Awards HQ Jan. 25: How to Save This Year’s Oscars Telecast; Emmy FYC Events Return; SAG Awards TV Predictions

George Clooney thinks that Ben Affleck deserves to win his third Academy Award this year.

A column chronicling conversations and events on the awards circuit.

Addie Morfoot ContributorBack in the 1980s, former HBO Documentary Films president Sheila Nevins saw an opportunity in the nonfiction short format.“I was watching the Academy Awards one night and there was this category called best docu short and the people who made them were getting Oscars,” Nevins says. “At the Emmys, docus were kept hidden and given out on a special day.

The Sundance Film Festival is revealing award winners for its 2022 edition on Friday afternoon beginning at 2 p.m. PT. Like the rest of this year’s festival, which was forced to go all-virtual because of the recent Omicron surge, the awards ceremony is playing out on Twitter.

Clayton Davis It was a big swing for writer and director Mike Mills to cast Joaquin Phoenix in his beautiful drama “C’mon C’mon,” something he didn’t expect he would take on. “I think Joaquin is an incredibly smart and multiple layered person, who will always be surprising,” says Mills.

have now made their choices for the best film accomplishments of 2021, culminating this week with a day in which the Producers Guild, Writers Guild and Directors Guild all announced their nominations within a few hours of each other.And when the dust cleared, the Oscar race looked pretty much the same way it did before the guilds started announcing nominations.“Belfast?” Check. “The Power of the Dog?” Yep.

Idina Menzel is poking fun at that John Travolta name mixup once again.

It is very rare for a married couple to be nominated for acting Oscars in the same year, but it has happened three times in the past.

John Hopewell Chief International CorrespondentIn some ways, Javier Bardem and Christoph Waltz have trod similar career paths. In the space of two years, both stole the show and won Oscars playing cold-blooded killers, Bardem in the Coen brothers’ “No Country for Old Men,” Waltz in “Inglourious Basterds.” Both went on to become memorable Bond villains.

West Side Story‘s Steven Spielberg, The Power of the Dog‘s Jane Campion, Dune‘s Denis Villeneuve, Licorice Pizza‘s Paul Thomas Anderson and Kenneth Branagh of Belfast have been nominated for the top feature film prize as the Directors Guild unveiled nominations Thursday for its 74th annual DGA Awards.

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at LargeThough he’s been an acclaimed actor for five decades, earned four Oscar nominations and starred in several blockbusters, Willem Dafoe will take on a new challenge this weekend when he hosts “Saturday Night Live” for the first time Jan. 29.The announcement was met with massive enthusiasm online, with many people expressing disbelief Dafoe had never hosted before.

Manori Ravindran International EditorIn the streaming age, documentary filmmakers, once the long-suffering artists working in obscurity to finish self-funded passion projects, have become rock stars. Deep-pocketed platforms like Netflix and Hulu have dished out for costly archival clearances and biopic rights, and the strategy has invariably led to awards glory.But just as the medium has become more elevated, so too has it grown increasingly global in scope, with a vast network of documentary gatekeepers venturing outside the traditional nonfiction markets of the U.S.

Clayton Davis After a stampede of awards announcements that include ACE Eddies, Producers Guild and Writers Guild of America Awards, the prestigious Directors Guild of America Awards finally weighs in with their own set of nominees that recognizes achievements in directing.In the motion pictures category, the group nominated Kenneth Branagh for “Belfast” (Focus Features), Jane Campion for “The Power of the Dog” (Netflix), Paul Thomas Anderson for “Licorice Pizza” (MGM/United Artists Releasing), Steven Spielberg for “West Side Story” (20th Century Studios) and Denis Villeneuve for “Dune” (Warner Bros).Notable snubs included Joel Coen (“The Tragedy of Macbeth”), Adam McKay (“Don’t Look Up”), Siân Heder (“CODA”), Guillermo del Toro (“Nightmare Alley”) and Ryûsuke Hamaguchi (“Drive My Car”). Campion is the second woman ever to receive a second nod from the Directors Guild.

After they won the Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature in 2019 for their thrilling Free Solo, directors Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi and Jimmy Chin went underground—in a manner of speaking.

The Writers Guild of America has penciled in the film nominees for its 74th annual WGA Awards, which will be virtual again this year.

Clayton Davis Since the early 2000s, the Oscars have been in a rhythm of awarding darker movies with tinges of death, depression, racism and violence, illustrated by best picture winners such as “Million Dollar Baby” (2004), “Crash” (2005), “The Departed” (2006) and “No Country for Old Men” (2007). They stopped the trend with the uplifting “Slumdog Millionaire” (2008), which nearly swept the ceremony, winning eight Oscars, the most of any film since that time.

Because the WGA created its award to be a prize for its members and those who write under its jurisdiction, a Writers Guild nomination is a less accurate predictor of Oscar success than noms from the other three major Hollywood guilds, the Screen Actors Guild, Producers Guild and Directors Guild.WGA rules restrict eligibility to screenplays that were written under the guild’s Minimum Basic Agreement or under a collective bargaining agreement from one of 11 affiliate guilds around the world. As usual, that rule disqualified a number of top screenplays this year, including “The Power of the Dog,” “Cyrano,” “Passing,” “The Lost Daughter,” “Drive My Car” and “Spider-Man: No Way Home” in the adapted-screenplay category and “Belfast,” “A Hero,” “The Hand of God,” “Parallel Mothers” and “Prayers for the Stolen” in original screenplay.“Belfast,” “The Power of the Dog” and “The Lost Daughter” in particular are strong favorites for Oscar nominations.In the documentary category, only three screenplays were nominated: “Being Cousteau,” “Exposing Muybridge” and “Like a Rolling Stone: The Life and Times of Ben Fong-Torres.”Winners will be announced at the WGA Awards on March 20, one week before the Oscars.The nominations: ORIGINAL SCREENPLAYBeing the Ricardos, Written by Aaron Sorkin;Amazon StudiosDon’t Look Up, Screenplay by Adam McKay, Story by Adam McKay & David Sirota; NetflixThe French Dispatch of the Liberty, Kansas Evening Sun, Screenplay by Wes Anderson, Story by Wes Anderson & Roman Coppola & Hugo Guinness & Jason Schwartzman;Searchlight PicturesKing Richard, Written by Zach Baylin; Warner Bros.

“Belfast,” “Dune,” “King Richard,” “No Time to Die” and “The Power of the Dog” have been nominated as the best dramatic film editing of 2021 by the American Cinema Editors, which announced the nominees for the 72nd annual ACE Eddie Awards on Thursday.Those five films will compete in the Best Edited Feature Film (Dramatic) category, while the field in Best Edited Feature Film (Comedy) will consist of “Cruella,” “Don’t Look Up,” “The French Dispatch,” “Licorice Pizza” and “tick, tick…BOOM!”The most surprising omission was probably “West Side Story,” while ACE Eddie voters also bypassed “Nightmare Alley,” “CODA” and “Spider-Man: No Way Home.”Nominations for the editing of animated features went to the same five animated films that have also been nominated by the Cinema Audio Society, Motion Picture Sound Editors, Visual Effects Society and Art Directors Guild: “Encanto,” “Luca,” “The Mitchells vs. the Machines,” “Raya and the Last Dragon” and “Sing 2.”In the television categories, “Kevin Can F**k Himself” received three nominations to sweep the Best Edited Multi-Camera Comedy Series category, while “Curb Your Enthusiasm,” “Ted Lasso,” “Succession,” “Mare of Easttown” and “The White Lotus” each received two.The nominations were announced on a day that will also see nomination announcements from the Producers Guild, Directors Guild and Writers Guild, capping a wild four-day blitz in which 10 different guilds or professional societies announced their nominations.

Clayton Davis A shortened eligibility year, multiple monochrome films and an underappreciated year for animation is what sums up the 2021 cinematic year. Oscar voters will be voting for their favorites in 23 categories for six days.

Jazz Tangcay Artisans EditorThe American Cinema Editors (ACE) has nominated “Belfast,” “Dune,” “King Richard,” “No Time to Die” and “The Power of the Dog” in the category of feature film drama at the 72nd annual ACE Eddie Awards.In the best edited comedic feature category, “Cruella,” “Don’t Look Up,” “The French Dispatch,” “Licorice Pizza” and “Tick, Tick…Boom!” all received nominations.Among the animated features nominated were “Encanto,” “Luca,” “The Mitchells vs. the Machines,” “Raya and the Last Dragon” and “Sing 2.” The TV nominees include “Succession” and “The White Lotus.”The Eddies are considered a precursor for the best picture and best editing categories at the Oscars.

The Producers Guild has pulled back the curtain on the nominations for its 33rd annual PGA Awards, which cover theatrical motion pictures, animated features, TV series and specials and televised/streamed motion pictures. See the full list below.

Clayton Davis After all the talk of a potential Lady Gaga-Kristen Stewart Oscar night showdown, could it be much ado about nothing?Both actresses have a very vocal and passionate fanbase. Leading up to the Screen Actors Guild awards nominations, many predicted that the two would ultimately be the final two standing in the race for the Oscar statuette.

Best Picture Jane Campion’s “The Power of the Dog” seems to have taken pole position in the best picture race. Campion won a screenplay Oscar at the 1994 ceremony for “The Piano,” which was also nominated for best pic (it lost to “Schindler’s List.”). Early front-runner “Belfast” should also make the ballot.

Clayton Davis The Producers Guild of America announced its nominations for the motion picture and television categories for the upcoming 33rd PGA Awards, and it was a good day for the streamers (once again).Netflix ruled the film side with three films landing in the field of 10 nominees: “Don’t Look Up” from Adam McKay, “The Power of the Dog” from Jane Campion and “Tick, Tick … Boom!” from Lin-Manuel Miranda.Warner Bros. captured two nods from its slate: “Dune” from Denis Villeneuve and “King Richard” from Reinaldo Marcus Green.At the best possible moment with Oscar voting opening today, Amazon Studios’ “Being the Ricardos” from Aaron Sorkin snagged one of the coveted spots, which helps its best picture chances considerably.

Elsa Keslassy International CorrespondentBhutan’s first Oscar entry in 23 years, Pawo Choyning Dorji’s feature debut “Lunana: A Yak in The Classroom” is handled by Samuel Goldwyn Films in North America. The movie follows a young teacher from Bhutan’s capital who dreams of emigrating to Australia to become a singer and instead finds himself assigned to a school in the most remote village in Northern Bhutan, where he unexpectedly bonds with local children and finds happiness.What does it mean to you to be shortlisted for the best international feature Oscar? The shortlisting has meant so much because it’s a historic moment for our little Himalayan Kingdom.

James Bond, speculation continues to be rife over who Daniel Craig's successor will be after his explosive exit from the franchise in No Time To Die. This year marks the 60th anniversary of the 007 films, so surely this is the best time to announce the next star to take up the Licence to Kill? Now, industry insiders have teased the wait for the big news may actually not be that long away after all. Deadline's Justin Kroll tweeted: "While it's been crickets on the #BondWatch scene, making it seem like this will be a long process, one source with a couple clients in the mix told me something interesting recently of when a decision may come down the pipeline, "I think we he[ar] who it is after the Oscars.

Clayton Davis Penélope Cruz is luxuriously refined in “Parallel Mothers,” a performance that has picked up critical acclaim and notable accolades since debuting at Venice. The voting bloc of the international community is a key demographic that pushed last year’s “The Father” from Florian Zeller, another Sony Pictures Classics feature, to perform exceptionally well with the Academy despite significant misses from key guild groups leading to nominations.

Now only is Mikhail Baryshnikov one of the leading dancers of the 20th century, he is also a celebrated actor! Born in Riga, Latvia, on January 27, 1948, Mikhail began dazzling audiences with his ballet artistry throughout his teens. Despite his fame in Soviet Russia, Mikhail decided to defect to Canada in 1974 to explore other dance companies, eventually landing in the United States with the American Ballet Company, where he became the artistic director in 1980. In the decades following, he became a leader in organizing dance troupes and companies throughout the world. In 2000, he was awarded the National Medal of Arts.

The words and characters of Min Jin Lee’s multigenerational novel Pachinko have come to life in the first look images for Apple TV+’s upcoming drama of the same name.

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at LargeCall it now: “Succession” will win the DGA Award this year for drama. That’s because it’s the only nominee this year for drama: Five episodes of the series’ third season filled all five nominated slots for this year’s DGA Awards category for dramatic series.The “Sucession” sweep comes as the Directors Guild of America has revealed this year’s TV nominees for its 74rd annual DGA Awards, including achievement in drama, comedy, limited/TV movie, variety, reality, children’s and commercials.

The Directors Guild of America has announced its nominations in its television categories, with “Succession” sweeping the drama-series category by landing all five nominations for different episodes. In the comedy series category, “Ted Lasso” took three of the five slots, with “Hacks” and “The White Lotus” taking the remaining two.The DGA’s television nominations typically focus on returning programs in the drama and comedy series categories, rarely nominating more than one first-year show in a category.

Manori Ravindran International Editor“Golda” director Guy Nattiv has joined the Oscar-shortlisted short film “The Criminals” as executive producer.Written and directed by Serhat Karaaslan, a Kurdish director from Turkey, the film centers on a young couple in a small Turkish town looking for privacy. Shortlisted in the live-action short category for the 2022 awards, the film uses genre to discuss the way an oppressive society pushes its civilians to police each other, ultimately turning sex into a subversive act.“The Criminals” is produced by Laure Dahout through her French production company Tiresias Films.

The Costume Designers Guild on Wednesday revealed nominees for its 24th annual CDG Awards, recognizing excellence in the craft across eight film, TV and short-form categories. The guild also said its winners will be announced at an in-person ceremony March 9 at The Broad Stage in Santa Monica.

Nick Vivarelli International CorrespondentAsghar Farhadi, a two-time international Oscar winner for “A Separation” and “The Salesman,” is in the running for a third time with “A Hero,” which marks the Iranian auteur’s return to shooting in his country.It’s a drama about a man named Rahim (Amir Jadidi) who, while on furlough after being imprisoned for debt, returns a lost handbag full of gold coins. This apparently heroic act spirals out of control due to social media, which plays an important part in the pic as it exposes the pitfalls of media manipulation in Iran but also, by extension, the world. The fact that the movie made it up to this stage creates curiosity for audiences to watch the film.

Elsa Keslassy International CorrespondentXavier Giannoli’s sprawling period piece “Lost Illusions,” Valerie Lemercier’s Celine Dion biopic “Aline” and Leos Carax’s musical romance “Annette” with Marion Cotillard and Adam Driver are leading the race at France’s 47th Cesar Awards, France’s equivalent to the Oscars. Other top Cesar contenders include Cedric Jimenez’s action-packed cop drama “Bac Nord,” Catherine Corsini’s social drama “La fracture,” Yann Gozlan’s thriller Boite noire,” Jacques Audiard’s contemporary love drama “Paris, 13th District” and Arthur Harari’s WW2-set “Onoda: 10,000 Nights in the Jungle.” Audrey Diwan’s Venice Golden Lion-winning “Happening” and Julia Ducournau’s Cannes’ Palme d’Or-winning “Titane” earned four nods each.

Casting Directors: 150 (+8)Cinematographers: 290 (+8)Costume Designers: 171 (+4)Directors: 568 (+4)Documentary: 618 (+23)Executives: 681 (+18)Film Editors: 375 (+4)Makeup Artists and Hairstylists: 231 (+7)Marketing and Public Relations: 605 (+18)Music: 383 (+9)Producers: 634 (+20)Production Design: 387 (+5)Short Films and Feature Animation: 844 (+26)Sound: 550 (+14)Visual Effects: 606 (+26)Writers: 504 (+5)Members-at-Large: 554 (+11)Total voting members: 9,487 (+187)Associate members: 86 (-9)Total active members: 9,573 (+178)Emeritus members: 914 (+33)Total active and inactive members: 10,487 (+211)