The Nemiroff family Golden Globe and Oscar pools are always good fun, but there’s really nothing more rewarding than having a hand in picking the honorees yourself. As a proud member of the Alliance of Women Film Journalists, I had the privilege to come together with dozens of talented, thoughtful and esteemed female film reporters and critics to isolate and celebrate the top talent of the year.
The Academy may have overlooked Kathryn Bigelow, but “Zero Dark Thirty” was the big winner for AWFJ. Not only did the organization honor Bigelow with a Best Director win, but “Zero Dark Thirty” also took the Best Film, Best Original Screenplay, Best Actress and Best Editing titles, too.
As for the rest of the cateogires, AWFJ wound up spreading the love, giving credit to a number of the usual suspects as well as a few that have yet to be honored on the awards circuit. Chris Terrio snagged Best Adapted Screenplay for “Argo” while “ParaNorman” snuck up on “Brave,” “Wreck-It Ralph,” and “Frankenweenie” for the Best Animated Film win. As expected, Daniel Day Lewis added another Best Actor title to his ever-expanding pile while Anne Hathaway did the same with her Best Actress in a Supporting Role win.
As an organization dedicated to supporting work by and about women, AWFJ also highlighted a number of substantial achievements in the EDA Female Focus Awards. Again, Bigelow took the Best Director honor while Lucy Alibar won for Best Woman Screenwriter for her work alongside Benh Zeitlin on “Beasts of the Southern Wild.” Jennifer Lawrence was named Kick Ass Female Action Star for “The Hunger Games” and Quvenzhané Wallis took the win in the Best Breakthrough Performance category.
As eager as we are to spread the love and cheer the many great industry accomplishments in 2012, we all know there have been a few bumps in the road and those bumps are honored, or perhaps dishonored in the organization’s EDA Special Mention Awards. “That’s My Boy” is the latest inductee into the AWFJ Hall of Shame while “Anna Karenina” was named Movie You Wanted to Love but Just Couldn’t. On the positive side of the Special Mention Awards section, Helen Hunt and John Hawkes were honored for Best Depiction of Nudity, Sexuality or Seduction while Hathaway’s rendition of “I Dreamed a Dream” and a certain declaration from Chastain as Maya in “Zero Dark Thirty” tied for Unforgettable Moment of 2012.
Click here to check out the full list of winners over at the AWJF website. Until next year!
