[12] The Grand Budapest Hotel – Best Original Screenplay

WES ANDERSON & HUGO GUINNESS
“The Grand Budapest Hotel”

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Another year and another Best Original Screenplay nomination for Wes Anderson, this time for his screenplay, “The Grand Budapest Hotel”. Nominated for Best Original Screenplay three times now (previously nominated for “The Royal Tenenbaums” (2001) and “Moonrise Kingdom” (2012)), some will argue that this year’s entry is his best film yet. It involves a distinct time period with fantastical elements, it creates an unforgettable character in the hotel’s concierge Monsieur Gustave (played by Ralph Fiennes), and it includes many elements like a murder mystery, a buddy comedy, and a caper, all tied together by the unique style of Wes Anderson himself. What sets this apart from any other screenplay this year is that no one else could have written this film. This has the heart and soul of an auteur that has his hand in every facet of filmmaking and never backs away from what makes him truly unique. Look at the other contenders and tell me that they hold the same weight.

What’s its competition? Despite being the most original of the bunch, “The Grand Budapest Hotel” has the stiffest competition coming up in this category. With the Best Picture winner usually taking many of the major awards with it, both of the two strongest Best Picture contenders are also in the Original Screenplay category. With “Birdman” and “Boyhood” likely vying for the top spot, that means it is much more likely that they will take a win in this category. This doesn’t always happen, but “The Grand Budapest Hotel” faces two times harder the odds than if they were in other categories. It will likely beat out both “Foxcatcher” and “Nightcrawler” which are neither nominated for Best Picture and are no where near “The Grand Budapest Hotel’s” nine total nominations. Could Wes Anderson and Hugo Guinness win their first Academy Award? It is possible. Is it likely since it’s facing “Birdman” and “Boyhood”? The simple answer: no.

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// Produced by Wes Anderson, Scott Rudin, Steven Rales, and Jeremy Dawson // Directed by Wes Anderson //
// Dated Viewed: Sunday, January 25th, 2015 // BLU-RAY //  33 films – 29 days //

 

87th Annual Academy Award Nomination Results

Best Picture

• “American Sniper”
• “Birdman”
• “Boyhood”
• “Gone Girl”
• “The Grand Budapest Hotel”
• “The Imitation Game”
• “Selma”
• “The Theory Of Everything”
• “Whiplash”

Actor in a Leading Role

• Steve Carrell, “Foxcatcher”
• Bradley Cooper, “American Sniper”
• Benedict Cumberbatch, “The Imitation Game”
• Michael Keaton, “Birdman”
• Eddie Redmayne, “The Theory Of Everything”

Actress in a Leading Role

• Amy Adams, “Big Eyes” || Marion Cotillard, “Two Days, One Night”
• Felicity Jones, “The Theory Of Everything”
• Julianne Moore, “Still Alice”
• Rosamund Pike, “Gone Girl”
• Reese Witherspoon, “Wild”

Actor in a Supporting Role

• Ethan Hawke, “Boyhood”
• Edward Norton, “Birdman”
• Mark Ruffalo, “Foxcatcher”
• J.K. Simmons, “Whiplash”
• Tom Wilkinson, “Selma” || Robert Duvall, “The Judge”

Actress in a Supporting Role

• Patricia Arquette, “Boyhood”
• Jessica Chastain, “A Most Violent Year” || Laura Dern, “Wild”
• Keira Knightley, “The Imitation Game”
• Emma Stone, “Birdman”
• Meryl Streep, “Into The Woods”

Animated Feature Film

• “Big Hero 6”
• “The Boxtrolls”
• “How To Train Your Dragon 2”
• “The LEGO Movie” || “Song Of The Sea”
• “The Tale Of Princess Kaguya”

Cinematography

• Jeff Cronenweth, “Gone Girl” || “Ida,” Lukasz Zal and Ryszard Lenczewski
• Roger Deakins, “Unbroken”
• Emmanuel Lubeszki, “Birdman”
• Hoyte Van Hoytema, “Interstellar” || “Mr. Turner,” Dick Pope
• Robert Yeoman, “The Grand Budapest Hotel”

Costume Design

• “The Grand Budapest Hotel” – Milena Canonero
• “The Imitation Game” – Sammy Sheldon Differ || “Inherent Vice,” Mark Bridges
• “Into the Woods” – Colleen Atwood
• “Maleficent” – Anna B. Sheppard, Jane Clive
• “Mr. Turner” – Jacqueline Durran

Directing

• Wes Anderson, “The Grand Budapest Hotel”
• Clint Eastwood, “American Sniper” || Bennett Miller, “Foxcatcher”
• Alejandro G. Iñárritu, “Birdman”
• Richard Linklater, “Boyhood”
• Morten Tyldum, “The Imitation Game”

Documentary (Feature)

• “CitizenFour”
• “The Last Days In Vietnam”
• “Life Itself” || “Finding Vivian Maier”
• “The Overnighters” || “The Salt Of The Earth”
• “Virunga”

Documentary (Short Subject)

• “Crisis Hotline: Veterans Press 1”
• “Joanna”
• “The Lion’s Mouth Opens” || “Our Curse”
• “The Reaper”
• “White Earth”

Film Editing

• “American Sniper,” Joel Cox & Gary Roach
• “Birdman,” Douglas Crise, Stephen Mirrione || “The Imitation Game,” William Goldenberg
• “Boyhood,” Sandra Adair
• “Gone Girl,” Kirk Baxter || “Whiplash,” Tom Cross
• “Interstellar,” Lee Smith

Foreign Language Film

• “Force Majeure” (Sweden) || “Timbuktu” (Mauritania)
• “Ida” (Poland)
• “Leviathan” (Russia)
• “Tangerines” (Estonia)
• “Wild Tales” (Argentina)

Makeup & Hairstyling

• “Foxcatcher”
• “The Grand Budapest Hotel”
• “Guardians Of The Galaxy”

Music (Original Score)

• “Gone Girl,” Trent Reznor & Atticus Ross || “Mr. Turner”; Gary Yershon
• “The Grand Budapest Hotel,” Alexandre Desplat
• “The Imitation Game,” Alexandre Desplat
• “Interstellar,” Hans Zimmer
• “The Theory Of Everything,” Johann Johannson

Music (Original Song)

• “Big Eyes” by Lana Del Rey from “Big Eyes” || “Grateful” from “Beyond The Lights”
• “Everything Is Awesome” by Tegan and Sara & The Lonely Island from “The Lego Movie”
• “Glory” by John Legend from “Selma”
• “Lost Stars” by Adam Levine from “Begin Again”
• “Mercy Is” by Patti Smith from “Noah” || “I’m Not Gonna Miss You” from “Glen Campbell: I’ll Be Me”

Production Design

• “Birdman,” Kevin Thompson || “Mr. Turner,” Suzie Davies & Charlotte Watts
• “The Grand Budapest Hotel,” Adam Stockhausen
• “The Imitation Game,” Maria Djurkovic
• “Interstellar,” Nathan Crowley
• “Into The Woods,” Dennis Gassner

Short Film (Animated)

• “The Bigger Picture”
• “Coda” || “The Dam Keeper”
• “Duet” || “Me And My Moulton”
• “Feast”
• “Footprints” || “A Single Life”

Short Film (Live Action)

• “Aya”
• “Baghdad Messi” || “Boogaloo and Graham”
• “Carry On” || “Butter Lamp”
• “My Father’s Truck” || “Parvaneh”
• “The Phone Call”

Sound Editing

• “American Sniper”
• “Guardians Of The Galaxy” || “Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance)“
• “Interstellar”
• “Unbroken”
• “Whiplash” || “The Hobbit: The Battle Of The Five Armies”

Sound Mixing

• “Fury” || “American Sniper”
• “Guardians Of The Galaxy” || “Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance)“
• “Into The Woods” || “Unbroken”
• “Interstellar”
• “Whiplash”

Visual Effects

• “Dawn Of The Planet Of The Apes”
• “Guardians Of The Galaxy”
• “The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies” || “Captain America: The Winter Soldier”
• “Interstellar”
• “Transformers: Age Of Extinction” || “X-Men: Days Of Future Past”

Writing (Adapted Screenplay)

• “American Sniper,” Jason Hall
• “Gone Girl,” Gillian Flynn || “Whiplash”; Damien Chazelle
• “The Imitation Game,” Graham Moore
• “Inherent Vice,” Paul Thomas Anderson
• “The Theory Of Everything,” Anthony McCarten

Writing (Original Screenplay)

• “Birdman,” Alejandro G. Iñárritu, Nicolás Giacobone, Alexander Dinelaris, Jr., Armando Bo
• “Boyhood,” Richard Linklater
• “The Grand Budapest Hotel,” Wes Anderson & Hugo Guinness
• “A Most Violent Year,” J.C. Chandor || “Foxcatcher”; E. Max Frye and Dan Futterman
• “Nightcrawler,” Dan Gilroy

87th Annual Academy Award Nomination Predictions

Best Picture

• “American Sniper”
• “Birdman”
• “Boyhood”
• “Gone Girl”
• “The Grand Budapest Hotel”
• “The Imitation Game”
• “Selma”
• “The Theory Of Everything”
• “Whiplash”
• (If 10, “Foxcatcher” or “Nightcrawler”)
  

Actor in a Leading Role

• Steve Carrell, “Foxcatcher”
• Bradley Cooper, “American Sniper”
• Benedict Cumberbatch, “The Imitation Game”
• Michael Keaton, “Birdman”
• Eddie Redmayne, “The Theory Of Everything”

Actress in a Leading Role

• Amy Adams, “Big Eyes”
• Felicity Jones, “The Theory Of Everything”
• Julianne Moore, “Still Alice”
• Rosamund Pike, “Gone Girl”
• Reese Witherspoon, “Wild”

Actor in a Supporting Role

• Ethan Hawke, “Boyhood”
• Edward Norton, “Birdman”
• Mark Ruffalo, “Foxcatcher”
• J.K. Simmons, “Whiplash”
• Tom Wilkinson, “Selma”

Actress in a Supporting Role

• Patricia Arquette, “Boyhood”
• Jessica Chastain, “A Most Violent Year”
• Keira Knightley, “The Imitation Game”
• Emma Stone, “Birdman”
• Meryl Streep, “Into The Woods”

Animated Feature Film

• “Big Hero 6”
• “The Boxtrolls”
• “How To Train Your Dragon 2”
• “The LEGO Movie”
• “The Tale Of Princess Kaguya”

Cinematography

• Jeff Cronenweth, “Gone Girl”
• Roger Deakins, “Unbroken”
• Emmanuel Lubeszki, “Birdman”
• Hoyte Van Hoytema, “Interstellar”
• Robert Yeoman, “The Grand Budapest Hotel”

Costume Design

• “The Grand Budapest Hotel” – Milena Canonero
• “The Imitation Game” – Sammy Sheldon Differ
• “Into the Woods” – Colleen Atwood
• “Maleficent” – Anna B. Sheppard, Jane Clive
• “Mr. Turner” – Jacqueline Durran

Directing

• Wes Anderson, “The Grand Budapest Hotel”
• Clint Eastwood, “American Sniper”
• Alejandro G. Iñárritu, “Birdman”
• Richard Linklater, “Boyhood”
• Morten Tyldum, “The Imitation Game”

Documentary (Feature)

• “CitizenFour”
• “The Last Days In Vietnam”
• “Life Itself”
• “The Overnighters”
• “Virunga”

Documentary (Short Subject)

• “Crisis Hotline: Veterans Press 1”
• “Joanna”
• “The Lion’s Mouth Opens”
• “The Reaper”
• “White Earth”

Film Editing

• “American Sniper,” Joel Cox & Gary Roach
• “Birdman,” Douglas Crise, Stephen Mirrione
• “Boyhood,” Sandra Adair
• “Gone Girl,” Kirk Baxter
• “Interstellar,” Lee Smith

Foreign Language Film

• “Force Majeure” (Sweden)
• “Ida” (Poland)
• “Leviathan” (Russia)
• “Tangerines” (Estonia)
• “Wild Tales” (Argentina)

Makeup & Hairstyling

• “Foxcatcher”
• “The Grand Budapest Hotel”
• “Guardians Of The Galaxy”

Music (Original Score)

• “Gone Girl,” Trent Reznor & Atticus Ross
• “The Grand Budapest Hotel,” Alexandre Desplat
• “The Imitation Game,” Alexandre Desplat
• “Interstellar,” Hans Zimmer
• “The Theory Of Everything,” Johann Johannson

Music (Original Song)

• “Big Eyes” by Lana Del Rey from “Big Eyes”
• “Everything Is Awesome” by Tegan and Sara & The Lonely Island from “The Lego Movie”
• “Glory” by John Legend from “Selma”
• “Lost Stars” by Adam Levine from “Begin Again”
• “Mercy Is” by Patti Smith from “Noah”

Production Design

• “Birdman,” Kevin Thompson
• “The Grand Budapest Hotel,” Adam Stockhausen
• “The Imitation Game,” Maria Djurkovic
• “Interstellar,” Nathan Crowley
• “Into The Woods,” Dennis Gassner

Short Film (Animated)

• “The Bigger Picture”
• “Coda”
• “Duet”
• “Feast”
• “Footprints”

Short Film (Live Action)

• “Aya”
• “Baghdad Messi”
• “Carry On”
• “My Father’s Truck”
• “The Phone Call”

Sound Editing

• “American Sniper”
• “Guardians Of The Galaxy”
• “Interstellar”
• “Unbroken”
• “Whiplash”

Sound Mixing

• “Fury
• “Guardians Of The Galaxy”
• “Into The Woods”
• “Interstellar”
• “Whiplash”

Visual Effects

• “Dawn Of The Planet Of The Apes”
• “Guardians Of The Galaxy”
• “The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies”
• “Interstellar”
• “Transformers: Age Of Extinction”

Writing (Adapted Screenplay)

• “American Sniper,” Jason Hall
• “Gone Girl,” Gillian Flynn
• “The Imitation Game,” Graham Moore
• “Inherent Vice,” Paul Thomas Anderson
• “The Theory Of Everything,” Anthony McCarten

Writing (Original Screenplay)

• “Birdman,” Alejandro G. Iñárritu, Nicolás Giacobone, Alexander Dinelaris, Jr., Armando Bo
• “Boyhood,” Richard Linklater
• “The Grand Budapest Hotel,” Wes Anderson & Hugo Guinness
• “A Most Violent Year,” J.C. Chandor
• “Nightcrawler,” Dan Gilroy

Oscar Season: Houston Film Critics Society Awards

One more win for “Boyhood” tells us what we already know, that Linklater’s 12 year darling will be the belle of the ball at the Oscars this year, with “Birdman” coming from behind with some likely technical wins. Jake Gyllenhaal continues to teeter on an Oscar nomination with yet another critics win in Houston, but there is no telling if he will be able to beat out some of the other highlight performances this year.

Here is the official list for the Houston Film Critics Society Awards:

Best Picture – “Boyhood”
Best Director – Richard Linklater, “Boyhood”
Best Actor – Jake Gyllenhaal, “Nightcrawler”
Best Actress – Julianne Moore, “Still Alice”
Best Supporting Actor – J.K. Simmons, “Whiplash”
Best Supporting Actress – Patricia Arquette, “Boyhood”
Best Screenplay – Richard Linklater, “Boyhood”
Best Animated Film – “The LEGO Movie”
Best Cinematography – Emmanuel Lubezki, “Birdman”
Best Documentary – “Citizenfour”
Best Foreign Film – “Force Majeure”
Best Original Score – Alexandre Desplat, “The Grand Budapest Hotel”
Best Original Song – “Everything is Awesome” by Shawn Patterson and Joshua Bartholomew & Lisa Harriton and The Lonely Island, for “The LEGO Movie”
Best Poster Design – Annie Atkins for “The Grand Budapest Hotel”
Worst Picture – “The Identical”
Texas Independent Film Award – “Boyhood”
Humanitarian Award – Joe Hall, Ghetto Film School
Lifetime Achievement Award – Larry McMurtry
Outstanding Achievement – Rick Ferguson and the Houston Film Commission
Technical Achievement – “Boyhood”

72nd Golden Globe Awards

Since the Oscar ballots were already turned in, the Golden Globes have very little bearing on who will get nominated this Thursday when the nominees are announced, but what the Globes do is potentially shift the Academy into picking different winners based on their speeches and likability throughout the night. It also solidifies certain momentum, say the supporting categories in which J.K. Simmons (“Whiplash”) and Patricia Arquette (“Boyhood”) are almost guaranteed their Oscar wins. On top of that, “Boyhood” takes a distinct lead against “Birdman” in the Oscar race, winning its Drama category while the comedy category had one of the most phenomenal upsets of the night, giving the win to Wes Anderson and “The Grand Budapest Hotel,” a much deserved win but still skewing the neck and neck “Boyhood” and “Birdman” race.

Julianne Moore (“Still Alice”) also continues with immense trajectory into her Best Actress in a Leading Role Oscar and the Best Actor in a Leading Role category is now possibly narrowing in on either Michael Keaton (“Birdman”) or Eddie Redmayne (“The Theory Of Everything”). Amy Adams (“Big Eyes”) definitely had the love of the Hollywood Foreign Press and most years the Academy follows along with that love, so this win for her could mean there is still enough support for his to clinch the fifth Actress spot, something I feel is probably pretty likely. No real love for “Selma” besides a win in Best Original Song, which may also translate into a nomination and win at the Oscars. Also, expect Johann Johannsson to at least get a nomination for his Best Original Score in “The Theory Of Everything”. In the animated category, I do expect “The Lego Movie” to receive more love than “How To Train Your Dragon 2” and in the foreign category, “Ida” could come in with more heat than “Leviathan” despite a win for the latter tonight.

 

MOTION PICTURE

BEST MOTION PICTURE – DRAMA
“Boyhood”

BEST DIRECTOR – MOTION PICTURE
Richard Linklater – “Boyhood”

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A MOTION PICTURE – DRAMA
Julianne Moore – “Still Alice”

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A MOTION PICTURE – DRAMA
Eddie Redmayne – “The Theory of Everything”

BEST MOTION PICTURE – COMEDY OR MUSICAL
“The Grand Budapest Hotel”

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A MOTION PICTURE – COMEDY/MUSICAL
Amy Adams – “Big Eyes”

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A MOTION PICTURE – COMEDY/MUSICAL
Michael Keaton – “Birdman”

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Patricia Arquette – “Boyhood”

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
J.K Simmons – “Whiplash”

BEST ANIMATED FEATURE FILM
“How To Train Your Dragon 2″

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE – MOTION PICTURE
Johann Johannsson – “The Theory of Everything”

BEST ORIGINAL SONG
“Glory” by John Legend and Common (“Selma”)

BEST SCREENPLAY – MOTION PICTURE
Alejandro González Iñárritu, Nicolás Giacobone, Alexander Dinelaris, Armando Bo – “Birdman”

BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM
“Leviathan”

 

TELEVISION

Best Actor in a TV Series, Drama
Kevin Spacey, “House of Cards”

Best Actress in a TV Series, Drama
Ruth Wilson, “The Affair”

Best TV Series
“The Affair”

Best TV Series, Comedy or Musical
“Transparent”

Best TV Movie or Miniseries
“Fargo”

Best Actress in a Miniseries or TV Movie
Maggie Gyllenhaal, “The Honorable Woman”

Best Actor in a Miniseries or TV Movie
Billy Bob Thornton, “Fargo”

Best Actor, TV Series Comedy
Jeffery Tambor, “Transparent”

Best Actress in a TV Series, Comedy
Gina Rodriguez, “Jane the Virgin”

Best Supporting Actress in a Series, Miniseries, or TV Movie
Joanne Froggatt, “Downton Abbey”

Best Supporting Actor in a Series, Mini-Series or TV Movie
Matt Bomer, “The Normal Heart”

Costume Designers Guild Nominations

Expect the nominees from the Period and Fantasy categories to be big players at the Academy Awards, with “The Grand Budapest Hotel” and “Into The Woods” being obvious frontrunners for both the CDG Awards as well as for Oscar nominations.

EXCELLENCE IN CONTEMPORARY FILM

• “Birdman” – Albert Wolsky
• “Boyhood” – Kari Perkins
• “Gone Girl” – Trish Summerville
• “Interstellar” – Mary Zophres
• “Wild” – Melissa Bruning

EXCELLENCE IN PERIOD FILM

• “The Grand Budapest Hotel” – Milena Canonero
• “The Imitation Game” – Sammy Sheldon Differ
• “Inherent Vice” – Mark Bridges
• “Selma” – Ruth E. Carter
• “The Theory of Everything” – Steven Noble

EXCELLENCE IN FANTASY FILM

• “Guardians of the Galaxy” – Alexandra Byrne
• “The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies” – Bob Buck, Lesley Burkes-Harding, Ann Maskrey
• “The Hunger Games: Mockingjay, Part 1” – Kurt and Bart
• “Into the Woods” – Colleen Atwood
• “Maleficent” – Anna B. Sheppard, Jane Clive

Writers Guild Of America Nominations

Don’t expect “Guardians Of The Galaxy” to get a nomination for the Best Adapted Screenplay at the Oscars, but enjoy the honor from the Writers Guild. This should show you just how wide open the Adapted field is, with “Gone Girl” and “The Imitation Game” being the only locks in this category. Notably missing because of their ineligibility under the Guild rules are “Birdman” and “Selma” from the Original category and “The Theory Of Everything” from the Adapted category, which will all most likely show up during the Oscar nominations next week. One other potential shift in the Oscar nominees is “Whiplash” showing up under Adapted because of some confusion in regards to a short. However, it rolls, the Guilds nominees are a pretty good indicator of which way the Academy is headed.

ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY

• “Boyhood, Written by Richard Linklater; IFC Films

• “Foxcatcher, Written by E. Max Frye and Dan Futterman; Sony Pictures Classics

• “The Grand Budapest Hotel,” Screenplay by Wes Anderson; Story by Wes Anderson & Hugo Guinness; Fox Searchlight

• “Nightcrawler, Written by Dan Gilroy; Open Road Films

• “Whiplash, Written by Damien Chazelle; Sony Pictures Classics

 

ADAPTED SCREENPLAY

• “American Sniper, Written by Jason Hall; Based on the book by Chris Kyle with Scott McEwen and Jim DeFelice; Warner Bros.

• “Gone Girl,” Screenplay by Gillian Flynn; Based on her novel; 20th Century Fox

• “Guardians of the Galaxy,” Written by James Gunn and Nicole Perlman; Based on the Marvel comic by Dan Abnett and Andy Lanning; Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures

• “The Imitation Game,” Written by Graham Moore; Based on the book Alan Turing: The Enigma by Andrew Hodges; The Weinstein Company

• “Wild,” Screenplay by Nick Hornby; Based on the book by Cheryl Strayed; Fox Searchlight

 

DOCUMENTARY SCREENPLAY

• “Finding Vivian Maier,” Written by John Maloof & Charlie Siskel (Sundance Selects)

• “The Internet’s Own Boy: The Story of Aaron Swartz,” Written by Brian Knappenberger (FilmBuff)

• “Last Days in Vietnam,” Written by Mark Bailey & Kevin McAlester (American Experience Films)

• “Red Army,” Written by Gabe Polsky (Sony Pictures Classics)

Producers Guild Of America Nominations

The Producers Guild nominations are the closest look that we will get at the Best Picture category before Oscar nominations come out next week. Obviously “Birdman” and “Boyhood” are no surprises, as they are locked and ready for a heated battle for the gold. “The Grand Budapest Hotel”, “The Imitation Game”, and “The Theory Of Everything” are basically clinched as well, while “Foxcatcher” and “Whiplash” are edging towards Oscar nominations in their own right. The big question marks are “American Sniper,” which just recently started getting love and rightfully so. It getting nominated at the Oscars would be huge and well deserved, and “Nightcrawler” and “Gone Girl,” which have also been showing up everywhere but are still being called outliers in the race. Most noticeably missing is “Selma,” which has gotten tons of love as of late and “Unbroken,” which most have recently predicted its fall from grace as far as the Best Picture category is concerned. Although the PGA nominates ten, the Oscars have ended up with nine for the past few years, so minus one of these, plus probably add back in “Selma,” replacing one of these as well, and this could be the Best Picture landscape.

American Sniper (Warner Bros. Pictures)
Producers: Bradley Cooper, p.g.a., Clint Eastwood, p.g.a., Andrew Lazar, p.g.a., Robert Lorenz, p.g.a., Peter Morgan, p.g.a.

Birdman (Fox Searchlight Pictures)
Producers: Alejandro G. Iñárritu, John Lesher, James W. Skotchdopole

Boyhood (IFC Films)
Producers: Richard Linklater, p.g.a., Cathleen Sutherland, p.g.a.

Foxcatcher (Sony Pictures Classics)
Producers: Megan Ellison, p.g.a., Jon Kilik, p.g.a., Bennett Miller, p.g.a.

Gone Girl (20th Century Fox)
Producer: Ceán Chaffin, p.g.a.

The Grand Budapest Hotel (Fox Searchlight Pictures)
Producers: Wes Anderson & Scott Rudin, Jeremy Dawson, Steven Rales

The Imitation Game (The Weinstein Company)
Producers: Nora Grossman, p.g.a., Ido Ostrowsky, p.g.a., Teddy Schwarzman, p.g.a.

Nightcrawler (Open Road Films)
Producers: Jennifer Fox, Tony Gilroy

The Theory of Everything (Focus Features)
Producers: Tim Bevan & Eric Fellner, Lisa Bruce, Anthony McCarten

Whiplash (Sony Pictures Classics)
Producers: Jason Blum, Helen Estabrook, David Lancaster

The Award for Outstanding Producer of Animated Theatrical Motion Pictures:

Big Hero 6 (Walt Disney Animation Studios)
Producer: Roy Conli, p.g.a.

The Book of Life (20th Century Fox)
Producers: Brad Booker, p.g.a., Guillermo del Toro, p.g.a.

The Boxtrolls (Focus Features)
Producers: David Bleiman Ichioka, p.g.a., Travis Knight, p.g.a.

How To Train Your Dragon 2 (20th Century Fox)
Producer: Bonnie Arnold, p.g.a.

The LEGO Movie (Warner Bros. Pictures)
Producer: Dan Lin

Oscar Season: Detroit Film Critics Society Awards

Detroit follows suit with naming “Boyhood” and Richard Linklater the best of the year with “Birdman” getting Best Ensemble and Michael Keaton (“Birdman”) getting Best Actor.

Here is the official list for the Detroit Film Critics Society Awards:

BEST FILM: “Boyhood”
BEST DIRECTOR: Richard Linklater (“Boyhood”)
BEST ACTOR: Michael Keaton (“Birdman”)
BEST ACTRESS: Rosamund Pike (“Gone Girl”)
BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR: J.K. Simmons (“Whiplash”)
BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS: Patricia Arquette (“Boyhood”)
BEST ENSEMBLE: “Birdman”
BREAKTHROUGH: Damien Chazelle (“Whiplash”) (director, screenplay)
BEST SCREENPLAY: Richard Linklater (“Boyhood”)
BEST DOCUMENTARY: “CitizenFour”

Oscar Season: Austin Film Critics Association Awards

Of course Austin is going to give its awards to “Boyhood” as it is their Texas darling which was shot over the course of 12 years in the state. Austin is also a huge supporter of the independent scene and “Boyhood” is the prime example for how successful an independent film can be. Jake Gyllenhaal continues to surprise with another win. He might have a real shot unless the film critics are just blowing smoke. The Academy tends to gravitate towards these eccentric type of roles, which is the same reason Steve Carrell will likely get nominated for his work in “Foxcatcher”. Regardless, the critics have at least proven that “Nightcrawler” will be involved with the Oscars in some fashion or another. It is absolutely amazing to see Gary Poulter’s name for the Special Honorary Award for his work on one of my favorite films of the year, “Joe”. He passed away this year and his back story is absolutely incredible.

Here is the official list for the Austin Film Critics Association Awards:

Best Film: “Boyhood”
Best Director: Richard Linklater (“Boyhood”)
Best Actor: Jake Gyllenhaal (“Nightcrawler”)
Best Actress: Rosamund Pike (“Gone Girl”)
Best Supporting Actor: J.K. Simmons (“Whiplash”)
Best Supporting Actress: Patricia Arquette (“Boyhood”)
Best Original Screenplay: Dan Gilroy (“Nightcrawler”)
Best Adapted Screenplay: Gillian Flynn (“Gone Girl”)
Best Cinematography: Emmanuel Lubezki (“Birdman”)
Best Score: Antonio Sanchez (“Birdman”)
Best Foreign Language Film: “Force Majeure”
Best Documentary: “Citizenfour”
Best Animated Film: “The LEGO Movie”
Best First Film: “Nightcrawler”
Breakthrough Artist: Jennifer Kent (“The Babadook”)
Best Austin Film: “Boyhood”
Special Honorary Award: Gary Poulter, for his outstanding performance in “Joe”

AFCA 2014 Top Ten Films
1. “Boyhood”
2. “Whiplash”
3. “The Grand Budapest Hotel”
4. “Birdman”
5. “Snowpiercer”
6. “Nightcrawler”
7. “Selma”
8. “The Imitation Game”
9. TIE: “Inherent Vice” and “Gone Girl”