Awards Roundup: ‘A Monster Calls’ Leads Goya Noms, Denzel Washington Honored by Cinematography Society and More
Keep up with the glitzy awards world with our weekly Awards Roundup column.
– Director Juan Antonio Bayona’s “A Monster Calls” will enter Spain’s annual Goya Awards on February 4, 2017 with more nominations than any other film. The fantasy-drama is nominated in 12 of the 28 categories, beating out Alberto Rodriguez’s “Smoke and Mirrors” and Raul Arevalo’s “The Fury of a Patient Man,” each of which received 11 nominations. Both films will compete with “A Monster Calls” in the best film category, as will Pedro Almodovar’s “Julieta.”
“A Monster Calls” is “a visually spectacular drama based on the award-winning children’s fantasy novel. 12-year-old Conor (Lewis MacDougall) attempts to deal with his mother’s (Felicity Jones) illness and the bullying of his classmates by escaping into a fantastical world of monsters and fairy tales that explore courage, loss, and faith.”
– Denzel Washington will receive the American Society of Cinematographers’ Board of Governors Award at the 31st ASC Awards in Los Angeles on February 4, 2017. The organization presents the award — its only accolade not given to a cinematographer — to an individuals whose body of work has made significant and indelible contributions to cinema. The award is reserved for filmmakers who have been champions for directors of photography and the visual art form.
“Denzel Washington is an amazing director and actor, and a conscious force in these challenging times,” ASC president Kees van Oostrum said in a statement. “A true artist is empowered by the era they live in, and he expresses an awareness of the world around us through his work.” Previous recipients include Ridley Scott, Julia Roberts, Christopher Nolan, Warren Beatty, Francis Ford Coppola, Sally Field, Morgan Freeman, Ron Howard, Martin Scorsese and Steven Spielberg.
– John Waters will receive the Writers Guild of America East’s Ian McLellan Hunter Award at the Writers Guild Awards in New York on Sunday, February 19, 2017. Named after longtime WGAE member Ian McLellan Hunter, the award is presented to a WGA member in honor of his or her body of work as a writer in motion pictures or television.
“Decades ago, a critic once wrote that my screenplays ‘were merely clotheslines to hang out my dirty wash,'” Waters said in a statement. “I’m glad the WGAE disagrees — or maybe they DO agree, who knows? Either way, I couldn’t be more honored and excited to get this award.” Previous winners of the award include Andrew Bergman, John Sayles, Ruth Prawer Jhabvala and Nora Ephron.
– First Lady Michelle Obama hosted the cast of Fox 2000’s “Hidden Figures” at a White House on Thursday for a special screening of the film. The historical drama stars Taraji P. Henson, Octavia Spencer and Janelle Monáe as three African-American women working at NASA in the 1960’s. Here’s the official synopsis:
“‘Hidden Figures’ is the incredible untold story of Katherine G. Johnson, Dorothy Vaughan, and Mary Jackson — brilliant African-American women working at NASA, who served as the brains behind one of the greatest operations in history: the launch of astronaut John Glenn into orbit, a stunning achievement that restored the nation’s confidence, turned around the Space Race, and galvanized the world. The visionary trio crossed all gender and race lines to inspire generations to dream big.
– Six filmmaking teams will receive a total of $335,000 in funding from the San Francisco Film Society’s and Kenneth Rainin Foundation’s Filmmaking Grants. The grants are awarded twice annually to filmmakers for narrative feature films that will have significant economic or professional impact on the Bay Area filmmaking community. More than $3.5 million has been awarded since the launch of this grant program in 2009, making SFFS and the Kenneth Rainin Foundation the largest granting body for independent narrative films in the United States.
This year’s grant winners are:
“Chickenshit” – Jess de la Merced, writer-director and Jon Coplon, producer – $25,000 for packaging
“Collisions” – Richard Levien, writer-director and Frazer Bradshaw and Vincent Cortez, producers – $85,000 for production, $50,000 for postproduction
“The Last Black Man in San Francisco” Joe Talbot, writer-director and Carlton Evans and Khaliah Neal, producers – $25,000 for packaging
“1991” – Yared Zeleke, writer-director – $25,000 for screenwriting
“Togetherish” – Nikole Beckwith, writer-director and Anthony Brandonisio, producer – $75,000 for production
“Walking Out” – Andrew Smith and Alex Smith, co-writer-directors and Brunson Green and Laura Ivey, producers – $50,000 for postproduction
– The Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts has nominated 12 films for the 6th AACTA International Awards across seven categories: Best Film, Best Direction, Best Screenplay, Best Lead Actor, Best Lead Actress, Best Supporting Actor and Best Supporting Actress. The winners will be announced on Friday January 6, 2017 in Los Angeles.
This year’s nominees are:
Best Film
“Arrival”
“Hacksaw Ridge”
“La La Land”
“Lion”
“Manchester by the Sea”
Best Direction
“Arrival” – Denis Villeneuve
“Hacksaw Ridge” – Mel Gibson
“La La Land” – Damien Chazelle
“Lion” – Garth Davis
“Manchester by the Sea” – Kenneth Lonergan
Best Screenplay
“Hacksaw Ridge” – Andrew Knight, Robert Schenkkan
“Hell or High Water” – Taylor Sheridan
“La La Land” – Damien Chazelle
“Lion” – Luke Davies
“Manchester by the Sea” – Kenneth Lonergan
Best Lead Actress
Amy Adams – “Arrival”
Isabel Huppert – “Elle”
Ruth Negga – “Loving”
Natalie Portman – “Jackie”
Emma Stone – “La La Land”
Best Lead Actor
Casey Affleck –”Manchester by the Sea”
Joel Edgerton – “Loving”
Andrew Garfield –”Hacksaw Ridge”
Ryan Gosling –”La La Land”
Denzel Washington – “Fences”
Best Supporting Actress
Viola Davis – “Fences”
Naomie Harris – “Moonlight”
Nicole Kidman – “Lion”
Teresa Palmer – “Hacksaw Ridge”
Michelle Williams – “Manchester by the Sea”
Best Supporting Actor
Mahershala Ali – “Moonight”
Jeff Bridges –”Hell or High Water”
Lucas Hedges – “Manchester by the Sea”
Dev Patel – “Lion”
Michael Shannon – “Nocturnal Animals”
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