31st Annual Critics Choice Awards Nominations

The Critics Choice Association (CCA) announced yesterday, December 5, the nominees for the 2026 edition of the Critcs Choice Awards and Sinners leads the pack with an impressive 17 nominations, nearley matching the record of 18 that Barbie achieved two years ago. One Battle After Another follows with 14 nominations plus Hamnet and Frankenstein with 11 each.

The CCA is a group of broadcast, radio, online critcs, and entertainment journalist who review films and television. Founded 31 years ago by Joey Berlin, Rod Lurie and 42 founding members, the CCA is now the largest critics organization in USA and Canada with more than 600 members. In 2024 the group members were 34% female and 65% male, 29% is non-white and 19% is LGBTQ+ making this group one of the most diverse group in the industry. Probalby that's why their choices reflect more diversity than their counterparts. Remember this group is the one that wants to fill the void left by former Golden Glboes, former because now Golden Globes are handled by an entertainment company and are not a group of film critics or journalists.

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2025 National Board of Review Award Winners

Yesterday the National Board of Review (NBR) announced its honorees and leading the pack is One Battle After Another by Paul Thomas Anderson winning 4 top awards, Best Film, Best Director, Best Actor and Best Supporting Actor.

Established in 1909, the NBR recognizes excellence in filmmaking and this year 265 films were viewed by a select grooup of film enthusiasts, filmmakers, academics and young professionals, many of which were followed by in-depth discussions with directors, actors, producers, screenwriters and cinematographers. Ballots were tabulated by the accounting firm of Lutz and Carr CPA.

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41st Film Independent Spirit Awards Nominations

Yesterday, December 3, 2025, Film Independent, the nonprofit organization dedicated to fostering independence and inclusivity in visual storytelling, announced the nominations for the 2025 edition of the Spirit Awards.

According to their press release this edition has a record number of works and artists being honored and yes, we can tell by just reading the list that has many unexpected newcomers to the 2025=2026 awards season, so there could be Oscar consideration for some of the below nominees.

Peter Hujar's Day leads the pack with 5 nominations followed by Blue Sun Palace; Lurker; One of Them Days; Sorry, Baby; and Train Dreams with 4 nominations each, and Lucky Lu, The Plage and Twinless getting 3 each.

After reading about each of the below films noticed some films premiered in Cannes 2025 but didn't win any major award, same with those premiering at 2025 Sundance, odd. But my greatest discovery was to find an American movie with Mads Mikkelsen! Yes, Mads is the "Intriguing Neighbor" in Dust Bunny and he "helps a young girl to kill the monster under her bed" (LOL).

Awards ceremony will be hosted at the Hollywooed Palladium, after years at the beach in Santa Monica, on Sunday, February 15, 2026 at 5pm ET/2pm PT. The show will be streamed live on the Film Independent and IMDb YouTube channels, and across our social platforms.

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2025 New York Film Critics Circle Award Winners

The oldest critics group in USA -it's their 91st edition- New York Film Critics Circle (NYFCC), announced last night their winners and let's recall that group has a solid run for being a bellwether for Oscar nominees more than winners as the last time both coincide was in 2011 with The Artist.

Perhaps this year will change as they named Paul Thomas Anderson's One Battle After Another as their top winner, a film that is industry pundits frontrunner for Oscar's Best Film. Anderson's film also collected another win in the actor supporting category for a total of 2 awards and shares the lead with The Secret Agent by Kleber Mendonça Filho which won Best International Film and Best Actor for Walter Moura.

Still too-early in the awards season but there are news from two independent film awards plus one major critics' group and there are three different international film wins Sentimental Value by Joachim Trier, It Was Just an Accident by Jafar Panahi, and The Secret Agent by Kleber Mendonça Filho; data which suggests there is an open Oscar race with no clear winner in this category.

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35th The Gotham Film Awards Winners

Yesterday at Cipriani Wall Street in New York City the 2025 awards ceremony for The Gotham Film Awards took place and perhaps what was most covered in the news is the many A-Listers in one place at the same time.

Actors, directors and even singers (Rihanna was there), came to honor or to get honored in the name of independent cinema and yes, not often you can see in one place Kristen Stewart, Jennifer Lawrence, Nina Hoss, Renate Reinsve, Jessie Buckley, Riley Keough, Chloe Sevigny, Julia Roberts, Naomi Watts, Jacob Elordi, Ethan Hawke, Stellan Skarsgard, Alexander Skarsgard, Hugh Jackman, Joel Edgerton, Adam Sandler, Wagner Moura, Luca Guadagnino, Guillermo del Toro, Noah Baumbach, Chloe Zhao, Brady Corbet, Mona Fastvold, Park Chan-wook, and many more. Sigh! Not even at the Oscars. Wonder how many of those that were there last night will make it to Oscar night. Phew.

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28th British Independent Film Awards Winners

Yesterday comedians Lou Sanders and Harriet Kemsley hosted the BIFA awards ceremony which took place at the Roundhouse in Camden, London, and Pillion by Harry Lighton became the biggest winner with 4 awards, including top award: Best British Independent Film.

The awards were spread as Pillion is followed by three films with 3 awards each, documentary A Want In Her by Myrid Carten, including Best Documentary, The Ballad of Wallis Island by James Griffiths, including Best Screenplay, and Warfare by Alex Garland and Ray Mendoza. Best Director went to Akinola Davis Jr for My Father's Shadow and Best International Independent Film to Sentimental Value by Joachim Trier.

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18th Asia Pacific Screen Award Winners

It's been a while since the last time I did an APSA winners post and couldn't help but noticing it was the year Parasite won top APSA honors and also the Oscar for Best Film smashing the category crystal ceiling and opening opportunities for other non-American non-English films to vie for Oscars in other categories besides International Feature Film.

Could it happen again? Who knows; but, this year APSA's top honor went to Jafar Panahi's It Was Just an Accident and this Cannes Palm d'Or winner according to industry pundits has also chances to go for top Oscar in 2026.

So, yesterday APSA's awards ceremony took place at The Langham Hotel in the infamous Australia's Gold Coast honoring the most powerful and resonant filmmaking from across the world's most diverse and prolific screen region. Drawn from 24 countries and regions with this years entries, the 2025 APSA winners reflect the artistic depth, cultural breadth and exceptional craft that defines cinema in the Asia Pacific.

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38th European Film Awards Nominations

Update November 26 - Today the European Film Academy announced the nominees in eight (8) craft categories with Bugonia, Sirāt, and Sound of Falling leading the pack with five (5) nominations each. When we consider all categories pack leader is Sirāt with nine (9) nominations followed by Sentimental Value and Sound of Falling with (8) eight each, and Bugonia with six (6) nominations.

The craft nominations are based on votes from EFA's members in the respective chapters, who have viewed all films included in the Feature Film Selection.

With these nominations the post becomes final as now all the nominees are known. Now all Academy members will vote to determine winners to be announced at the awards ceremony on January 17, 2026 at the Haus de Kulturen der Welt in Berling, Germany.

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2025 Film Critics Awards - In Progress

Today is a good day to start the annual film critics awards compilation as even do critics groups start to announce their awards in December there is some information regarding awards. Also, there is the annual task of learning which groups are still alive, which are not, and welcome the new ones to the list.

As you recall this post is done to get an idea of what film critics are liking and the possible Oscar nominations/winners. But remember that by trade, film critics are NOT Academy members and consequently cannot vote in the Oscars. Still, they are influencers by trade especially those in the largest groups New York Film Critics Circle and Los Angeles Film Critics Association as well as those with in groups with high reputation like the National Board of Review.

Post works as mainly American film critics preferences tally for the current award season. Furthermore, usually film critics' winners data is different to what audiences like and nowadays less and less similar to what AMPAS members prefer.

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28th British Independent Film Awards Nominations

Yesterday November 3, 2025 organizers, assisted by Ben Hardy and Saura Lightfoot-Leon, announced the nominations for the award that celebrates British (and beyond) independent films.

My Father's Shadow by Akinola Davies Jr leads the pack with 12 nominations followed by Pillion with 10, I Swear by Kirk Jones with 9, Harris Dickinson's Urchin with 6, and James Griffiths' The Ballad of Wallis Island with 5.

One award has been awarded already, Best Ensemble Performance to the cast of Alex Garland and Ray Mendoza;s Warfare. Still to be announce is The Richard Harris Award that recognizes outstanding contribution to British Film by an actor.

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35th Annual Gotham Film Awards Nominations

The American Awards Season starts with with these nominations that represent 40 feature films and 25 perfromances in ten award categories. New this year, the Best Feature category is expanded to include 10 nominees, up from five.

Paul Thomas Anderson's One Battle After Another becomes a front runner for current award season as leads the pack with six (6) nominations, even when, surprise, surprise, Leonardo DiCaprio gets snubbed in the top acting category. (LOL) Mary Bronstein's If I Had Legs I'd Kick You follows with four (4) nominations, Jafar Panahi's It Was Just An Accident and Park Chan-wook No Other Choice with three (3) each.

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82nd Venice International Film Festival Award Winners

So, it's over. Another year another festival that ends with unremarkable winners BUT during the festival audiences, industry pundits and film critics reactions to films were undoubtedly quite interesting and highlighted films that should get our attention. I know Jarmusch is a great filmmaker and surely the award is well-deserved; but let's be clear, American cinema does not need the buzz and noise that come as consequence of winning the top award, or any other award, at any of the three main film festivals. It's the World Cinema the one that needs all the noise that could be "free" generated by winning awards as then, and only then, film could become top-of-mind of industry buyers, distributors, and more important, audiences.

Truth is that 2025 Venice fest had many films that rose to my top-of-mind and I'm looking forward to have the opportunity of watching them, I just wish some of them could have gotten some recognition, sigh.

Ci vediamo nell prossimo anno!!!

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19th Queer Lion Award Winner

Update September 5: The 19th Queer Lion Award has been awarded to En El Camino by David Pablos, presented in Orizzonti.

Motivation: For the courage of producer Inna Payán in endorsing a project set within a world dominated by a machista subculture marked by violence and homophobia.
For the audacity of director David Pablos in his portrayal of a carnal, explicit, authentic, and unfiltered sexuality.
For the moving depiction of a pure love that unites two men, two solitudes, and two vulnerabilities that discover one another, embrace one another, and ultimately redeem one another: Queer Lion Award 2025 to En el camino by David Pablos.

David Pablos: “My film portrays a romantic relationship between two men within a hostile, violent setting — the world of truck drivers and highways — governed by the rules of heteronormativity and hypermasculinity. The story delves into the emotional limitations of the main characters, shaped by the machismo that dictates how they are expected to behave both socially and intimately.”

Queer Lion Award winner will be crowned during the award ceremony of the Venice International Film Critics’ Week, on Friday, September 5th, at 7PM, at Casa I Wonder, Lido di Venezia.

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22nd Giornate degli Autori Award Winners

So it is over and winners have been uncover and recognized for the unique qualities that make them go to the top of the best of the world filmmakers. This edition films from Iran, Greece, Italy, Portugal and more countries got honored in this Venice Film Festival autonomous section. Here are some of the reasons why films were highlighted.

Top Award winner: Inside Amir by Amir Azizi
“The film we will honor tonight is a meditation on everyday life. It reminds us of how daily routines, movements, and conversations with friends provide both security and freedom. With a framing that little by little reveals a complex life marked by loss and grief against a backdrop of exile and social upheaval, the film asks fundamental questions about what it means to belong and the existential doubts that follow in the wake of such thoughts. It is a film that takes time to listen, and that shows how unexpected, spontaneous encounters build a rich life. The film’s precise dialogue and staging give a strong sense of presence, and as a viewer you feel a generosity in the way you are invited in among a group of friends and get to take part of both intimate, profound, and trivial conversations. Another thing that gives great pleasure when watching this film is the subtle use of different time periods, often in the same frame, and often during the same bike ride. It is an honor to give the Giornate degli Autori award to Daroon-E Amir (Inside Amir) by Amir Azizi.”  Jury statement.

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40th Venice International Film Critics' Week Award Winners

It is over and section was closed with the following words from Beatrice Fiorentino, the Artistic Director of la Settimana Internazionale della Critica.

"Forty editions on, we continue believing in cinema that makes bold choices, that takes risks, that speaks to the present with its own voice. This edition has brought to life vivid images, bodies that resist, dreams that claim a space for themselves. And a curious, young, attentive audience has understood the message. The future is not written, but it can be filmed".

To check winners at official site go here.

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July 22, 2025
This morning had a huge surprise when found the complete line up and all press materials for the 2025 edition of la Settimana, so will do post while waiting for the #Venice82 press conference.

In 2025, the Settimana Internazionale della Critica celebrates a double anniversary. Forty years of this wonderful institution, first conceived in 1984 by the Director of the Venice International Film Festival Gian Luigi Rondi and enthusiastically brought to life by the President of the Sindacato Nazionale dei Critici Cinematografici Italiani (SNCCI) Lino Miccichè and film critic Giorgio Tinazzi, who became its first General Delegate.

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