Best Director: Paul Thomas Anderson, "One Battle After Another"
Best Directorial Debut: Eva Victor, "Sorry, Baby"
Best Original Screenplay: Ryan Coogler, "Sinners"
Best Adapted Screenplay: Clint Bentley and Greg Kwedar, "Train Dreams"
Best Actor: Leonardo DiCaprio, "One Battle After Another"
Best Actress: Rose Byrne, "If I Had Legs I’d Kick You"
Best Supporting Actor: Benicio Del Toro, "One Battle After Another"
Best Supporting Actress: Inga Ibsdotter Lilleaas, "Sentimental Value"
Breakthrough Performance: Chase Infiniti, "One Battle After Another"
Best Animated Feature: "Arco"
Best International Film: "It Was Just an Accident"
Best Documentary: "Cover-Up"
Outstanding Achievement in Cinematography: Autumn Durald Arkapaw, "Sinners"
Outstanding Achievement in Stunt Artistry: "Mission: Impossible: The Final Reckoning"
NBR Freedom of Expression Award: "Put Your Soul on Your Hand and Walk"

The nominations for the 41st Film Independent Spirit Awards were revealed also on December 3rd with "Peter Hujar’s Day" receiving the most noms with five, followed by "Train Dreams", "Blue Sun Place", "One of Them Days", "Lurker" and "Sorry, Baby" each getting four apiece. This organization focuses only on indie film productions that cost under $30 million, leaving some films that were slightly above that figure like "Weapons", "Marty Supreme", "The Smashing Machine" and "Kiss of the Spider Woman" out of consideration. The Film Independent Spirit Awards will be held on Sunday, February 15, 2026 at the Hollywood Palladium in Los Angeles.

Here are the nominations of the 2025 Film Independent Spirit Awards (Film):

Best Feature:

"Peter Hujar’s Day"
"The Plague"
"Sorry, Baby"
"Train Dreams"
"Twinless"

Best First Feature:

"Blue Sun Palace"
"Dust Bunny"
"East of Wall"
"Lurker"
"One of Them Days"

Best Director:

Clint Bentley, "Train Dreams"
Mary Bronstein, "If I Had Legs I’d Kick You"
Lloyd Lee Choi, "Lucky Lu"
Ira Sachs, "Peter Hujar’s Day"
Eva Victor, "Sorry, Baby"

Best Screenplay:

Michael Angelo Covino and Kyle Marvin, "Splitsville"
Angus MacLachlan, "A Little Prayer"
James Sweeney, "Twinless"
Christian Swegal, "Sovereign"
Eva Victor, "Sorry, Baby"

Best First Screenplay:

Andrew DeYoung, "Friendship"
Elena Oxman, "Outerlands"
Alex Russell, "Lurker"
Syreeta Singleton, "One of Them Days"
Constance Tsang, "Blue Sun Palace"

Best Lead Performance:

Everett Blunck, "The Plague"
Rose Byrne, "If I Had Legs I’d Kick You"
Kathleen Chalfant, "Familiar Touch"
Chang Chen, "Lucky Lu"
Joel Edgerton, "Train Dreams"
Dylan O’Brien, "Twinless"
Keke Palmer, "One of Them Days"
Théodore Pellerin, "Lurker"
Tessa Thompson, "Hedda"
Ben Whishaw, "Peter Hujar’s Day"

Best Supporting Performance:

Naomi Ackie, "Sorry, Baby"
Zoey Deutch, "Nouvelle Vague"
Kirsten Dunst, "Roofman"
Rebecca Hall, "Peter Hujar’s Day"
Nina Hoss, "Hedda"
Jane Levy, "A Little Prayer"
Archie Madekwe, "Lurker"
Kali Reis, "Rebuilding"
Jacob Tremblay, "Sovereign"
Haipeng Xu, "Blue Sun Palace"

Best Breakthrough Performance:

Liz Larsen, "The Baltimorons"
Misha Osherovich, "She’s the He"
Kayo Martin, "The Plague"
SZA, "One of Them Days"
Tabatha Zimiga, "East of Wall"

Best Cinematography:

Alex Ashe, "Peter Hujar’s Day"
Norm Li, "Blue Sun Palace"
David J. Thompson, "Warfare"
Adolpho Veloso, "Train Dreams"
Nicole Hirsch Whitaker, "Dust Bunny"

Best Editing:

Ben Leonberg, "Good Boy"
Carson Lund, "Eephus"
Fin Oates, "Warfare"
Sara Shaw, "Splitsville"
Sofía Subercaseaux, "The Testament of Ann Lee"

Best Documentary:

"Come See Me in the Good Light"
"Endless Cookie"
"My Undesirable Friends: Part I – Last Air in Moscow"
"The Perfect Neighbor"
"The Tale of Silyan"

Best International Film:

"All That’s Left of You" (Palestine, Jordan, Germany, Cyprus)
"On Becoming a Guinea Fowl" (Zambia, UK, Ireland)
"A Poet" (Colombia)
"The Secret Agent" (Brazil)
"Sirāt" (Spain)

John Cassavetes Award (given to the best feature made for under $1,000,000):

"The Baltimorons"
"Boys Go to Jupiter"
"Eephus"
"Esta Isla (This Island)"
"Familiar Touch"

Someone to Watch Award (recognizes a talented filmmaker of singular vision who has not yet received appropriate recognition):

Tatti Ribeiro, "Valentina"
Neo Sora, "Happyend"
Annapurna Sriram, "Fucktoys"

Truer Than Fiction Award (presented to an emerging director of non-fiction features who has not yet received significant recognition):

Tony Benna, "André is an Idiot"
Rajee Samarasinghe, "Your Touch Makes Others Invisible"
Brittany Shyne, "Seeds"

Robert Altman Award (given to one film’s director, casting director and ensemble cast):

"The Long Walk"

The American Film Institute announced their annual picks of the top-ten films of the year on December 4th. These selections tend to be a fairly accurate indicator of which films will probably land Oscar nominations with eight of the AFI picks from the last two years also received Best Picture noms. The annual AFI Awards will be presented during a private luncheon at the Four Seasons Hotel Los Angeles on January 9, 2026.

Here are AFI’s Top 10 Movies of 2025:

"Avatar: Fire and Ash"
"Bugonia"
"Frankenstein"
"Hamnet"
"Jay Kelly"
"Marty Supreme"
"One Battle After Another"
"Sinners"
"Train Dreams"
"Wicked: For Good"

And the Los Angeles Film Critics Association also awarded "One Battle After Another" as their selection for Best Film. Paul Thomas Anderson received Best Director and Teyana Taylor took the Best Supporting Performance for this film. Taylor shared this prize, which the acting awards here are gender neutral categories, with Stellan Skarsgård, who was honored for his work in “Sentimental Value". The Lead Performance Award went to Rose Byrne, who has been sweeping up prizes for her riveting turn in “If I Had Legs I’d Kick You” and Ethan Hawke, who was quite impressive in the period biopic, “Blue Moon”.

Here are the winners of 2025 Los Angeles Film Critics Association:

Best Film: "One Battle After Another"
Best Director: Paul Thomas Anderson, “One Battle After Another”
Best Screenplay: Jafar Panahi, “It Was Just an Accident”
Best Lead Performance: Rose Byrne, “If I Had Legs I’d Kick You” and Ethan Hawke, “Blue Moon”
Best Supporting Performance: Stellan Skarsgård, “Sentimental Value” and Teyana Taylor, “One Battle After Another”
Best Documentary/Nonfiction: “My Undesirable Friends: Part I — Last Air in Moscow”
Best Animation: "Little Amélie or the Character of Rain”
Best Cinematography: Adolpho Veloso, “Train Dreams”
Best Film Editing: Ronald Bronstein and Josh Safdie, “Marty Supreme”
Best Production Design: Hannah Beachler, “Sinners”
Best Music Score: Kangding Ray, “Sirât”

2023 AWARD SEASON BEGINS

The 2023 award season has finally begun with several critics groups weighing on what each considers the best of the year. As always, this can vary wildly yet there are a few select films and performances that tends to appear somewhere in each group's list. But they also tend to find room to recognize films  under the radar that will greatly benefit from the attention.

Since 1975, the Los Angeles Film Critics Association, comprised of L.A.-based professional film critics, honor screen excellence on both sides of the camera. This year, "The Zone of Interest" took the top prize from the LAFCA. This intense drama about an Auschwitz commandant and his family trying to live a comfortable life in their home next to a concentration camp also marked the return of the British filmmaker, Jonathan Glazer after a ten year absence, who received the Best Director award. This group does reveal the runners-up in each category and the acting categories are genderless but two winners are selected in each of them.

Here are the winners of the 2023 Los Angeles Film Critics Association:

Best Picture: "The Zone of Interest"
Best Director: Jonathan Glazer, "The Zone of Interest"
Best Screenplay: Andrew Haigh, "All of Us Strangers"
Best Lead Performance: Sandra Hüller, "Anatomy of a Fall" and "The Zone of Interest" and Emma Stone, "Poor Things"
Best Supporting Performance: Rachel McAdams, "Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret" and Da'Vine Joy Randolph, "The Holdovers"
Best Documentary/Nonfiction: "Menus-Paisirs – Les Troisgros"
Best Animation: "The Boy and the Heron"
Best Cinematography: Robbie Ryan, "Poor Things"
Best Editing: Laurent Sénéchal, "Anatomy of a Fall"
Best Production Design: Sarah Greenwood, "Barbie"
Best Music/Score: Mica Levi, "The Zone of Interest"
Career Achievement Award: Agnieszka Holland

The New York Film Critics Circle Awards annually make their selections to honor excellence in cinema worldwide. While the group chose "Killers of the Flower Moon", Scorsese's lengthy period drama, as their Best Film, the members of NYFCC spread the other awards around to honor "Oppenheimer", "The Holdovers", "May December" and an inspired Best Actor choice with Franz Rogowski for his amazing work in "Passages"

Here are the winners of the 2023 The New York Film Critics Circle:

Best Film: "Killers of the Flower Moon"
Best Director: Christopher Nolan, "Oppenheimer"
Best Screenplay: Samy Burch and Alex Mechanik, "May December"
Best Actress: Lily Gladstone, "Killers of the Flower Moon"
Best Actor: Franz Rogowski, "Passages"
Best Supporting Actress: Da'Vine Joy Randolph, "The Holdovers"
Best Supporting Actor: Charles Melton, "May December"
Best Cinematography: Hoyte Van Hoytema, "Oppenheimer"
Best International Film: "Anatomy of a Fall"
Best Non-Fiction Film: "Menus-Plaisirs — Les Troisgros"
Best Animated Feature Film: "The Boy and the Heron"
Best First Film: "Past Lives"

For over a hundred years the National Board of Review has been dedicated in its efforts to support cinema as both art and entertainment. This private organization of film enthusiasts, largely New York based, has been offering their selections for the best in cinema each Year. Usually the first of the critics groups to announce their picks but recently others have jumped ahead to try and be the first out the gate. This year, the NBR has selected Martin Scorsese's recent "Killers of the Flower Moon" as the big winner with Best Film, Best Director, Lily Gladstone as Best Actress and Rodrigo Prieto for his camerwork for this film and "Barbie". "The Holdovers" follows with three awards for Best Original Screenplay and Paul Giamatti and Da'Vine Joy Randolph for Best Actor and Best Supporting Actress respectively.

Here are the winners of the 2023 National Board of Review:

Best Film: "Killers of the Flower Moon"
Best Director: Martin Scorsese, "Killers of the Flower Moon"
Best Original Screenplay: David Hemingson, "The Holdovers"
Best Adapted Screenplay: Tony McNamara, "Poor Things"
Best Actress: Lily Gladstone, "Killers of the Flower Moon"
Best Actor: Paul Giamatti, "The Holdovers"
Best Supporting Actress: Da'Vine Joy Randolph, "The Holdovers"
Best Supporting Actor: Mark Ruffalo, "Poor Things"
Best Ensemble: "The Iron Claw"
Best Documentary: "Still: A Michael J. Fox Movie"
Best International Film: "Anatomy of a Fall" (France)
Best Animated Feature: "Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse"
Outstanding Achievement in Cinematography: Rodrigo Prieto, "Barbie" and "Killers of the Flower Moon"
Outstanding Achievement in Stunt Artistry: Chad Stahelski, Director and Stephen Dunlevy & Scott Rogers, Stunt Coordinators, "John Wick: Chapter 4"
Best Directorial Debut: Celine Song, "Past Lives"
Breakthrough Performance: Teyana Taylor, "A Thousand and One"
NBR Icon Award: Bradley Cooper

And the nominations of the Film Independent Spirit Awards were announced with "Past Lives", "May December" and "American Fiction" each receiving five noms apiece. To be eligble for a Spirit Award, films must have a budget below $30 million, making many of the most buzzed about movies of this season unable to be recognized by this non-profit arts organization. The 39th Spirit Awards will be held on February 25, 2024 on the beach in Santa Monica, CA. hosted by Aidy Bryant. The awards will be streamed live on the IMDb and Film Independent YouTube channels.

Here are the nominations of the 2023 Film Independent Spirit Awards (Film):

Best Feature:

"All of Us Strangers"
"American Fiction"
"May December"
"Passages"
"Past Lives"
"We Grown Now"

Best Director:

Andrew Haigh, "All of Us Strangers"
Todd Haynes, "May December"
William Oldroyd, "Eileen"
Ira Sachs, "Passages"
Celine Song, "Past Lives"

Best Screenplay:

David Hemingson, "The Holdovers"
Cord Jefferson, "American Fiction"
Laura Moss and Brendan J. O’Brien, "Birth/Rebirth"
Emma Seligman and Rachel Sennott, "Bottoms"
Celine Song, "Past Lives"

Best Lead Performance:

Jessica Chastain, "Memory"
Greta Lee, "Past Lives"
Trace Lysette, "Monica"
Natalie Portman, "May December"
Judy Reyes, "Birth/Rebirth"
Franz Rogowski, "Passages"
Andrew Scott, "All of Us Strangers"
Teyana Taylor, "A Thousand and One"
Jeffrey Wright, "American Fiction"
Teo Yoo, "Past Lives"

Best Supporting Performance:

Erika Alexander, "American Fiction"
Sterling K. Brown, "American Fiction"
Noah Galvin, "Theater Camp"
Anne Hathaway, "Eileen"
Glenn Howerton, "BlackBerry"
Marin Ireland, "Eileen"
Charles Melton, "May December"
Da'Vine Joy Randolph, "The Holdovers"
Catalina Saavedra, "Rotting in the Sun"
Ben Whishaw, "Passages"

Best Cinematography:

Katelin Arizmendi, "Monica"
Eigil Bryld, "The Holdovers"
Jomo Fray, "All Dirt Roads Taste of Salt"
Pablo Lozano, "Chronicles of a Wandering Saint"
Pat Scola, "We Grown Now"

Best Editing:

Santiago Cendejas, Gabriel Díaz and Sofía Subercaseaux, "Rotting in the Sun"
Stephanie Filo, "We Grown Now"
Daniel Garber, "How to Blow Up a Pipeline"
Jon Philpot, "Theater Camp"
Emanuele Tiziani, "Upon Entry"

Best Documentary:

"Bye Bye Tiberias"
"Four Daughters"
"Going to Mars: The Nikki Giovanni Project"
"Kokomo City"
"The Mother of All Lies"

Best International Film:

"Anatomy of a Fall" (France)
"Godland" (Denmark/Iceland)
"Mami Wata" (Nigeria)
"Tótem" (Mexico)
"The Zone of Interest" (United Kingdom, Poland)

Best First Feature:

"All Dirt Roads Taste of Salt"
"Chronicles of a Wandering Saint"
"Earth Mama"
"A Thousand and One"
"Upon Entry"

Best First Screenplay:

Samy Burch; Story by Samy Burch, Alex Mechanik, "May December"
Noah Galvin, Molly Gordon, Nick Lieberman and Ben Platt, "Theater Camp"
Tomás Gómez Bustillo, "Chronicles of a Wandering Saint"
Laurel Parmet, "The Starling Girl"

Best Breakthrough Performance:

Marshawn Lynch, "Bottoms"
Atibon Nazaire, "Mountains"
Tia Nomore, "Earth Mama"
Dominic Sessa, "The Holdovers"
Anaita Wali Zada, "Fremont"
Alejandro Rojas and Juan Sebastián Vásquez, "Upon Entry"

John Cassavetes Award (Given to the best feature made for under $1,000,000):

"The Artifice Girl"
"Cadejo Blanco"
"Fremont"
"Rotting in the Sun" "The Unknown Country"

Someone To Watch (Recognizes a talented filmmaker of singular vision who has not yet received appropriate recognition):

Joanna Arnow, "The Feeling That the Time for Doing Something Has Passed"
Laura Moss, "Birth/Rebirth"
Monica Sorelle, "Mountains"

Truer Than Fiction Award (Presented to an emerging director of non-fiction features who has not yet received significant recognition):

Set Hernandez, "unseen"
Jesse Short Bull and Laura Tomaselli, "Lakota Nation vs. United States"
Sierra Urich, "Joonam"

Robert Altman Award (Given to one film’s director, casting director and ensemble cast):

"Showing Up"

2022 AWARD SEASON BEGINS

The season has officially begun to bestow awards on some of the most compelling, dazzling and moving works of cinema that were released this year. The first to be announced are from a wide section of regional film critic groups who will bring attention to films and performances that should be recognized for their outstanding achievement.

The National Board of Review announced their winners today with "Top Gun: Maverick", the Tom Cruise-lead sequel and the year's biggest box-office champ unexpectedly taking their top prize of Best Film. The New York Film Critics Circle selected "Tár", Todd Field's riveting drama that features an electrifying performance from star, Cate Blanchett, as Best Film while The Gotham Awards, the New York-based group that honors independent cinema and television, handed their Best Feature to "Everything Everywhere All at Once", the absurdist comedy-drama by Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert.

So far, what has been generating significant award buzz to date has been writer/director Martin McDonagh's Irish comedy, "The Banshees of Inisherin" along with co-star, Colin Farrell; Ke Huy Quan and his heart-warming comeback performance in "Everything Everywhere All at Once"; the delightful, "Marcel the Shell with Shoes On" which has been accepted as an animated film depsite being set in live-action world; Charlotte Wells and her astonishing directorial debut, "Aftersun" and the films's stars, Paul Mescal and Frankie Corio; And the outstanding acting work from Janelle Monáe in "Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery", Keke Palmer in "Nope" and Danielle Deadwyler in "Till" has been highlighted. This is all just getting started so I'm sure there will be a lot more interesting selections to come.

Here are the 2023 award winners by the National Board of Review:

Best Film: "Top Gun: Maverick"
Best Director: Steven Spielberg, "The Fabelmans"
Best Adapted Screenplay: Edward Berger, Lesley Paterson and Ian Stokell, "All Quiet on the Western Front"
Best Original Screenplay: Martin McDonagh, "The Banshees of Inisherin"
Best Actor: Colin Farrell, "The Banshees of Inisherin"
Best Actress: Michelle Yeoh, "Everything Everywhere All at Once"
Best Supporting Actor: Brendan Gleeson, "The Banshees of Inisherin"
Best Supporting Actress: Janelle Monáe, "Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery"
Breakthrough Performance: Danielle Deadwyler, "Till"
Breakthrough Performance: Gabriel LaBelle, "The Fabelmans"
Best Directorial Debut: Charlotte Wells, "Aftersun" 

Outstanding Achievement in Cinematography: Claudio Miranda, "Top Gun: Maverick"
Best Documentary: "Sr."
Best International Film: "Close"
Best Animated Feature: "Marcel the Shell with Shoes On"
Best Ensemble: "Women Talking"
NBR Freedom of Expression Awards: "All the Beauty and the Bloodshed" and "Argentina, 1985"

Here are the winners of the 2022 New York Film Critics Circle Awards:

Best Film: "Tár"
Best Director: S.S. Rajamouli, "RRR"
Best Screenplay: Martin McDonagh, "The Banshees of Inisherin"
Best Actress: Cate Blanchett, "Tár"
Best Actor: Colin Farrell, "The Banshees of Inisherin" and "After Yang"
Best Supporting Actress: Keke Palmer, "Nope"
Best Supporting Actor: Ke Huy Quan, "Everything Everywhere All at Once"
Best Cinematography: Claudio Miranda, "Top Gun: Maverick"
Best Non-Fiction Film: "All the Beauty and the Bloodshed"
Best International Film: "EO" (Poland)
Best Animated Feature Film: "Marcel the Shell With Shoes On"
Best First Film: Charlotte Wells, "Aftersun"

Here are the winners of the 2022 Gotham Awards (Film):

Best Feature: "Everything Everywhere All at Once"
Best Screenplay: Todd Field, "Tár"
Outstanding Lead Performance: Danielle Deadwyler, "Till"
Outstanding Supporting Performance: Ke Huy Quan, "Everything Everywhere All at Once"
Breakthrough Performer: Gracija Filipovic, "Murina"
Bingham Ray Breakthrough Director Award: Charlotte Wells, "Aftersun"
Best Documentary Feature: "All That Breathes"
Best International Feature: "Happening"

And the Film Independent Spirit Award nominations were announced November 22nd with the big arthouse blockbuster, "Everything Everywhere All at Once" leading the pack with eight nominations. One major change this year is that the acting categories are no longer separated by gender (like the Gotham Awards did last year) which means there are now ten nominees in Lead Performance and Supporting Performance and in the new Breakthrough Performance, there are five (but still only one winner).The Spirit Awards will be held on March 4, 2023 (eight days before the Oscars) at their usual spot at the Santa Monica Pier however at this time, there is no official broadcast sponsor will air the ceremony.

Here are the nomination of the 2023 Film Independent Spirit Award:

Best Feature:

"Bones and All"
"Everything Everywhere All At Once"
"Our Father, the Devil"
"Tár"
"Women Talking"

Best Director:

Todd Field, "Tár"
Kogonada, "After Yang"
Daniel Kwan & Daniel Scheinert, "Everything Everywhere All At Once"
Sarah Polley, "Women Talking"
Halina Reijn, "Bodies Bodies Bodies"

Best Screenplay:

Lena Dunham, "Catherine Called Birdy" Todd Field, "Tár"
Kogonada, "After Yang"
Daniel Kwan & Daniel Scheinert, "Everything Everywhere All At Once"
Sarah Polley, "Women Talking"

Best First Feature:

"Aftersun"
"Emily the Criminal"
"The Inspection"
"Murina"
"Palm Trees and Power Lines"

Best First Screenplay:

Joel Kim Booster, "Fire Island"
Jamie Dack and Audrey Findlay; Story by Jamie Dack, "Palm Trees and Power Lines"
K.D. Dávila, "Emergency"
Sarah DeLappe; Story by Kristen Roupenian, "Bodies Bodies Bodies"
John Patton Ford, "Emily the Criminal"

Best Lead Performance:

Cate Blanchett, "Tár"
Dale Dickey, "A Love Song"
Mia Goth, "Pearl"
Regina Hall, "Honk for Jesus. Save Your Soul."
Paul Mescal, "Aftersun"
Aubrey Plaza, "Emily the Criminal"
Jeremy Pope, "The Inspection"
Andrea Riseborough, "To Leslie"
Taylor Russell, "Bones and All"
Michelle Yeoh, "Everything Everywhere All At Once"

Best Supporting Performance:

Jamie Lee Curtis, "Everything Everywhere All At Once"
Brian Tyree Henry, "Causeway"
Nina Hoss, "Tár"
Brian d’Arcy James, "The Cathedral" 

Ke Huy Quan, "Everything Everywhere All At Once"
Trevante Rhodes, "Bruiser"
Theo Rossi, "Emily the Criminal"
Mark Rylance, "Bones and All"
Jonathan Tucker, "Palm Trees and Power Lines"
Gabrielle Union, "The Inspection"

Best Breakthrough Performance:

Frankie Corio, "Aftersun"
Gracija Filipović, "Murina"
Stephanie Hsu, "Everything Everywhere All At Once"
Lily McInerny, "Palm Trees and Power Lines"
Daniel Zolghadri, "Funny Pages"

Best Documentary:

"All That Breathes"
"All the Beauty and the Bloodshed"
"A House Made of Splinters"
"Midwives"
"Riotsville, U.S.A."

Best International Film:

"Corsage" (Austria/Luxembourg)
"Joyland" (Pakistan)
"Leonor Will Never Die" (Philippines)
"Return to Seoul" (South Korea)
"Saint Omer" (France)

Best Cinematography:

Florian Hoffmeister, "Tár"
Hélène Louvart, "Murina"
Gregory Oke, "Aftersun"
Eliot Rockett, "Pearl"
Anisia Uzeyman, "Neptune Frost"

Best Editing:

Ricky D’Ambrose, "The Cathedral"
Dean Fleischer Camp and Nick Paley, "Marcel the Shell with Shoes On"
Blair McClendon, "Aftersun"
Paul Rogers, "Everything Everywhere All At Once"
Monika Willi, "Tár"

John Cassavetes Award (given to the best feature made for under $1,000,000):

"The African Desperate"
"A Love Song"
"The Cathedral"
"Holy Emy"
"Something in the Dirt"

Someone To Watch Award:

Adamma Ebo, "Honk for Jesus. Save Your Soul."
Nikyatu Jusu, "Nanny"
Araceli Lemos, "Holy Emy"

Truer Than Fiction Award (presented to an emerging director of non-fiction features who has not yet received significant recognition):

Isabel Castro, "Mija"
Reid Davenport, "I Didn’t See You There"
Rebeca Huntt, "Beba"

Robert Altman Award (given to one film’s director, casting director and ensemble cast):

"Women Talking"

AWARD SEASON 2021 BEGINS

"Licorice Pizza", the latest from filmmaker Paul Thomas Anderson, took Best Film and Best Director from the National Board of Review. Set in the 1970's San Fernando Valley, this coming-of-age comedy-drama looks at a fifteen year old student getting ready for picture day at school when he falls for a decade older photographer's assistant. The stars, Alana Haim of the indie band, Haim and Cooper Hoffman, the son of the late actor, Phillip Seymour Hoffman, were both recognized for Best Breakthrough Performance. Two outstanding performances in "King Richard", the story of how Venus and Serena Williams were helped guided by their parents into becoming two of the greatest tennis players of all time, were honored with Will Smith as their father, Richard for Best Actor and Aunjanue Ellis as their mother, Oracene for Best Supporting Actress. One surprise was the unexpected selection of Rachel Zegler as Best Actress for her film debut as Maria in Steven Spielberg's remake of "West Side Story". The film isn't due out in theaters until Decemeber 11th but this is a good sign for the anticipated musical. And one of my favorite films of the year, "Summer of Soul (...or When The Revolution Could Not Be Televised)", which revealed amazing, rarely-seen footage from the 1969 Harlem Cultural Festival, received the well-deserved prize for Best Documentary.

This organization, made up of select filmmakers, academics, students and film enthusiasts in New York, has been around since 1909 and traditionally has been the first of the film critic groups to announce their picks to kick off award season. The NBR Awards will be handed out at a gala hosted by Willie Gest on January 11, 2022.

2021 winners of The National Board of Review:

Best Film: "Licorice Pizza"
Best Director: Paul Thomas Anderson, "Licorice Pizza"
Best Original Screenplay: Asghar Farhadi, "A Hero"
Best Adapted Screenplay: Joel Coen, "The Tragedy Of Macbeth"
Best Actor: Will Smith, "King Richard"
Best Actress: Rachel Zegler, "West Side Story"
Best Supporting Actor: Ciarán Hinds, "Belfast"
Best Supporting Actress: Aunjanue Ellis, "King Richard"
Best Cinematography: Bruno Delbonnel, "The Tragedy Of Macbeth 

Best Directorial Debut: Michael Sarnoski, "Pig"
Best Breakthrough Performance: Alana Haim and Cooper Hoffman, "Licorice Pizza"
Best Ensemble: "The Harder They Fall"
Best Animated Feature: "Encanto"
Best Foreign Language Film: "A Hero"
Best Documentary: "Summer of Soul (...or When The Revolution Could Not Be Televised)"
NBR Freedom of Expression Award: "Flee"

NBR Best Films of the Year:

"Belfast"
"Don’t Look Up"
"Dune"
"King Richard"
"The Last Duel"
"Nightmare Alley" "Red Rocket"
"The Tragedy of Macbeth"
"West Side Story"

Meanwhile the New York Film Critics Circle went in another direction by selecting "Drive My Car", the nearly three-hour drama by Ryusuke Hamaguchi, as Best Film. This group, founded in 1935 and includes critics from newspapers, magazines and online publications, went with a film that won the Best Screenplay prize at Cannes earlier this year and will represent Japan in the Oscars for Best International Feature. Other standout selections include Lady Gaga for Best Actress for her turn as Patrizia Reggiani in "House of Gucci" and Kodi Smit-McPhee's mesmerizing performance in "The Power of The Dog" which includes the director, Jane Campion and co-star, Benedict Cumberbatch also receiving prizes for the film.

Winners of the 2021 New York Film Critics Circle:

Best Film: "Drive My Car"
Best Director: Jane Campion, "The Power of the Dog"

Best Screenplay: Paul Thomas Anderson, "Licorice Pizza"
Best Actress: Lady Gaga, "House of Gucci"
Best Actor: Benedict Cumberbatch, "The Power of the Dog"
Best Supporting Actress: Kathryn Hunter, "The Tragedy of Macbeth"
Best Supporting Actor: Kodi Smit-McPhee, "The Power of the Dog"

Best Cinematography: Janusz Kamiński, "West Side Story"
Best First Film: "The Lost Daughter"
Best Animated Film: "The Mitchells vs. the Machines"
Best Non-Fiction Film: "Flee"
Best Foreign Language Film: "The Worst Person in the World"

MORE AWARD NEWS

With award season in complete disarray due to the on-going pandemic, some groups are just getting around to announcing their picks for the best of 2020. The National Board of Review has selected Spike Lee’s "Da 5 Bloods" as their Best Film of 2020 with the drama involving Vietnam vets returning to the country in search of a buried treasure received three awards overall with Lee winning Best Director and the film receiving the Best Ensemble award. Chadwick Boseman, the actor who passed away in August whose last roles were in "Da 5 Bloods" and " Ma Rainey's Black Bottom", was posthumously honored with with NBR Icon Award.

The 2020 National Board of Review Award winners:

Best Film: "Da 5 Bloods"
Best Director: Spike Lee, "Da 5 Bloods"
Best Directorial Debut: Channing Godfrey Peoples, "Miss Juneteenth"
Best Original Screenplay: Lee Isaac Chung, "Minari"
Best Adapted Screenplay: Paul Greengrass and Luke Davies, "News Of The World"
Best Actor: Riz Ahmed, "Sound Of Metal"
Best Actress: Carey Mulligan, "Promising Young Woman"
Best Supporting Actor: Paul Raci, "Sound Of Metal"
Best Supporting Actress: Youn Yuh-jung, "Minari"
Best Ensemble: "Da 5 Bloods"
Best Breakthrough Performance: Sidney Flanigan, "Never Rarely Sometimes Always"
Outstanding Achievement in Cinematography: Joshua James Richards, "Nomadland"
Best Animated Feature: "Soul"
Best Foreign Language Film: "La LLorona"
Best Documentary: "Time"
NBR Icon Award: Chadwick Boseman
NBR Freedom of Expression Award: "One Night In Miami"
NBR Spotlight Award: Radha Blank, "The Forty-Year-Old Version"

The American Film Institute have announced the AFI Movies of the Year with Netflix impressively doing well with four of their films making the list; Spike Lee’s "Da 5 Bloods", David Fincher’s "Mank", George C. Wolfe’s "Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom" and Aaron Sorkin’s "The Trial of the Chicago 7".

AFI MOVIES OF THE YEAR:

"Da 5 Bloods"
"Judas and the Black Messiah"
"Ma Rainey's Black Bottom"
"Mank"
"Minari"
"Nomadland"
"One Night in Miami"
"Soul"
"Sound of Metal"
"The Trial of the Chicago 7"

And The Film Independent Spirit Awards have presented their nominations with "Never Rarely Sometimes Always" leading all Spirit nominees with seven including Best Feature. Only movies made for a budget of $22.5 million or under are eligible with the other Best Feature nominees include "Minari" (receivng six total nominations), "Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom", "Nomadland" (with five total each) and "First Cow" (with three). The Spirit Awards are usually held on the Santa Monica beach the Saturday afternoon before The Oscars the following day. But this year, the ceremony will take place on April 22nd, three days before the Academy Awards on April 25th.

Here are the nominees for the 36th annual Film Independent Spirit Awards:

Best Feature:

"First Cow"
"Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom"
"Minari"
"Never Rarely Sometimes Always"
"Nomadland"

Best First Feature:

"I Carry You With Me"
"The Forty-Year-Old Version"
"Miss Juneteenth"
"Nine Days"
"Sound of Metal"

Best Director:

Lee Isaac Chung, "Minari"
Emerald Fennell, "Promising Young Woman"
Eliza Hittman, "Never Rarely Sometimes Always"
Kelly Reichardt, "First Cow"
Chloé Zhao, "Nomadland"

Best Screenplay:

Mike Makowsky, "Bad Education"
Lee Isaac Chung, "Minari"
Alice Wu, "The Half Of It"
Eliza Hittman, "Never Rarely Sometimes Always"
Emerald Fennell, "Promising Young Woman"

Best First Screenplay:

Kitty Green, "The Assistant"
Noah Hutton, "Lapsis"
Channing Godfrey Peoples, "Miss Juneteenth"
Andy Siara, "Palm Springs"
James Sweeney, "Straight Up"

Best Female Lead:

Nicole Beharie, "Miss Juneteenth"
Viola Davis, "Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom"
Sidney Flanigan, "Never Rarely Sometimes Always"
Julia Garner, "The Assistant"
Frances McDormand, "Nomadland"
Carey Mulligan, "Promising Young Woman"

Best Male Lead:

Riz Ahmed, "Sound of Metal"
Chadwick Boseman, "Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom"
Adarsh Gourav, "The White Tiger"
Rob Morgan, "Bull"
Steven Yeun, "Minari"

Best Supporting Female:

Alexis Chikaeze, "Miss Juneteenth"
Yeri Han, "Minari"
Valerie Mahaffey, "French Exit"
Talia Ryder, "Never Rarely Sometimes Always"
Yuh-jung Youn, "Minari"

Best Supporting Male:

Colman Domingo, "Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom"
Orion Lee, "First Cow"
Paul Raci, "Sound of Metal"
Glynn Turman, "Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom"
Benedict Wong, "Nine Days"

Best Cinematography:

Jay Keitel, "She Dies Tomorrow"
Shabier Kirchner, "Bull"
Michael Latham, "The Assistant"
Hélène Louvart, "Never Rarely Sometimes Always"
Joshua James Richards, "Nomadland"

Best Editing:

Andy Canny, "The Invisible Man"
Scott Cummings, "Never Rarely Sometimes Always"
Merawi Gerima, "Residue"
Enat Sidi, "I Carry You With Me"
Chloé Zhao, "Nomadland"

Best Documentary:

"Collective"
"Crip Camp"
"Dick Johnson is Dead"
"The Mole Agent"
"Time"

Best International Film:

"Bacurau" (Brazil)
"The Disciple" (India)
"Night of the Kings" (Ivory Coast)
"Preparations to be Together for an Unknown Period of Time" (Hungary)
"Quo Vadis, Aida?" (Bosnia and Herzegovina)

John Cassavetes Award (award given for the best feature made for under $500,000)

"The Killing of Two Lovers"
"La Leyenda Negra"
"Lingua Franca"
"Residue"
"Saint Frances"

Robert Altman Award (award given to a film’s director, casting director and ensemble cast)

"One Night in Miami"

The Truer Than Fiction Award (presented to an emerging director of non-fiction features who has not yet received significant recognition):

Cecilia Aldarondo, "Landfall"
Elegance Bratton, "Pier Kids"
Elizabeth Lo, "Stray"

The Someone to Watch Award (recognizes a talented filmmaker of singular vision who has not yet received appropriate recognition):

David Midell, "The Killing of Kenneth Chamberlain"
Ekwa Msangi, "Farewell Amor"
Annie Silverstein, "Bull"

AWARD SEASON 2019 BEGINS

Award season has begun fast and furious with several critics groups and film organizations  announcing their picks for the best of the year. First we have the National Board of Review with the organization selecting "The Irishman" as Best Film while giving the Best Director prize to Quentin Tarantino for his work on the unique  tribute to the end of Hollywood's Golden Age, "Once Upon a Time . . . In Hollywood". Martin Scorsese's crime drama would also receive Best Adapted Screenplay and this year's Icon Award will go to the director and his stars, Robert De Niro and Al Pacino. The National Board of Review has been around since 1909 and the group, which includes filmmakers, academics and movie enthusiasts, will hand out the prizes on January 8th in New York.

Here is the list of the 2019 winners selected by the National Board of Review:

Best Film: "The Irishman"
Best Director: Quentin Tarantino, "Once Upon A Time. . .In Hollywood"
Best Directorial Debut: Melina Matsoukas, "Queen & Slim"
Best Original Screenplay: Josh Safdie, Benny Safdie and Ronald Bronstein, "Uncut Gems"
Best Adapted Screenplay: Steven Zaillian, "The Irishman"
Best Actor: Adam Sandler, "Uncut Gems"
Best Actress: Renée Zellweger, "Judy"
Best Supporting Actor: Brad Pitt, "Once Upon A Time. . .In Hollywood"
Best Supporting Actress: Kathy Bates, "Richard Jewell"
Breakthrough Performance: Paul Walter Hauser, "Richard Jewell"
Best Ensemble: "Knives Out"
Outstanding Achievement in Cinematography: Roger Deakins, "1917"
Best Animated Feature: "How To Train Your Dragon:The Hidden World"
Best Foreign Language Film: "Parasite"
Best Documentary: "Maiden"
NBR Icon Award: Martin Scorsese, Robert De Niro and Al Pacino
NBR Freedom of Expression Award: "For Sama"
NBR Freedom of Expression Award: "Just Mercy"

The American Film Institute has announced their picks for the ten best films of 2019. "The Irishman" and "Once Upon a Time. . . In Hollywood" made the list as well as Lulu Wang's "The Farewell", Clint Eastwood's upcoming bio-pic, "Richard Jewell" and the violent comic-book thriller, "Joker". And a special award was given to Bong Joon Ho for his compelling black comedy thriller, "Parasite" which is designated for a work of excellence outside the institute’s criteria for American film and television. There will be an AFI Awards luncheon for the winners on January 3rd in Los Angeles.

AFI Motion Pictures of the Year:

"1917"
"The Farewell"
"The Irishman"
"Jojo Rabbit"
"Joker"
"Knives Out"
"Little Women"
"Marriage Story"
"Once Upon a Time. . .In Hollywood"
"Richard Jewell"

"The Irishman" was also the pick by The New York Film Critics Circle for Best Film but some of their more inspired selections include the Best Actress prize going to Lupita Nyong’o for her captivating turn in the horror film, "Us", Antonio Banderas receiving Best Actor for his amazing performance in Pedro Almodóvar's drama, "Pain and Glory" and the Safdie brothers winning Best Director for their indie drama, "Uncut Gems" which features an impressively dramatic Adam Sandler. The NYFCC, which was founded in 1935, includes critics from daily and weekly newspapers, magazines and online publications.

Here is the list of winners of the 2019 New York Film Critics Circle:

Best Film: "The Irishman"
Best Director: Josh and Benny Safdie, "Uncut Gems"
Best First Film: "Atlantics"
Best Screenplay: Quentin Tarantino, "Once Upon a Time. . . in Hollywood"
Best Actor: Antonio Banderas, "Pain And Glory"
Best Actress: Lupita Nyong’o, "Us"
Best Supporting Actor: Joe Pesci, "The Irishman"
Best Supporting Actress: Laura Dern, "Marriage Story" and "Little Women"
Best Cinematography: Claire Mathon, "Portrait of a Lady on Fire"
Best Foreign Language Film: "Parasite"
Best Non-Fiction Film: "Honeyland"
Best Animated Film: "I Lost My Body"

Noah Baumbach and his exceptional drama, "Marriage Story" was the big winner at the 2019 Gotham Awards with the film receiving four awards; Best Feature, Best Screenplay, Best Actor and the Audience Award. And Awkwafina took home Best Actress for her moving performance in "The Farewell".

Here is a partial list of nominations and the winners (highlighted) of the 2019 Gotham IFP Awards:

Best Feature:

"The Farewell"
"Hustlers"
"Marriage Story"
"Uncut Gems"
"Waves"

Bingham Ray Breakthrough Director Award:

Laure De Clermont-Tonnerre, "The Mustang"
Kent Jones, "Diane"
Joe Talbot, "The Last Black Man in San Francisco"
Olivia Wilde, "Booksmart"
Phillip Youmans, "Burning Cane"

Best Screenplay:

Lulu Wang, "The Farewell"
Tarell Alvin McCraney, "High Flying Bird"
Jimmie Fails, Joe Talbot, and Rob Richert, "The Last Black Man in San Francisco"
Noah Baumbach, "Marriage Story"
Ari Aster, "Midsommar"

Best Actress:

Awkwafina, "The Farewell"
Elisabeth Moss, "Her Smell"
Mary Kay Place, "Diane"
Florence Pugh, "Midsommar"
Alfre Woodard, "Clemency"

Best Actor:

Willem Dafoe, "The Lighthouse"
Adam Driver, "Marriage Story"
Aldis Hodge, "Clemency"
André Holland, "High Flying Bird"
Adam Sandler, "Uncut Gems"

Breakthrough Actor:

Julia Fox, "Uncut Gems"
Aisling Franciosi, "The Nightingale"
Chris Galust, "Give Me Liberty"
Noah Jupe, "Honey Boy"
Jonathan Majors, "The Last Black Man in San Francisco"
Taylor Russell, "Waves"

Best Documentary:

"American Factory"
"Apollo 11"
"The Edge of Democracy"
"Midnight Traveler"
"One Child Nation"

Audience Award:

"American Factory"
"Apollo 11"
"Booksmart"
"Burning Cane"
"Diane"
"The Edge of Democracy"
"The Farewell"
"Hustlers"
"The Last Black Man in San Francisco"
"Marriage Story"
"Midnight Traveler"
"The Mustang"
"One Child Nation"
"Uncut Gems"
"Waves"

2018 AWARD SEASON BEGINS

And so it begins. It's that time of year when the movie industry honors what is considered the best of the movies, performances and technicians of the year which is otherwise known as award season. Here is the run-down of some of the winners and nominations so far:

The National Board of Review is always the first of the critics' groups to announce their picks for the best of the year and today they have selected "Green Book" as their Best Film. This 1960's set story, directed by Peter Farrelly, tells of an unlikely friendship during a turbulent time in America was just released in U.S. theaters this past weekend. Viggo Mortensen, who plays the white driver and bodyguard for African-American pianist, Don Shirley (Mahershala Ali) as they travel through the segregated South on a concert tour, received the Best Actor prize for the film. Bradley Cooper and his directorial debut with the remake of "A Star Is Born" also received plenty of attention from the Board with the actor winning Best Director along with Lady Gaga and Sam Elliott receiving Best Actress and Best Supporting Actor for their performances. The NBR Awards will be handed out on January 8, 2019 at Cipriani 42nd Street in New York.

Best Film: "Green Book"



Best Director: Bradley Cooper, "A Star Is Born"
Best Directorial Debut: Bo Burnham, "Eighth Grade"
Best Original Screenplay: Paul Schrader, "First Reformed"
Best Adapted Screenplay: Barry Jenkins, "If Beale Street Could Talk"
Best Actress: Lady Gaga, "A Star Is Born"
Best Actor: Viggo Mortensen, "Green Book"
Best Supporting Actress: Regina King, "If Beale Street Could Talk"
Best Supporting Actor: Sam Elliott, "A Star Is Born"
Best Breakthrough Performance: Thomasin McKenzie, "Leave No Trace"
Best Ensemble: "Crazy Rich Asians"
Best Animated Feature: "Incredibles 2"
Best Foreign Language Film: "Cold War"
Best Documentary: "RBG"
William K. Everson Film History Award: "The Other Side of The Wind" and "They'll Love Me When I'm Dead"
NBR Freedom of Expression Award: "22 July"
NBR Freedom of Expression Award: "On Her Shoulders"

"The Rider", Chloé Zhao's poetic contemporary western, was the unexpected winner of Best Feature at the 2018 Gotham Awards. The New York-based group, which celebrates the best of independent cinema, offered another surprise with Toni Collette receiving a well-deserved Best Actress prize for her ferocious turn as a stressed-out mother in the horror film, "Hereditary". And the Best Actress nominating committee also voted to award a special Gotham Jury Award to Olivia Colman, Emma Stone, and Rachel Weisz for their performances in "The Favourite".

Here is the list of nominations and winners (which were presented on November 26th ) for the 2018 Gotham Awards. The winners are highlighted:

Best Feature:

"The Favourite"
"First Reformed"
"If Beale Street Could Talk"
"Madeline’s Madeline"
"The Rider"



Bingham Ray Breakthrough Director:

Ari Aster, "Hereditary"
Bo Burnham, "Eighth Grade"
Jennifer Fox, "The Tale"
Crystal Moselle, "Skate Kitchen"
Boots Riley, "Sorry to Bother You"

Best Screenplay:

Deborah Davis and Tony McNamara, "The Favourite"
Paul Schrader, "First Reformed"
Tamara Jenkins. "Private Life"
Andrew Bujalski, "Support The Girls"
Cory Finley, "Thoroughbreds"

Best Actress:

Glenn Close, "The Wife"
Toni Collette, "Hereditary"
Kathryn Hahn, "Private Life"
Regina Hall, "Support the Girls"
Michelle Pfeiffer, "Where is Kyra?"

Best Actor:

Adam Driver, "BlacKkKlansman"
Ben Foster, "Leave No Trace"
Richard E. Grant, "Can You Ever Forgive Me?"
Ethan Hawke, "First Reformed"
Lakeith Stanfield, "Sorry to Bother You"

Best Breakthrough Actor:

Yalitza Aparicio, "Roma"
Elsie Fisher, "Eighth Grade"
Helena Howard, "Madeline’s Madeline"
KiKi Layne, "If Beale Street Could Talk"
Thomasin Harcourt McKenzie, "Leave No Trace"

Best Documentary:

"Bisbee ‘17"
"Hale County This Morning, This Evening"
"Minding the Gap"
"Shirkers"
"Won’t You Be My Neighbor?"

The 34th Annual Film Independent Spirit Awards, which honors the best of indie cinema, will be broadcast live on IFC on Feb. 23, 2019. The ceremony, traditionally held the day before the Oscars, will be on the beach in Santa Monica with host, Aubrey Plaza.

Here is the list of nominations for the 2018 Film Independent Spirit Awards:

Best Feature:

"Eighth Grade"
"First Reformed"
"If Beale Street Could Talk"
"Leave No Trace"
"You Were Never Really Here"

Best First Feature:

"Hereditary"
"Sorry to Bother You"
"The Tale"
"We the Animals"
"Wildlife"

Best Director:

Debra Granik, "Leave No Trace"
Barry Jenkins, "If Beale Street Could Talk"
Tamara Jenkins, "Private Life"
Lynne Ramsay, "You Were Never Really Here"
Paul Schrader, "First Reformed"

Best Screenplay:

Richard Glatzer, Rebecca Lenkiewicz & Wash Westmoreland, "Colette"
Nicole Holofcener & Jeff Whitty, "Can You Ever Forgive Me?"
Tamara Jenkins, "Private Life"
Boots Riley, "Sorry to Bother You"
Paul Schrader, "First Reformed"

Best First Screenplay:

Bo Burnham, "Eighth Grade"
Christina Choe, "Nancy"
Cory Finley, "Thoroughbreds"
Jennifer Fox, "The Tale"
Quinn Shephard and Laurie Shephard, Blame"

Best Lead Female:

Glenn Close, "The Wife"
Toni Colette, "Hereditary"
Elsie Fisher, "Eighth Grade"
Regina Hall, "Support the Girls"
Helena Howard, "Madeline's Madeline"
Carey Mulligan, "Wildlife"

Best Lead Male:

John Cho, "Searching"
Daveed Diggs, "Blindspotting"
Ethan Hawke, "First Reformed"
Christian Malheiros, "Socrates"
Joaquin Phoenix, "You Were Never Really Here"

Best Supporting Female:

Kayli Carter, "Private Life"
Tyne Daly, "A Bread Factory"
Regina King, "If Beale Street Could Talk"
Thomasin Harcourt McKenzie, "Leave No Trace"
J. Smith-Cameron, "Nancy"

Best Supporting Male:

Raul Castillo, "We the Animals"
Adam Driver, "BlacKkKlansman"
Richard E Grant, "Can You Ever Forgive Me?"
Josh Hamilton, "Eighth Grade"
John David Washington, "Monsters and Men"

Best Foreign Film:

"Burning" (South Korea)
"The Favourite" (United Kingdom)
"Happy as Lazzaro" (Italy)
"Roma" (Mexico)
"Shoplifters" (Japan)

Best Documentary:

"Hale County This Morning, This Evening"
"Minding the Gap"
"On her Shoulders"
"Shirkers"
"Won't You Be My Neighbor?"

Best Cinematography:

Ashley Connor, "Madeline's Madeline"
Benjamin Loeb, "Mandy"
Sayombhu Mukdeeprom, "Suspiria"
Zak Mulligan, "We The Animals"
Diego Garcia, "Wildlife"

Best Editing:

Joe Bini, "You Were Never Really Here"
Keiko Deguchi, Brian A. Kates & Jeremiah Zagar, "We the Animals"
Luke Dunkley, Nick Fenton, Chris Gill & Julian Hart, "American Animals"
Anne Fabini, Alex Hall and Gary Levy, "The Tale"
Nick Houy, "Mid90s"

John Cassavetes Award (a feature film prize for movies made for under $500,000)

"A Bread Factory"
"En El Septimo Dia"
"Never Goin' Back"
"Socrates"
"Thunder Road"

Robert Altman Award (which honors the director, casting director, and ensemble cast):

"Suspiria"

2017 AWARD SEASON BEGINS

While it has not been theatrically released yet, "The Post", Steven Spielberg’s look at the Washington Post taking the lead in exposing the Pentagon Papers, impressed the National Board of Review enough for them to select it as the Best Film of 2017. Meryl Streep and Tom Hanks, who play Post publisher, Katherine Graham and the paper's editor, Ben Bradlee, took the Best Actress and Best Actor prizes for their roles in the film. "The Post" is due on December 22nd in limited release before rolling out nationwide in January.

In a pleasant and well-deserved surprise, actress, Greta Gerwig was selected as Best Director for her amazing coming-of-age dramedy, "Lady Bird", her directorial debut while Jordan Peele took the Directorial Debut prize for "Get Out", his reflective horror flick that examines race relations.

Both films are also well represented with nominations for the 2017 Independent Spirit Awards with "Get Out" receiving five and "Lady Bird" received four with both nominated for Best Feature. Laurie Metcalf won the Best Supporting Actress prize from NBR and a nomination from the Spirit Awards for her performance in "Lady Bird" as the harried mother. Another film not yet seen publicly, "Phantom Thread" was given the Best Original Screenplay by NBR with this drama (due out on Christmas day) by writer/director Paul Thomas Anderson being noteworthy and highly anticipated because it will feature the apparent last screen performance by three-time Oscar winner, Daniel Day-Lewis.

Meanwhile on the other side of the globe, The European Film Awards have previously announced their nominations of the best films of 2017 that originated from their continent. Four of the Best European Film nominees have been selected to represent their countries for Oscar as Best Foreign-Language Film (with "The Other Side of Hope" from Finland not getting that opportunity).

The National Board of Review Awards gala, hosted by Willie Geist, will be on January 9, 2018 at Cipriani 42nd Street in New York. The Spirit Awards will air live on IFC from the Santa Monica beach on March 3rd and will be hosted by Nick Kroll and John Mulaney for a second year in a row. The 30th annual European Awards will be held on December 9th in Berlin.

Winners of the 2017 National Board of Review:

Best Film: "The Post"
Best Director: Greta Gerwig, "Lady Bird"
Best Directorial Debut: Jordan Peele, "Get Out"
Best Original Screenplay: Paul Thomas Anderson, "Phantom Thread"
Best Adapted Screenplay: Scott Neustadter & Michael H. Weber, "The Disaster Artist"
Best Actor: Tom Hanks, "The Post"
Best Actress: Meryl Streep, "The Post"
Best Supporting Actor: Willem Dafoe, "The Florida Project"
Best Supporting Actress: Laurie Metcalf, "Lady Bird"
Best Cast Ensemble: "Get Out"
Best Animated Feature: "Coco"
Best Foreign Language Film: "Foxtrot" (Israel)
Best Documentary: "Jane"
Best Breakthrough Performance: Timothée Chalamet, "Call Me By Your Name"
Freedom of Expression: "Let it Fall: Los Angeles, 1982-1992" and "First They Killed My Father" (tie)
Spotlight Award: "Wonder Woman" director Patty Jenkins and actress Gal Gadot

2017 Film Independent Spirit Awards Nominations:

Best Feature

"Call Me By Your Name"
"Get Out"
"Lady Bird"
"The Florida Project"
"The Rider"

Best First Feature

"Columbus"
"Ingrid Goes West"
"Menashe"
"Oh Lucy!"
"Patti Cake$"

Best Director

Sean Baker, "The Florida Project"
Jonas Carpignano, "A Ciambra"
Luca Guadagnino, "Call Me by Your Name"
Jordan Peele, "Get Out"
Benny Safdie & Josh Safdie, "Good Time"
Chloé Zhao, "The Rider

Best Screenplay

Greta Gerwig, "Lady Bird"
Azazel Jacobs, "The Lovers"
Martin McDonagh, "Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri"
Jordan Peele, "Get Out"
Mike White, "Beatriz at Dinner"

Best First Screenplay

Kris Avedisian, (Story by Kyle Espeleta and Jesse Wakeman), "Donald Cried"
Emily V. Gordon and Kumail Nanjiani, "The Big Sick"
Ingrid Jungermann, "Women Who Kill"
Kogonada, "Columbus"
David Branson Smith, Matt Spicer, "Ingrid Goes West"

Best Female Lead

Salma Hayek, "Beatriz at Dinner"
Frances McDormand, "Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri"
Margot Robbie, "I, Tonya"
Saoirse Ronan, "Lady Bird"
Shinobu Terajima, "Oh Lucy!"
Regina Williams, "Life and nothing more"

Best Male Lead

Timothée Chalamet, "Call Me by Your Name"
Harris Dickinson, "Beach Rats"
James Franco, "The Disaster Artist"
Daniel Kaluuya, "Get Out"
Robert Pattinson, "Good Time"

Best Supporting Female

Holly Hunter, "The Big Sick"
Allison Janney, "I, Tonya"
Laurie Metcalf, "Lady Bird"
Lois Smith, "Marjorie Prime"
Taliah Lennice Webster, "Good Time"

Best Supporting Male

Nnamdi Asomugha, "Crown Heights"
Armie Hammer, "Call Me By Your Name"
Barry Keoghan, "The Killing of a Sacred Deer"
Sam Rockwell, "Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri"
Bennie Safdie, "Good Time"

Best Cinematography

Thimios Bakatakis, "The Killing of a Sacred Deer"
Elisha Christian, "Columbus"
Hélène Louvart, "Beach Rats"
Sayombhu Mukdeeprom, "Call Me by Your Name"
Joshua James Richards, "The Rider"

Best Editing

Ronald Bronstein and Benny Safdie, "Good Time"
Walter Fasano, "Call Me by Your Name"
Alex O’Flinn, "The Rider"
Gregory Plotkin, "Get Out"
Tatiana S. Riegel, "I, Tonya"

Best Documentary

"The Departure"
"Faces Places"
"Last Men in Aleppo"
"Motherland"
"Quest"

Best International Film

"BPM (Beats Per Minute)" (France)
"A Fantastic Woman" (Chile)
"I Am Not a Witch" (Zambia)
"Lady Macbeth" (U.K.)
"Loveless" (Russia)

John Cassavetes Award (for best feature made under $500,000)

"Dayveon"
"A Ghost Story"
"Life and nothing more"
"Most Beautiful Island"
"The Transfiguration"

Robert Altman Award (for Best Cast Ensemble)

"Mudbound"

Kiehl’s Someone To Watch Award

Amman Abbasi, "Dayveon"
Justin Chon, "Gook"
Kevin Phillips, "Super Dark Times"

2017 European Film Awards Nominations:

Best European Film

"BPM" (France)
"Loveless" (Russia)
"On Body And Soul" (Hungary)
"The Other Side Of Hope" (Finland)
"The Square" (Sweden/Germany/France/Denmark)

Best European Director

Ildikó Enyedi, "On Body And Soul"
Aki Kaurismäki, "The Other Side Of Hope"
Yorgos Lanthimos, The Killing Of A Sacred Deer"
Ruben Östlund, "The Square"
Andrey Zvyagintsev, "Loveless"

Best European Actress

Paula Beer, "Frantz"
Juliette Binoche, "Bright Sunshine In"
Alexandra Borbély, "On Body And Soul"
Isabelle Huppert, "Happy End"
Florence Pugh, "Lady Macbeth"

Best European Actor

Claes Bang, The Square"
Colin Farrell, The Killing Of A Sacred Deer"
Josef Hader, Stefan Zweig, "Farewell To Europe"
Nahuel Pérez Biscayart, "BPM"
Jean-Louis Trintignant, "Happy End"

Best European Screenwriter

Ildikó Enyedi, "On Body And Soul"
Yorgos Lanthimos & Efthimis Filippou, The Killing Of A Sacred Deer"
Oleg Negin & Andrey Zvyagintsev, "Loveless"
Ruben Östlund, "The Square"
François Ozon, "Frantz"

Best European Documentary

"Austerlitz"
"Communion"
"La Chana"
"Stranger In Paradise"
"The Good Postman"

2016 AWARD SEASON BEGINS

With the first round of award season just beginning, "Manchester by The Sea" received the top prize from the National Board of Review for Best Film while "Moonlight" tied with "American Honey" with the most nominations at six from the 2016 Independent Spirit Awards. "Manchester" did receive five noms including Best Feature from the Spirits although director, Kenneth Lonergan was absent from the Best Director category.

Some notable wins from the NBR include the surprising choice of Amy Adams for Best Actress for "Arrival", Jeff Bridges taking the Best Supporting Actor prize for the sleeper hit, "Hell or High Water" and "Kubo and the Two Strings" beating "Zootopia" for Best Animated Feature. And for a film that has barely been screened, Jay Cocks and Martin Scorsese taking the Best Adapted Screenplay award for "Silence" was certainly unexpected.

The Spirit Awards, which highlights the best in indie cinema, will bring some much needed attention with nominations to some great films and performances from this year that might get overlooked. Some of these include "Little Men", "Other People" that also features the amazing work by Jesse Plemons and Molly Shannon, Lily Gladstone in "Certain Women", "Spa Night", Ralph Fiennes in “A Bigger Splash” and the perfectly creepy, New England horror flick, "The Witch".

2016 National Board of Review winners:

Best Film: "Manchester by the Sea"
Best Director: Barry Jenkins, "Moonlight"
Best Actor: Casey Affleck, "Manchester by the Sea"
Best Actress: Amy Adams, "Arrival"
Best Supporting Actor: Jeff Bridges, "Hell or High Water"
Best Supporting Actress: Naomie Harris, "Moonlight"
Best Original Screenplay: Kenneth Lonergan, "Manchester by the Sea"
Best Adapted Screenplay: Jay Cocks and Martin Scorsese, "Silence"
Best Animated Feature: "Kubo and the Two Strings"
Breakthrough Performance (Male): Lucas Hedges, "Manchester by the Sea"
Breakthrough Performance (Female): Royalty Hightower, "The Fits"
Best Directorial Debut: Trey Edward Shults, "Krisha"
Best Foreign Language Film: "The Salesman"
Best Documentary: "O.J.: Made in America"
Best Ensemble: "Hidden Figures"
NBR Freedom of Expression Award: "Cameraperson"

2016 Film Independent Spirit Awards Nominations

Best Feature:

“American Honey”
“Chronic”
“Jackie”
“Manchester by the Sea”
“Moonlight”

Best Director:

Andrea Arnold, “American Honey”
Barry Jenkins, “Moonlight”
Pablo Larrain, “Jackie”
Jeff Nichols, “Loving”
Kelly Reichardt, “Certain Women”

Best Screenplay:

Taylor Sheridan, “Hell or High Water”
Ira Sachs & Mauricio Zacharias, “Little Men”
Kenneth Lonergan, “Manchester by the Sea”
Barry Jenkins, “Moonlight”
Mike Mills, “20th Century Women”

Best First Feature:

“The Childhood of a Leader”
“The Fits”
“Other People”
“Swiss Army Man”
“The Witch”

Best First Screenplay:

Adam Mansbach, “Barry”
Craig Shilowich, “Christine”
Stella Meghie, “Jean of the Joneses”
Chris Kelly, “Other People”
Robert Eggers, “The Witch”

Best Male Lead:

Casey Affleck, “Manchester by the Sea”
David Harewood, “Free in Deed”
Viggo Mortensen, “Captain Fantastic”
Jesse Plemons, “Other People”
Tim Roth, “Chronic”

Best Female Lead:

Annette Bening, “20th Century Women”
Isabelle Huppert, “Elle”
Sasha Lane, “American Honey”
Ruth Negga, “Loving”
Natalie Portman, “Jackie”

Best Supporting Male:

Ralph Fiennes, “A Bigger Splash”
Ben Foster, “Hell or High Water”
Lucas Hedges, “Manchester by the Sea”
Shia LaBeouf, “American Honey”
Craig Robinson, “Morris from America”

Best Supporting Female:

Edwina Findley, “Free in Deed”
Paulina Garcia, “Little Men”
Lily Gladstone, “Certain Women”
Riley Keough, “American Honey”
Molly Shannon, “Other People”

Best International Film:

“Aquarius” (Brazil)
“Chevalier” (Greece)
“My Golden Days” (France)
“Toni Erdmann” (Germany/Romania)
“Under the Shadow” (Iran/United Kingdom)

Best Documentary Feature:

“13th”
“Cameraperson”
“I Am Not Your Negro”
“O.J.: Made in America”
“Sonita”
“Under the Sun”

Best Cinematography:

“American Honey”
“Childhood”
“Free in Deed”
“Eyes of My Mother”
“Moonlight”

Best Editing:

“Hell or High Water”
“Jackie”
“Manchester by the Sea”
“Moonlight”
“Swiss Army Man”

John Cassavetes Award:

“Free in Deed”
“Hunter Gatherer”
“Lovesong”
“Nakom”
“Spa Night”

Robert Altman Award: “Moonlight”

Truer Than Fiction Award:

Kristi Jacobson, “Solitary”
Sara Jordeno, “Kiki”
Nanfu Wang, “Holligan Sparrow”

Someone to Watch Award:

Andrew Ahn, “Spa Night”
Claire Carre, “Embers”
Anna Rose Holmer, “The Fits”
Ingrid Jungermann, “Women Who Kill”