So....

It would appear I'm only going to be doing this blog during award season. I feel creativity bottling up inside me and it needs a release. Thus: a blog update! And by releasing creativity, I mean simply copying and pasting the winners of an award body from another website followed by a two sentence commentary. Ah, blogging. How I've missed you!

Here's what happened during the past 2 weeks:

INDEPENDENT SPIRIT AWARDS:

BEST FEATURE (Award given to the Producer)
500 Days of Summer
Amreeka
Precious
Sin Nombre
The Last Station

BEST DIRECTOR
The Coen Brothers
Lee Daniels
Cary Fukanaga
James Grey
Michael Hoffman

BEST FIRST FEATURE (Award given to the director and producer)
A Single Man
Crazy Heart
Easier With Practice
The Messenger
Paranormal Activity

JOHN CASSAVETES AWARD
(Given to the best feature made for under $500,000; award given to the writer, director, and producer)
Big Fan
Humpday
New Years Parade
Treeless Mountain
Zero Bridge

BEST SCREENPLAY
Cold Souls
Crazy Heart
Amreeka
Precious
A Single Man

BEST FIRST SCREENPLAY
Cold Souls
Crazy Heart
Amreeka
Precious
A Single Man

BEST FEMALE LEAD
Maria Bello, Downloading Nancy
Helen Mirren, The Last Station
Gwyneth Paltrow, Two Lovers
Gabby Sidibe, Precious
Nisreen Faour, Amreeka

BEST MALE LEAD
Jeff Bridges, Crazy Heart
Colin Firth, A Single Man
Joseph Gordon Levitt, 500 Days of Summer
Souleymane Sy Savane, Goodbye Solo
Adam Scott, The Vicious Kind

BEST SUPPORTING FEMALE
Dina Korzun, Cold Souls
Mo'Nique, Precious
Samantha Morton, The Messenger
Natalie Press, Cass
Mia Wasikowska, That Evening Sun

BEST SUPPORTING MALE
Jemaine Clements, Gentleman Broncos
Woody Harrelson, The Messenger
Cristian McKay, Me and Orson Welles
Ramon McKinnon, That Evening Sun
Christopher Plummer, The Last Station

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
A Serious Man
Sin Nombre
Treeless Mountain
Cold Souls
Bad Lieutenant

BEST DOCUMENTARY (Award given to the director)
Anvil!
Food Inc
More Than a Game
October Country
Which Way Home

BEST FOREIGN FILM (Award given to the director)
A Prophet
An Education
Everlasting Moments
Mother
The Maid

ROBERT ALTMAN AWARD
(Given to one film’s director, casting director, and its ensemble cast)
A Serious Man

PRODUCERS AWARD
Karen Chien
Larry Fessenden
Dia Sokol

SOMEONE TO WATCH AWARD
Kyle Patrick Alvarez Easier With Practice
Asiel Norton Reland
Tariq Tapa Zero Bridge

TRUER THAN FICTION AWARD
Natalia Almada
Bill Ross and Turner Ross
Jessica Oreck


NATIONAL BOARD OF REVIEW:

Best Film: UP IN THE AIR

Best Director: CLINT EASTWOOD, Invictus

Best Actor(s):
GEORGE CLOONEY, Up In The Air
MORGAN FREEMAN, Invictus

Best Actress: CAREY MULLIGAN, An Education

Best Supporting Actor: WOODY HARRELSON, The Messenger

Best Supporting Actress: ANNA KENDRICK, Up In The Air

Best Foreign Language Film: A PROPHET

Best Documentary: THE COVE

Best Animated Feature: UP

Best Ensemble Cast: IT’S COMPLICATED

Breakthrough Performance by an Actor: JEREMY RENNER, The Hurt Locker

Breakthrough Performance by an Actress: GABOUREY SIDIBE, Precious

Spotlight Award for Best Directorial Debut:
DUNCAN JONES, Moon
OREN MOVERMAN, The Messenger
MARC WEBB, (500) Days of Summer

Best Original Screenplay: JOEL AND ETHAN COEN, A Serious Man

Best Adapted Screenplay: JASON REITMAN and SHELDON TURNER, Up In The Air

Special Filmmaking Achievement Award: WES ANDERSON, The Fantastic Mr. Fox

William K. Everson Film History Award: JEAN PICKER FIRSTENBERG

NBR Freedom of Expression:
BURMA VJ: REPORTING FROM A CLOSED COUNTRY
INVICTUS
THE MOST DANGEROUS MAN IN AMERICA: DANIEL ELLSEBERG AND THE PENTAGON PAPERS

Ten Best Films
(in alphabetical order)
AN EDUCATION
(500) DAYS OF SUMMER
THE HURT LOCKER
INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS
INVICTUS
THE MESSENGER
A SERIOUS MAN
STAR TREK
UP
WHERE THE WILD THINGS ARE

Five Best Foreign-Language Films
(in alphabetical order)
THE MAID
REVANCHE
SONG OF SPARROWS
THREE MONKEYS
THE WHITE RIBBON

Five Best Documentaries
(in alphabetical order)
BURMA VJ: REPORTING FROM A CLOSED COUNTRY
CRUDE
FOOD, INC.
GOOD HAIR
THE MOST DANGEROUS MAN IN AMERICA: DANIEL ELLSBERG AND THE PENTAGON PAPERS

Top Ten Independent Films:
(in alphabetical order)
AMREEKA
DISTRICT 9
GOODBYE SOLO
HUMPDAY
IN THE LOOP
JULIA
ME AND ORSON WELLES
MOON
SUGAR
TWO LOVERS


DETROIT FILM CRITICS SOCIETY:

Best Film
(500) Days of Summer
The Hurt Locker
Inglourious Basterds
Up
Up in the Air

Best Director
Kathryn Bigelow, The Hurt Locker
Pete Docter, Up
Jason Reitman, Up in the Air
Quentin Tarantino, Inglourious Basterds
Marc Webb, (500) Days of Summer

Best Actor
George Clooney, Up in the Air
Matt Damon, The Informant!
Colin Firth, A Single Man
Joseph Gordon-Levitt, (500) Days of Summer
Sam Rockwell, Moon

Best Actress
Alison Lohman, Drag Me to Hell
Carey Mulligan, An Education
Saoirse Ronan, The Lovely Bones
Gabourey Sidibe, Precious
Meryl Streep, Julie & Julia

Best Supporting Actor
Woody Harrelson, The Messenger
Woody Harrelson, Zombieland
Christian McKay, Me & Orson Welles
Stanley Tucci, The Lovely Bones
Christoph Waltz, Inglourious Basterds

Best Supporting Actress
Marion Cotillard, Nine
Vera Farmiga, Up in the Air
Anna Kendrick, Up in the Air
Mélanie Laurent, Inglourious Basterds
Mo’Nique, Precious

Best Ensemble
The Hangover
Inglourious Basterds
Precious
Star Trek
Zombieland

Breakthrough Performance
Anna Kendrick, Up in the Air
Christian McKay, Me & Orson Welles
Carey Mulligan, An Education
Chris Pine, Star Trek
Gabourey Sidibe, Precious
Christoph Waltz, Inglourious Basterds


WASHINGTON DC FILM CRITICS:

Nominees and winners listed here.


GOLDEN SATELLITE NOMINATIONS:

Nominations here.


The next week is a little crazy:

Dec. 14 - BFCA Noms
Dec. 15 - Golden Globe noms
Dec. 17 - SAG noms

Plus, some critics awards in there somewhere.

So I should have pre-Globe & SAG Oscar predix up Sunday night. Golden Globe predix up Monday night and SAG predix up Wednesday night.

LOL - Go Alison Lohman!