Top 10 Films of 2013

GAME OVER. Here is my list of top 10 films of 2013 along with 20 honorable mentions just like the previous year. I watched a loooot of films in 2013 and making a list like this proved to be a hectic yet entertaining task. Not really a task because I love the cinema. Anyway, below are my top 10 films with a little description and their respective IMDb links in the titles followed by the honorable mentions.

1. Her

2. Gravity

3. The Act of Killing

4. 12 Years a Slave

5. The Wolf of Wall Street

6. Before Midnight

7. Inside Llewyn Davis

8. Blue Is the Warmest Color

9. Short Term 12

10. Rush

Honorable Mentions [in no particular order]:

• The Wind Rises


• The Great Beauty


• The Spectacular Now


• Nebraska


• Wadjda


• The Hunt


• Prisoners


• Captain Phillips


• Stories We Tell


• Pacific Rim


• Fruitvale Station


• Frances Ha


• Frozen


• Man of Steel


• A Band Called Death


• The Conjuring


• Mud


• Much Ado About Nothing


• Dallas Buyers Club


• The World's End

17th Annual Las Vegas Film Critics Society Sierra Awards

The Las Vegas Film Critics Society (LVFCS) announced their 17th Annual Sierra awards on December 18th, 2013 with giving away the Best Picture award to 12 Years a Slave, directed and co-produced by Steve McQueen who also won the Best Director award. This is getting easier now. 12 Years a Slave is the strongest contender this season and it's highly likely that it will win the Oscars. None of the wins are surprising or shocking as all of the winners are deserving with the exception of This Is the End, which won the Best Comedy Film award. I strongly believe that Edgar Wright's the World's End should have won it.

Last year, 10 LVFCS winners won the Oscars (you can view the previous year's winners here: 16th Annual Las Vegas Film Critics Society Sierra Awards) which is serious and important as some of the LVFCS winners might win the Oscars this year as well.

Here is the complete list of winners:

Best Picture: 12 Years a Slave

Best Director: Steve McQueen, 12 Years a Slave

Best Actor: Matthew McConaughey, Dallas Buyers Club

Best Actress: Emma Thompson, Saving Mr. Banks

Best Supporting Actor: Jared Leto, Dallas Buyers Club

Best Supporting Actress: Lupita Nyong’o, 12 Years a Slave

Best Screenplay: Spike Jonze, Her

Best Cinematography: Emmanuel Lubezki, Gravity

Best Film Editing: Alfonso Cuaron & Mark Sanger, Gravity

Best Costume Design: Patricia Norris, 12 Years a Slave

Best Art Direction: Andy Nicholson, Gravity

Best Visual Effects: Gravity

Best Foreign Film: Blue is the Warmest Color

Best Documentary: Blackfish

Best Animated Film: Frozen

Best Family Film: Saving Mr. Banks

Best Horror/Sci-Fi Film: Pacific Rim

Best Comedy Film: This is the End

Best Action Film: Lone Survivor

Best Score: Hans Zimmer, 12 Years a Slave

Best Song: Please Mr. Kennedy, Inside Llewyn Davis

Youth in Film: Tye Sheridan, Mud

Best DVD (Packaging, Design and Content): Breaking Bad – The Complete Series (Blu-Ray)

The William Holden Lifetime Achievement Award: John Goodman

LVFCS Top 10 Films of 2013

1. 12 Years a Slave


2. Dallas Buyers Club


3. Gravity


4. The Wolf of Wall Street


5. American Hustle


6. Inside Llewyn Davis


7. Saving Mr. Banks


8. Nebraska


9. Her


10. Lone Survivor

12th Annual Washington D.C. Area Film Critics Association Awards

The Washington D.C. Area Film Critics Association (WAFCA) announced their awards on December 9th, 2013 with giving away the Best Film award to Steve McQueen's 12 Years a Slave. Best Director award went to Alfonso Cuarón for his exceptional work in Gravity. It is now clear that Gravity and 12 Years a Slave have dominated the critics circle and the effect will last longer than anyone could anticipate. It should also be noted that critics are loving Spike Jonze's Her (can't wait to watch the movie) since it's been winning screenplay, direction and film awards at various circles. One thing that surprised me the most is the bold decision of choosing the Broken Circle Breakdown as the Best Foreign Language Film.

Last year only 4 WAFCA winners won the Oscars, i.e. Daniel Day-Lewis for Best Actor, Anne Hathaway for Best Supporting Actress, Amour for Best Foreign Language Film and Claudio Miranda for Best Cinematography. Let's see what happens this year!

Here is the complete list of winners:

Best Film: 12 Years a Slave

Best Director: Alfonso Cuarón (Gravity)

Best Actor: Chiwetel Ejiofor (12 Years a Slave)

Best Actress: Cate Blanchett (Blue Jasmine)

Best Supporting Actor: Jared Leto (Dallas Buyers Club)

Best Supporting Actress: Lupita Nyong'o (12 Years a Slave)

Best Acting Ensemble: 12 Years a Slave

Best Youth Performance: Tye Sheridan (Mud)

Best Adapted Screenplay: John Ridley (12 Years a Slave)

Best Original Screenplay: Spike Jonze (Her)

Best Animated Feature: Frozen

Best Documentary: Blackfish

Best Foreign Language Film: The Broken Circle Breakdown

Best Art Direction: Production Designer: Catherine Martin, Set Decorator: Beverley Dunn (The Great Gatsby)

Best Cinematography: Emmanuel Lubezki, ASC, A.M.C. (Gravity)

Best Editing: Alfonso Cuarón, Mark Sanger (Gravity)

Best Original Score: Hans Zimmer (12 Years a Slave)

The Joe Barber Award for Best Portrayal of Washington, DC: Lee Daniels’ The Butler

2nd Annual Boston Online Film Critics Association Awards

The Boston Online Film Critics Association (BOFCA) announced their awards today, on December 7th, 2013, with giving away the Best Picture award to Steve McQueen's 12 Years a Slave which was the biggest winner of the night, also winning Best Director, Best Actor, Best Supporting Actress, Best Editing and Best Original Score awards. This is such a remarkable achievement for 12 Years a Slave because it's finally starting to get some critics love which will probably continue until the Oscars.

Other great winner includes Jared Leto for Best Supporting Actress for his role in Dallas Buyers Club. Leto is my most favorite Oscar front-runner at the moment, because whatever he does, he does with extreme passion.

One thing that I completely disliked about the BOFCA awards this year is that instead of Spike Jonze's Her, the stupid Spring Breakers is in the list of top 10 films. Utterly ridiculous!

Last year, only 2 BOFCA winners eventually won the Oscar, i.e. Best Actor for Daniel Day-Lewis and Best Supporting Actress for Anne Hathaway. Let's see what happens this time.

Here is the complete list of winners:

BEST PICTURE: 12 YEARS A SLAVE

BEST DIRECTOR: Steve McQueen (12 YEARS A SLAVE)

BEST ACTOR: Chiwetel Ejiofor (12 YEARS A SLAVE)

BEST ACTRESS: Cate Blanchett (BLUE JASMINE)

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR: Jared Leto (DALLAS BUYERS CLUB)

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS: Lupita Nyong'o (12 YEARS A SLAVE)

BEST SCREENPLAY: Julie Delpy, Ethan Hawke, and Richard Linklater (BEFORE MIDNIGHT)

BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM: BLUE IS THE WARMEST COLOR

BEST DOCUMENTARY: THE ACT OF KILLING

BEST ANIMATED FILM (tie): THE WIND RISES and FROZEN

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY: Bruno Delbonnel (INSIDE LLEWYN DAVIS)

BEST EDITING: Joe Walker (12 YEARS A SLAVE)

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE: Hans Zimmer (12 YEARS A SLAVE)

TOP 10 FILMS OF THE YEAR:

1. 12 YEARS A SLAVE


2. INSIDE LLEWYN DAVIS


3. THE WOLF OF WALL STREET


4. GRAVITY


5. BEFORE MIDNIGHT


6. THE SPECTACULAR NOW


7. BLUE IS THE WARMEST COLOR


8. SPRING BREAKERS


9. THE WORLD’S END


10. FRUITVALE STATION

Film Review: Waar (2013)

Directed by: Bilal Lashari
Written and produced by: Hassan Waqas Rana
Music by: Amir Munawar
Cast members: Shaan Shahid, Shamoon Abbasi, Ayesha Khan, Meesha Shafi, Hamza Ali Abbasi, Ali Azmat, Kamran Lashari

:actual conversation:
#1: "Waar dekhnay ja raha hun."
#2: "Suna hai achi film hai."
#3: "Meri pehn da dupatta wapis kar oye jaisi nahin, achi tou ho gi hi."

After making us wait for almost 2 years, watch trailers over and over again, Google the release date and details of the film, Waar is finally here, a film that surely lived up to the hype it created. (the most anticipated and most expensive film in the history of Pakistan) One must wonder, why it took so much time. The answer is: For all good things, we have to wait.

Waar is an action-packed intense thriller that focuses on the current War on Terror situation in Pakistan and incorporates the actual events in such a way that it sometimes blows your mind away. Now, the plot and story are typical and the script is weak but the way in which they're executed is amazing. I was hoping for a twist in the plot or a mystery that would be revealed in the climax but there's no such thing. The film is stylish, but there is less substance and more style, which is a drawback, obviously. A good film is a balance between style and substance.
Directed by our very talented Bilal Lashari who's known for directing music videos of mainstream artists, I must say his work is impressive. He knows what he's doing and he doesn't try to kill it by overdoing it. There are a lot of things that Bollywood hasn't even thought of, yet, and Lashari is doing like it's a child's play for him. I know it takes a lot of effort and time to work on a project that's become a topic of discussion for people and he has proved himself. He indirectly asks us, "check ki hai bhai ki direction phir, hai na aala?" 

Major Mujtaba (played by Shaan Shahid) is a former army officer who has a dark and extremely sad past and that's exactly the reason why he takes an early retirement. He's one of the best officers and is needed when the time arrives and only he can prevent bad things from happening. His character story is good and is made even better with intense performance by Shaan.

Talking about the rest of the cast members, performances are good and average but there's not much of character progression, all the focus is on Mujtaba and the remaining cast looks like the extras in a dance number. The antagonist, Ramal (played by Shamoon Abbasi) could have been a much, much better character but the writer Hassan Waqas Rana didn't put much effort into him. It's also affected by Abbasi's performance which isn't compelling enough, it does work at times but there should've been more. Ali Azmat and Meesha Shafi are ridiculous especially Shafi, she's trying to do I don't know what and it looks terrible. Azmat tries too hard to be himself, acting like he's also a rockstar in the film. Maybe he was, before he became a politician. After Shaan, I like Hamza Ali Abbasi's performance who plays the role of Ehtesham, a police officer.

Performances are also affected by excessive use of English language (dialogues in Urdu are much, much better), it feels like the actors are focusing more on the accent and much less on the expressions and emotions and it's not a rocket science when you want to identify certain emotions and power in words. Moreover, my advice is that if you are writing an English script, then at least make it a little strong, include good vocabulary. (the English used in film is an equivalent of an application in the English exam in Matriculation + there are a lot of cheesy dialogues)

Technical aspects of the film are at par with any Bollywood or even Hollywood film. Background score and soundtrack are beautiful, totally support every frame of the video and why wouldn't they? It took Amir Munawar 2 years to compose and complete the music and there's hard work written all over it. (if you're familiar with background score used in Punjabi films, you'd give Waar's music a 100/10) Camera work and cinematography are too good, one of the best things about the film. There are a few scenes that has so much power and intensity in them, only because of brilliant cinematography. Say goodbye to nonsensical camera angles previously used by Lollywood.

Most of the people are calling Waar a propaganda film and criticizing and giving it a bad review on that basis. They must be forgetting the countless films that are made against Pakistan and other countries, a lot of which are positively reviewed by critics because a film is a piece of fiction, of course, you can use actual events in your film to enhance its power but at the end of the day, it still is a piece of fiction. All the fuss just because the film has Indian agents in it is pointless, and stupid. Where is that "propaganda" when Indian films use Pakistani agents in their films? Also, please refrain from judging any movie on the basis of a country where it's made because it can cloud your judgement because of the love for your country. Judge it on the basis of its material; the performances, plot, script, technical aspects and its overall presentation.

Finally, Waar is a wonderfully presented and a gripping thriller that has almost everything you need in a movie these days and I'm completely sure that it's better than a lot of Indian films produced this year. If you're still unsure about whether you want to watch it or not, read the summary below:

+ Best film production to come out of Pakistan
+ Genuine effort by Bilal Lashari as a debut director
+ Brilliant camera work and cinematography
+ Beautiful background score and soundtrack
+ Intense performance by Shaan Shahid
+ Cool guy with a sniper rifle

- More style, less substance
- Weak script and cheesy dialogues
- Poor character progression
- Excessive use of English Language

Score: 7.8

66th Annual Cannes Film Festival Awards

The 66th annual Cannes Film Festival took place from 15th to 26th May 2013 in Cannes, France. The festival opened with Baz Luhrmann's epic romantic drama film THE GREAT GATSBY and closed with Jérôme Salle's crime film ZULU.  THE BLING RING, directed by Sofia Coppola, opened the Un Certain Regard section. Steven Spielberg was the head of the jury for main competition and along with him, there were Daniel Auteuil (French actor), Vidya Balan, Ang Lee, Nicole Kidman, Naomi Kawase (Japanese film director), Cristian Mungiu (Romanian film director), Christoph Waltz and Lynne Ramsay (Scottish film director) were also the members of the jury for main competition. New Zealand film director Jane Campion was the head of the jury for the Cinéfondation and Short Film sections.

The French film BLUE IS THE WARMEST COLOUR directed by Abdellatif Kechiche won the Palme d'Or. In an unprecedented move, the Jury decided to take "the exceptional step" of awarding the film's two main actresses with the Palme d'Or along with the director.

It is completely obvious that I haven't watched any of these films as I didn't attend the festival but I like to keep track of who won which award so it becomes easier for me in the future. There were a lot of brilliant films in the festival and I'm hoping to watch all of them. One film at a time.

Here is the complete list of winners:

In Competition

Palme d'Or: Blue Is the Warmest Colour by Abdellatif Kechiche

• Honorary Palme d'Or: Adèle Exarchopoulos and Léa Seydoux for Blue Is the Warmest Colour

Grand Prix: Inside Llewyn Davis by Joel & Ethan Coen

Best Director: Amat Escalante for Heli

Best Screenplay: Jia Zhangke for A Touch of Sin

Best Actress:  Bérénice Bejo for The Past

Best Actor: Bruce Dern for Nebraska

Jury Prize: Like Father, Like Son by Hirokazu Koreeda

Un Certain Regard

Prize of Un Certain Regard:  The Missing Picture by Rithy Panh

Un Certain Regard Special Jury Prize: Omar by Hany Abu-Assad

Un Certain Regard Best Director: Alain Guiraudie for Stranger by the Lake

Un Certain Regard Best First Film: Fruitvale Station by Ryan Coogler

A Certain Talent:  Diego Quemada-Diez for The Golden Cage

Parallel sections

Caméra d'Or: Ilo Ilo by Anthony Chen

Directors' Fortnight

• Art Cinema Award:  Me, Myself and Mum by Guillaume Gallienne


• Prix SACD:  Me, Myself and Mum by Guillaume Gallienne


• Europa Cinemas: The Selfish Giant by Clio Barnard


• Premier Prix Illy for Short Filmmaking: A Wild Goose Chase by Joao Nicolau


• Special Mention: About a Month by Andre Novais Oliveira

Independent Awards

FIPRESCI Prize

• In Competition: Blue Is the Warmest Colour by Abdellatif Kechiche


• Un Certain Regard: Manuscripts Don't Burn by Mohammad Rasoulof


• Directors' Fortnight: Blue Ruin by Jeremy Saulnier

Ecumenical Jury

Prize of the Ecumenical Jury: The Past by Asghar Farhadi

Commendations:

• Miele by Valeria Golino


• Like Father, Like Son by Hirokazu Koreeda

Queer Palm Jury

Queer Palm Award: Stranger by the Lake by Alain Guiraudie

Palm Dog Jury

Palm Dog Award: Baby Boy in Behind the Candelabra

15th Annual Costume Designers Guild Awards

The Costume Designers Guild (CDG) announced its awards on February 19th, 2013 with giving away the top prizes to ANNA KARENINA, MIRROR MIRROR and SKYFALL for Period, Fantasy and Contemporary Film categories respectively.

Here is the complete list of winners:

EXCELLENCE IN CONTEMPORARY FILM: Jany Temime (Skyfall)

EXCELLENCE IN PERIOD FILM: Jacqueline Durran (Anna Karenina)

EXCELLENCE IN FANTASY FILM: Eiko Ishioka (Mirror Mirror)

OUTSTANDING CONTEMPORARY TELEVISION SERIES: Molly Maginnis (Smash)

OUTSTANDING PERIOD/FANTASY TELEVISION SERIES: Caroline McCall (Downton Abbey)

OUTSTANDING MADE FOR TELEVISION MOVIE OR MINISERIES: Lou Eyrich (American Horror Story: Asylum)

EXCELLENCE IN COMMERCIAL COSTUME DESIGN: Judianna Makovsky (Captain Morgan Black)

LACOSTE SPOTLIGHT AWARD: Anne Hathaway

DISTINGUISHED COLLABORATOR AWARD: Lorne Michaels

CAREER ACHIEVEMENT IN FILM: Judianna Makovsky

CAREER ACHIEVEMENT IN TELEVISION: Eduardo Castro

DISTINGUISHED SERVICE AWARD: David Le Vey

65th Annual Writers Guild Awards

The Writers Guild of America, West (WGAW) and the Writers Guild of America, East (WGAE) announced their annual awards on February 17th, with giving away the top prizes to ZERO DARK THIRTY, ARGO and SEARCHING FOR SUGAR MAN for Original, Adapted and Documentary Feature Screenplay categories respectively. Television winners include BREAKING BAD, LOUIE and GIRLS for Drama, Comedy and New Series categories respectively. Emmy-winning Castle TV star Nathan Fillion hosted the ceremony, which was executive produced by Cort Casady.

Here is the complete list of winners:

FILM

ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY: Zero Dark Thirty, Written by Mark Boal; Columbia Pictures

ADAPTED SCREENPLAY: Argo, Screenplay by Chris Terrio; Based on a selection from The Master of Disguise by Antonio J. Mendez and the Wired Magazine article “The Great Escape” by Joshuah Bearman; Warner Bros. Pictures

DOCUMENTARY SCREENPLAY: Searching for Sugar Man, Written by Malik Bendjelloul; Sony Pictures Classics

TELEVISION

DRAMA SERIES: Breaking Bad, Written by Sam Catlin, Vince Gilligan, Peter Gould, Gennifer Hutchison, George Mastras, Thomas Schnauz, Moira Walley-Beckett; AMC

COMEDY SERIES: Louie, Written by Pamela Adlon, Vernon Chatman, Louis C.K.; FX

NEW SERIES: Girls, Written by Judd Apatow, Lesley Arfin, Lena Dunham, Sarah Heyward, Bruce Eric Kaplan, Jenni Konner, Deborah Schoeneman, Dan Sterling; HBO

EPISODIC DRAMA: “The Other Woman” (Mad Men), Written by Semi Chellas and Matthew Weiner; AMC

EPISODIC COMEDY: “Virgin Territory” (Modern Family), Written by Elaine Ko; ABC

LONG FORM – ORIGINAL: Hatfields & McCoys, Nights Two and Three, Teleplay by Ted Mann and Ronald Parker, Story by Bill Kerby and Ted Mann; History Channel

LONG FORM – ADAPTED: Game Change, Written by Danny Strong, Based on the book by Mark Halperin and John Heilemann; HBO

ANIMATION: “Ned ’N’ Edna’s Blend Agenda” (The Simpsons), Written by Jeff Westbrook; Fox

COMEDY/VARIETY (INCLUDING TALK) – SERIES: Portlandia, Writers: Fred Armisen, Carrie Brownstein, Karey Dornetto, Jonathan Krisel, Bill Oakley; IFC

COMEDY/VARIETY – MUSIC, AWARDS, TRIBUTES – SPECIALS: 66th Annual Tony Awards, Written by Dave Boone; Special Material by Paul Greenberg; Opening and Closing Songs by David Javerbaum, Adam Schlesinger; CBS

DAYTIME DRAMA: The Young and the Restless, Written by Amanda Beall, Jeff Beldner, Susan Dansby, Janice Ferri Esser, Jay Gibson, Scott Hamner, Marla Kanelos, Natalie Minardi Slater, Beth Milstein, Michael Montgomery, Anne Schoettle, Linda Schreiber, Sarah K. Smith, Christopher J. Whitesell, Teresa Zimmerman; CBS

CHILDREN'S – EPISODIC & SPECIALS: “The Good Sport” (Sesame Street); Written by Christine Ferraro; PBS

CHILDREN’S – LONG FORM OR SPECIAL: Girl vs. Monster, Teleplay by Annie DeYoung and Ron McGee, Story by Annie DeYoung; Disney Channel

DOCUMENTARY – CURRENT EVENTS: “Money, Power and Wall Street: Episode One” (Frontline), Written by Martin Smith and Marcela Gaviria; PBS

DOCUMENTARY – OTHER THAN CURRENT EVENTS: “The Fabric of the Cosmos: The Illusion of Time” (Nova), Telescript by Randall MacLowry, Story by Joseph McMaster and Randall MacLowry; PBS

NEWS – REGULARLY SCHEDULED, BULLETIN, OR BREAKING REPORT: “Tragedy In Colorado: The Movie Theatre Massacre,” Written by Lisa Ferri, Joel Siegel; ABC News

NEWS – ANALYSIS, FEATURE, OR COMMENTARY: “The Ghost of Joe McCarthy” (Moyers & Company), Written by Bill Moyers, Michael Winship; Thirteen/ WNET

RADIO

NEWS – REGULARLY SCHEDULED OR BREAKING REPORT: “World News This Year 2011,” Written by Darren Reynolds; ABC News Radio

NEWS – ANALYSIS, FEATURE, OR COMMENTARY: “Dishin Digital,” Written by Robert Hawley; WCBS-AM

PROMOTIONAL WRITING AND GRAPHIC ANIMATION

ON-AIR PROMOTION (RADIO OR TELEVISION): “Partners,” Written by Dan A. Greenberger; CBS

TELEVISION GRAPHIC ANIMATION: “The Oscars” (Sunday Morning with Charles Osgood), Animation by Bob Pook; CBS

VIDEOGAME WRITING

OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT IN VIDEOGAME WRITING: Assassin’s Creed III: Liberation, Scriptwriting by Richard Farrese, Jill Murray; Ubisoft

NEW MEDIA WRITING

OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT IN WRITING ORIGINAL NEW MEDIA: “The Compromises, Episode 1,” “The Pest, Episode 3,” The Snake, Episode 4,” “The Bonding, Episode 6,” “The Future, Episode 7/Series Finale” (Jack in a Box), Written by Michael Cyril Creighton; jackinaboxsite.com

OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT IN WRITING DERIVATIVE NEW MEDIA: “Hide And Seek,” “Keys to the Kingdom,” “The Chosen Ones,” “Parting Shots” (The Walking Dead: Cold Storage), Written by John Esposito; amctv.com

60th Annual Golden Reel Awards

The Motion Picture Sound Editors (MPSE) announced their 60th annual Golden Reel awards on February 17th, 2013 with giving away the top prize to LIFE OF PI, directed and produced by Ang Lee.

Here is the complete list of winners:

MPSE Filmmaker Award: Ang Lee

MPSE Career Achievement Award: John Roesch

FILM

Best Sound Editing: Music in a Feature Film: Life of Pi

Best Sound Editing: Music in a Musical Feature Film: Les Misérables

Best Sound Editing: Dialogue and ADR in a Feature Film: Life of Pi

Best Sound Editing: Sound Effects and Foley in a Feature Film: Skyfall

Best Sound Editing: Sound Effects, Foley, Dialogue and ADR in an Animation Feature Film: Wreck-It Ralph

Best Sound Editing: Sound Effects, Foley, Dialogue and ADR in a Feature Foreign Language Film: Rust and Bone

Best Sound Editing: Sound Effects, Foley, Dialogue, ADR and Music in a Feature Documentary: Last Call at the Oasis

TELEVISION

Best Sound Editing: Sound Effects, Foley, Dialogue and ADR Animation in Television: Adventure Time "Card Wars"

Best Sound Editing: Long Form Documentary: Crossfire Hurricane

Best Sound Editing: Long Form Music in Television: Hemingway & Gellhorn

Best Sound Editing: Short Form Music in Television: Fringe "A Short Story About Love"

Best Sound Editing: Long Form Dialogue and ADR in Television: Game of Thrones Season 2 "Valar Morghulis"

Best Sound Editing: Long Form Sound Effects and Foley in Television (TIE): Game of Thrones Season 2 "Valar Morghulis"; Seal Team Six: The Raid on Osama bin Laden

Best Sound Editing: Long Form Musical in Television: Let It Shine

Best Sound Editing: Short Form Musical in Television: Smash "Hell on Earth"

Best Sound Editing: Short Form Dialogue and ADR in Television: The Newsroom "Amen"

Best Sound Editing: Short Form Sound Effects and Foley in Television: American Horror Story: Asylum "Welcome to Briarcliff"

OTHERS

Best Sound Editing: Computer Episodic Entertainment: Halo 4: Forward Unto Dawn

Best Sound Editing: Computer Interactive Entertainment: Resident Evil 6

Best Sound Editing: Direct to Video - Animation: Justice League: Doom

Best Sound Editing: Direct to Video - Live Action: Fire with Fire

Verna Fields Award in Sound Editing for Student Filmmakers: Head Over Heels

49th Annual Cinema Audio Society Awards

The Cinema Audio Society (CAS) announced its awards on February 16th, 2013 with giving away the top prize to Les Misérables, a deserving film to win this award.

Here is the complete list of winners:

Motion Picture – Live Action: Les Misérables

Motion Picture – Animated: Brave

Television Movie/Mini-Series: Hatfields & McCoys: Part 1

Television Series – One Hour: Homeland: Beirut is Back

Television Series – Half-hour: Modern Family: Disneyland

Television – Non-Fiction, Variety or Music – Series or Special: The 2012 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony

Technical Achievement Awards

Technical Achievement Award Production: Sound Devices – 664 Field Production Mixer with Recorder

Technical Achievement Award Post-Production: Dolby® – Atmos

40th Annual Annie Awards

The International Animated Film Association announced the winners of Annie awards on February 2nd, 2013 with giving away the top prize to WRECK-IT RALPH. Now, this is really amazing, as all of the contenders for this year's Best Animated Feature Oscar are strong. Let's see who will be the big winner.

Here is the complete list of winners:

PRODUCTION CATEGORIES

Best Animated Feature: Wreck-It Ralph

Best Animated Special Production: Despicable Me: Minion Mayhem

Best Animated Short Subject: Paperman

Best General Audience Animated TV Production: Robot Chicken DC Comics Special

Best Animated Television Production For Preschool Children: Bubble Guppies ‘A Tooth on the Looth’

Best Animated Television Production For Children: Dragons: Riders of Berk ‘How to Pick Your Dragon’

Best Animated Video Game: Journey

Best Student Film: Head Over Heels by Timothy Reckart

INDIVIDUAL ACHIEVEMENT CATEGORIES

Outstanding Achievement, Animated Effects in an Animated Production: Andy Hayes, Carl Hooper, David Lipton (Rise of the Guardians)

Outstanding Achievement, Animated Effects in a Live Action Production: Jerome Platteaux, John Sigurdson, Ryan Hopkins, Raul Essig, Mark Chataway (The Avengers)

Outstanding Achievement, Character Animation in an Animated Television or other Broadcast Venue Production: Dan Driscoll (SpongeBob SquarePants: It's a SpongeBob Christmas!)

Outstanding Achievement, Character Animation in a Feature Production: Travis Knight (ParaNorman)

Outstanding Achievement, Character Animation in a Live Action Production: Erik de Boer, Matt Shumway, Brian Wells, Vinayak Pawar, Michael Holzl (Life of Pi - Tiger)

Outstanding Achievement, Character Design in an Animated Television or other Broadcast Venue Production: Robert Valley (Disney Tron: Uprising: The Renegade, Part I)

Outstanding Achievement, Character Design in an Animated Feature Production: Heidi Smith (ParaNorman)

Outstanding Achievement, Directing in an Animated Television or other Broadcast Venue Production: John Eng (Dragons: Riders of Berk: Animal House)

Outstanding Achievement, Directing in an Animated Feature Production: Rich Moore (Wreck-It Ralph)

Outstanding Achievement, Music in an Animated Television or other Broadcast Venue Production: John Paesano (Dragons: Riders of Berk: How to Pick Your Dragon)

Outstanding Achievement, Music in an Animated Feature Production: Henry Jackman, Skrillex, Adam Young, Matthew Thiessen, Jamie Houston, Yasushi Akimoto (Wreck-It Ralph)

Outstanding Achievement, Production Design in an Animated Television or other Broadcast Venue Production: Alberto Mielgo (Tron: Uprising: The Stranger)

Outstanding Achievement, Production Design in an Animated Feature Production: Steve Pilcher (Brave)

Outstanding Achievement, Storyboarding in an Animated Television or other Broadcast Venue Production: Doug Lovelace (Dragons: Riders of Berk: Portrait of Hiccup as a Buff Man)

Outstanding Achievement, Storyboarding in an Animated Feature Production: Johanne Matte (Rise of the Guardians)

Outstanding Achievement, Voice Acting in an Animated Television or other Broadcast Venue Production: Kristen Schaal as Mabel Pines (Gravity Falls: Tourist Trapped)

Outstanding Achievement, Voice Acting in an Animated Feature Production: Alan Tudyk as King Candy (Wreck-It Ralph)

Outstanding Achievement, Writing in an Animated Television or other Broadcast Venue Production: Trey Parker (South Park: Jewpacabra)

Outstanding Achievement, Writing in an Animated Feature Production: Phil Johnston, Jennifer Lee (Wreck-It Ralph)

Outstanding Achievement, Editorial in an Animated Television or other Broadcast Venue Production: Hugo Morales, Adam Arnold, Davrick Waeden, Otto Ferraye (Kung Fu Panda - Enter the Dragon)

Outstanding Achievement, Editorial in an Animated Feature Production: Nicholas C. Smith, A.C.E, Robert Grahamjones, A.C.E., David Suther (Brave)

JURIED AWARDS

Winsor McCay Award: Oscar Grillo, Terry Gilliam, Mark Henn

June Foray Award: Howard Green

Ub Iwerks Award: Toon Boom Animation Pipeline

17th Annual Art Directors Guild Awards

The Art Directors Guild (ADG) announced its ADG Excellence in Production Design Awards on February 2nd, 2013 with giving away the top prizes to ANNA KARENINA, LIFE OF PI and SKYFALL for Period, Fantasy and Contemporary film categories respectively. All of these winners are most deserving and it is probable that Anna Karenina will be the big winner at the Oscars or the trophy might also go to Les Miserables.

Here is the complete list of winners:

Lifetime Achievement Award: Herman Zimmerman

EXCELLENCE IN PRODUCTION DESIGN FOR A FEATURE FILM

Period Film: Anna Karenina

Fantasy Film: Life of Pi

Contemporary Film: Skyfall

EXCELLENCE IN PRODUCTION DESIGN FOR TELEVISION

One-Hour Single Camera Television Series: Game of Thrones (Episode: The Ghost of Harrenhal)

Television or Mini-series: American Horror Story: Asylum (Episode: I Am Anne Frank, Part 2)

Episode of a Half-Hour Single Camera Television Series: Girls (Episode: Pilot)

Episode of a Multi-Camera Variety or Unscripted Series: Saturday Night Live (Host: Mick Jagger)

Awards/Music/Game Shows: 84th Annual Academy Awards

EXCELLENCE IN PRODUCTION DESIGN FOR COMMERCIALS & MUSIC VIDEOS

Commercials and Music Videos: Xbox (Halo 4 Commissioning)

4th Annual Dorian Awards

The Gay and Lesbian Entertainment Critics Association (GALECA) announced the 4th Dorian awards on January 18th, 2013 with giving away the Film of the Year award to ARGO, directed and co-produced by Ben Affleck.

Here is the complete list of winners:

FILMS

Film of the Year: Argo

Film Performance of the Year - Actor: Daniel Day-Lewis (Lincoln)

Film Performance of the Year - Actress: Anne Hathaway (Les Miserables)

LGBT Film of the Year: Keep the Lights On

Documentary of the Year: How to Survive a Plague

Visually Striking Film of the Year: Life of Pi

Campy Flick of the Year (TIE): Magic Mike; The Paperboy

Unsung Film of the Year: Bernie

TELEVISION

TV Drama of the Year (TIE): Homeland; American Horror Story: Asylum

TV Comedy of the Year: Girls

TV Performance of the Year - Actor: Damian Lewis (Homeland)

TV Performance of the Year - Actress: Jessica Lange (American Horror Story: Asylum)

TV Musical Performance of the Year (TIE): Jennifer Hudson - Tribute to Whitney Houston (The Grammys); Raza Jaffrey, Katherine McPhee and cast - A Thousand and One Nights (Smash)

LGBT TV Show of the Year (TIE): Modern Family; The New Normal

Campy TV Show of the Year: Liz & Dick

Unsung TV Show of the Year: Happy Endings

TV or Movie Title of the Year: Don't Trust the Bitch in Apartment 23

We're Wilde About You (Newcomer Award): Ezra Miller

Wilde Wit of the Year: Jon Stewart

Wilde Artist of the Year: Ryan Murphy

Timeless Award: Sir Ian McKellen

4th Annual Denver Film Critics Society Awards

The Denver Film Critics Society (DFCS) announced its awards on January 8th, 2013 with giving away the Best Film award to ARGO, directed and co-produced by Ben Affleck who also won the Best Director award.

Here is the complete list of winners:

Best Film: Argo

Best Achievement in Directing: Ben Affleck (Argo)

Best Lead Performance by an Actor, Male: Daniel Day-Lewis (Lincoln)

Best Lead Performance by an Actor, Female: Jennifer Lawrence (Silver Linings Playbook)

Best Supporting Performance by an Actor, Male: Philip Seymour Hoffman (The Master)

Best Supporting Performance by an Actor, Female: Anne Hathaway (Les Misérables)

Best Animated Feature: ParaNorman

Best Original Screenplay: Wes Anderson, Roman Coppola (Moonrise Kingdom)

Best Adapted Screenplay: David O. Russell (Silver Linings Playbook)

Best Documentary Feature: Jiro Dreams of Sushi

Best Original Song: Skyfall by Adele (Skyfall)

Best Original Score: Hans Zimmer (The Dark Knight Rises)

Best Non-English Language Feature: Amour

7th Annual Excellent Dynamic Activism Awards

The Alliance of Women Film Journalists (AWFJ) announced its 7th Excellent Dynamic Activism (EDA) awards in January 2013 with giving away the Best Picture award to ZERO DARK THIRTY, directed and co-produced by Kathryn Bigelow who also won the Best Director award.

Here is the complete list of winners:

Best Picture: Zero Dark Thirty

Best Director: Kathryn Bigelow (Zero Dark Thirty)

Best Actress: Jessica Chastain (Zero Dark Thirty)

Best Actor: Daniel Day-Lewis (Lincoln)

Best Supporting Actress: Anne Hathaway (Les Misérables)

Best Supporting Actor: Philip Seymour Hoffman (The Master)

Best Original Screenplay: Mark Boal (Zero Dark Thirty)

Best Adapted Screenplay: Chris Terrio (Argo)

Best Non-English-Language Film: Amour

Best Documentary: Searching For Sugar Man

Best Animated Film: ParaNorman

Best Ensemble Cast: Silver Linings Playbook

Best Cinematography: Claudio Miranda (Life of Pi)

Best Editing: William Goldenberg and Dylan Tichenor (Zero Dark Thirty)

Best Film Music or Score: Dan Romer and Benh Zeitlin (Beasts of the Southern Wild)

Best Woman Director: Kathryn Bigelow (Zero Dark Thirty)

Best Woman Screenwriter: Lucy Alibar (with Benh Zeitlin) (Beasts of the Southern Wild)

Best Breakthrough Performance: Quvenzhané Wallis (Beasts of the Southern Wild)

Kick-Ass Award For Best Female Action Star: Jennifer Lawrence (The Hunger Games)

Best Animated Female: Kelly Macdonald (Brave)

Actress Defying Age and Ageism: Judi Dench (Skyfall)

AWFJ Award for Humanitarian Activism: Jessica Chastain (Zero Dark Thirty)

Outstanding Achievement By A Woman In The Film Industry: Heidi Ewing and Rachel Grady (Detropia), Lauren Greenfield (Queen of Versailles), Alison Klayman (Ai Weiwei Never Sorry) and Sarah Burns (The Central Park Five)

AWFJ Hall Of Shame Award: Sean Anders (That’s My Boy)

Actress Most in Need Of A New Agent (TIE): Katherine Heigl (One For The Money); Reese Witherspoon (This Means War)

Movie You Wanted To Love But Just Couldn’t: Anna Karenina

Unforgettable Moment (TIE): Anne Hathaway singing “I Dreamed A Dream” in Les Miserables; Jessica Chastain saying, “I’m the mother…” in Zero Dark Thirty

Best Depiction Of Nudity, Sexuality, or Seduction: Helen Hunt and John Hawkes (The Sessions)

Sequel or Remake That Shouldn’t Have Been Made (TIE): Red Dawn; Total Recall

Most Egregious Age Difference Between The Leading Man and The Love Interest: Denzel Washington and Kelly Reilly and Nadine Velazquez (Flight)

13th Annual Vancouver Film Critics Circle Awards

The Vancouver Film Critics Circle (VFCC) announced its awards on January 7th, 2013 with giving away the Best Film award to ZERO DARK THIRTY, directed and co-produced by Kathryn Bigelow who also won the Best Director award. The surprise is that Joaquin Phoenix won the award for Best Actor for his brilliant performance in THE MASTER. The shocking thing is Amy Adams' win in the Best Supporting Actress category. No one deserves that award more than Anne Hathaway.

Here is the complete list of winners:

INTERNATIONAL AWARDS

BEST FILM: Zero Dark Thirty

BEST DIRECTOR: Kathryn Bigelow (Zero Dark Thirty)

BEST ACTOR: Joaquin Phoenix (The Master)

BEST ACTRESS: Jessica Chastain (Zero Dark Thirty)

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR: Philip Seymour Hoffman (The Master)

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS: Amy Adams (The Master)

BEST SCREENPLAY: Mark Boal (Zero Dark Thirty)

BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM: Holy Motors

BEST DOCUMENTARY: Searching for Sugar Man

CANADIAN AWARDS

BEST FILM: Rebelle (a.k.a. War Witch)

BEST DIRECTOR: Panos Cosmatos (Beyond the Black Rainbow)

BEST ACTOR: Michael Rogers (Beyond the Black Rainbow)

BEST ACTRESS: Rachel Mwanza (Rebelle)

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR: Serge Kanyinda (Rebelle)

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS: Sarah Gadon (Cosmopolis)

BEST CANADIAN DOCUMENTARY: The World Before Her

BEST BRITISH COLUMBIA FILM: Beyond the Black Rainbow

IAN CADDELL AWARD FOR ACHIEVEMENT: Alan Franey, Vancouver International Film Festival

9th Annual Women Film Critics Circle Awards

The Women Film Critics Circle (WFCC) announced its awards in December 2012 with giving away the top prize to A ROYAL AFFAIR.

Here is the complete list of winners:

BEST MOVIE ABOUT WOMEN: A Royal Affair

BEST MOVIE BY A WOMAN: Zero Dark Thirty

BEST WOMAN STORYTELLER [Screenwriting Award]: Julie Delpy (Two Days In NY)

BEST ACTRESS: Anne Hathaway (Les Miserables)

BEST ACTOR: Daniel Day-Lewis (Lincoln)

BEST YOUNG ACTRESS: Quvenzhanee Wallis (Beast Of The Southern Wild)

BEST COMEDIC ACTRESS: Maggie Smith (Best Exotic Marigold Hotel)

BEST FOREIGN FILM BY OR ABOUT WOMEN: Where Do We Go Now

BEST FEMALE IMAGES IN A MOVIE: Zero Dark Thirty

WORST FEMALE IMAGES IN A MOVIE (TIE): Killer Joe;  Think Like A Man

BEST MALE IMAGES IN A MOVIE: Lincoln

WORST MALE IMAGES IN A MOVIE: Killer Joe

BEST THEATRICALLY UNRELEASED MOVIE BY OR ABOUT WOMEN: Hemingway And Gellhorn

BEST EQUALITY OF THE SEXES: Zero Dark Thirty

BEST ANIMATED FEMALES: Brave

BEST FAMILY FILM (TIE): Life Of Pi; Rise Of The Guardians

LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD: Barbra Streisand

ACTING AND ACTIVISM.AWARD: Sally Field

ADRIENNE SHELLY AWARD - For a film that most passionately opposes violence against women (TIE): Compliance; The Invisible War

JOSEPHINE BAKER AWARD - For best expressing the woman of color experience in America: Middle Of Nowhere

KAREN MORLEY AWARD: For best exemplifying a woman’s place in history or society, and a courageous search for identity: A Royal Affair

COURAGE IN ACTING - Taking on unconventional roles that radically redefine the images of women on-screen: Helen Hunt (The Sessions)

THE INVISIBLE WOMAN AWARD - Performance by a woman whose exceptional impact on the film dramatically, socially or historically, has been ignored: Helen Mirren (Hitchcock)

BEST DOCUMENTARY BY OR ABOUT A WOMAN: Queen Of Versailles

WOMEN’S WORK: BEST ENSEMBLE: The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel

BEST SCREEN COUPLE: Bill Murray and Frances McDormand (Moonrise Kingdom)

WFCC HALL OF SHAME

Bachelorette with Kirsten Dunst, had all sorts of ditzy former high school classmates getting together for the wedding of a girl they used to make fun of. Just stupid on so many levels: male strippers, drinking, general girly silliness.

Ici-Bas [Down Below]. Rape romance: A raped nun (Celine Sallette) falls in love with her rapist.

Skyfall: 'Bond Girl' is only on screen long enough to sell trailers and products like OPI's 'Skyfall Collection' of nail polishes, and gets bumped off at the end of Act II; M turns into a cowering incompetent and gets bumped off at the end of Act III; and the female sharp-shooter in Act I loses her nerve and leaves 'Field Operations' to become an office assistant in Act III. I loved the Sean Connery/James Bond films as a kid. Women got to be part of the action; the Bond Girl was always there to celebrate success at the end. But as a 50th anniversary tribute to the Bond series made in 2012, Skyfall truly broke my heart!

MOMMIE DEAREST WORST SCREEN MOM OF THE YEAR AWARD: Helena Bonham Carter (Les Miserables)

BEST LINE IN A MOVIE: "...You can't kill the animals in a movie, only the women." — Christopher Walken (Seven Psychopaths)

JUST KIDDING AWARD - Best Male Images In A Movie: Magic Mike