Oscars Watch: 2024 Austin Film Critics Association Awards

20TH ANNUAL Austin Film Critics Association Awards
Monday, January 6, 2025

Best Picture

“ANORA” • NEON

Directed by Sean Baker
Produced by Sean Baker, Alex Coco, Samantha Quan

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2) “The Brutalist” • A24
3) “The Substance” • MUBI
4) “Sing Sing” • A24
5) “Love Lies Bleeding” • A24
6) “Nickel Boys” • Orion/Amazon MGM Studios
7) “Dune: Part Two” • Warner Bros Pictures
8) “Nosferatu” • Focus Features
9) “Conclave” • Focus Features
10) “Wicked” • Universal Pictures

Best Director

Sean Baker
“ANORA” • NEON

Produced by Sean Baker, Alex Coco, Samantha Quan

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Brady Corbet – “The Brutalist” | A24
Coralie Fargeat – “The Substance” | MUBI
Rose Glass – “Love Lies Bleeding” | A24
Denis Villeneuve – “Dune: Part Two” | Warner Bros Pictures

Best Actor

Colman Domingo
“SING SING” • A24

Directed by Greg Kwedar
Produced by Monique Walton, Clint Bentley, Greg Kwedar

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Adrien Brody – “The Brutalist” | A24
Daniel Craig – “Queer” | A24
Ralph Fiennes – “Conclave” | Focus Features
Hugh Grant – “Heretic” | A24

Best Actress

Mikey Madison
“ANORA” • NEON

Directed by Sean Baker
Produced by Sean Baker, Alex Coco, Samantha Quan

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Pamela Anderson – “The Last Showgirl” | Roadside Attractions
Marianne Jean-Baptiste – “Hard Truths” | Bleecker Street
Nicole Kidman – “Babygirl” | A24
Demi Moore – “The Substance” | MUBI

Best Supporting Actor

Yura Borisov
“ANORA” • NEON

Directed by Sean Baker
Produced by Sean Baker, Alex Coco, Samantha Quan

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Kieran Culkin – “A Real Pain” | Searchlight Pictures
Clarence Maclin – “Sing Sing” | A24
Guy Pearce – “The Brutalist” | A24
Jeremy Strong – “The Apprentice” | Briarcliff Entertainment

Best Supporting Actress

Margaret Qualley
“The Substance” • MUBI

Directed by Coralie Fargeat
Produced by Coralie Fargeat, Eric Fellner, Tim Bevan

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Danielle Deadwyler – “The Piano Lesson” | Netflix
Ariana Grande – “Wicked” | Universal Pictures
Felicity Jones – “The Brutalist” | A24
Katy O’Brian – “Love Lies Bleeding” | A24

Best Ensemble

“Sing Sing” • A24

Directed by Greg Kwedar
Produced by Monique Walton, Clint Bentley, Greg Kwedar

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“Anora” | NEON
“The Brutalist” | A24
“Conclave” | Focus Features
“Dune: Part Two” | Warner Bros Pictures

Best Original Screenplay

“ANORA” • NEON

Written by Sean Baker

Directed by Sean Baker
Produced by Sean Baker, Alex Coco, Samantha Quan

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“The Brutalist” – Brady Corbet & Mona Fastvold | A24
“Challengers” – Justin Kuritzkes | Amazon MGM Studios
“A Real Pain” – Jesse Eisenberg | Searchlight Pictures
“The Substance” – Coralie Fargeat | MUBI

Best Adapted Screenplay

“Sing Sing” • A24

Written by Greg Kwedar & Clint Bentley

Directed by Greg Kwedar
Produced by Monique Walton, Clint Bentley, Greg Kwedar

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“Conclave” – Peter Straughan | Focus Features
“Dune: Part Two” – Denis Villeneuve & Jon Spaihts | Warner Bros Pictures
“Nickel Boys” – RaMell Ross & Joslyn Barnes | Orion/Amazon MGM Studios
“Wicked” – Dana Fox & Winnie Holzman | Universal Pictures

Best Cinematography

“The Brutalist” • A24

Cinematography by Lol Crawley

Directed by Brady Corbet
Produced by Nick Gordon, D.J. Gugenheim, Andrew Lauren, Trevor Matthews

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“Dune: Part Two” – Greig Frasier | Warner Bros Pictures
“Nickel Boys” – Jomo Fray | Orion/Amazon MGM Studios
“Nosferatu” – Jarin Blaschke | Focus Features
“The Substance” – Benjamin Kracun | MUBI

Best Editing

“The Substance” • MUBI

Editing by Coralie Fargeat, Jérôme Eltabet, & Valentin Feron

Directed by Coralie Fargeat
Produced by Coralie Fargeat, Eric Fellner, Tim Bevan

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“Anora” – Sean Baker | NEON
“The Brutalist” – Dávid Jancsó | A24
“Dune: Part Two” – Joe Walker | Warner Bros Pictures
“September 5” – Hansjörg Weißbrich | Paramount Pictures

Best ORIGINAL SCORE

“The Brutalist” • A24

Composed by Daniel Blumberg

Directed by Brady Corbet
Produced by Nick Gordon, D.J. Gugenheim, Andrew Lauren, Trevor Matthews

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“Challengers” – Trent Reznor & Atticus Ross | Amazon MGM Studios
“Dune: Part Two” – Hans Zimmer | Warner Bros Pictures
“Nosferatu” – Robin Carolan | Focus Features
“The Wild Robot” – Kris Bowers | DreamWorks/Universal Pictures

Best International Film

“The Seed of the Sacred Fig” • NEON

Directed by Mohammad Rasoulof
Produced by Mohammad Rasoulof, Amin Sadraei, Jean-Christophe Simon, Mani Tilgner, Rozita Hendijanian

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“Emilia Perez” | Netflix
“Flow” | Sideshow/Janus Films
“I’m Still Here” | RT Features
“Kneecap” | Sony Pictures Classics

BEST DOCUMENTARY

“Will & Harper” • Netflix

Directed by Josh Greenbaum
Produced by Rafael Marmor, Will Ferrell, Jessica Elbaum, Josh Greenbaum, Chris Leggett

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“Dahomey” | MUBI
“No Other Land” | mTuckman Media
“The Remarkable Life of Ibelin” | Netflix
“Super/Man: The Christopher Reeve Story” | Warner Bros Pictures

Best Animated Film

“The Wild Robot” • DreamWorks/Universal

Directed by Chris Sanders
Produced by Jeff Hermann

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“Flow” | Sideshow/Janus Films
“Inside Out 2” | Pixar Animation/Walt Disney Pictures
“Memoir of a Snail” | IFC Films
“Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl” | Netflix

Best Voice Acting/Animated/Digital Performance

Lupita Nyong’o
“The Wild Robot” • DreamWorks/Universal

Directed by Chris Sanders
Produced by Jeff Hermann

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Kevin Durand – “Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes” | 20th Century Studios
Amy Poehler – “Inside Out 2” | Pixar Animation/Walt Disney Pictures
Sarah Snook – “Memoir of a Snail” | IFC Films
Robbie Williams/Jonno Davies – “Better Man” | Paramount Pictures

Best Stuntwork

“The Fall Guy” • Universal Pictures

Directed by David Leitch
Produced by Kelly McCormick, David Leitch, Ryan Gosling, Guymon Casady

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“Dune: Part Two” | Warner Bros Pictures
“Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga” | Warner Bros Pictures
“Kill” | Roadside Attractions/Lionsgate
“Monkey Man” | Universal Pictures

Best First Film

Arkasha Stevenson
“The First Omen” • 20th Century Studios

Produced by David S. Goyer, Keith Levine

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Vera Drew – “The People’s Joker” | Altered Innocence
Zoe Kravitz – “Blink Twice” | Amazon MGM Studios
Josh Margolin – “Thelma” | Magnolia Pictures
Sean Wang – “Dídi” | Focus Features

Robert R. “Bobby” McCurdy Memorial
Breakthrough Artist Award

Best Austin Film

“Sing Sing” • A24

Directed by Greg Kwedar
Produced by Monique Walton, Clint Bentley, Greg Kwedar

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“The Bikeriders” (Jeff Nichols) | Focus Features
“Fugitive Dreams” (Jason Neulander) | Freestyle Digital Media
“Hit Man” (Richard Linklater) | Netflix
“Sasquatch Sunset” (Nathan and David Zellner) | Bleecker Street

Austin Film Critics Association

Best Film:
Best Director:
Best Actress:
Best Actor:
Best Supporting Actress:
Best Supporting Actor:
Best Ensemble:
Best Original Screenplay:
Best Adapted Screenplay:
Best Cinematography:
Best Editing:
Best Original Score:
Best International Film:
Best Documentary:
Best Animated Film:
Best Voice/Animated/Digital:
Best Stuntwork:
Best First Film:
Austin Film Award:

“Anora”
Sean Baker – “Anora”
Mikey Madison – “Anora”
Colman Domingo – “Sing Sing”
Margaret Qualley – “The Substance”
Yura Borisov – “Anora”
“Sing Sing”
“Anora” – Sean Baker
“Sing Sing” – Greg Kwedar & Clint Bentley
“The Brutalist” – Lol Crawley
“The Substance” – Coralie Fargeat, Jérôme Eltabet, & Valentin Feron
“The Brutalist” – Daniel Blumberg
“The Seed of the Sacred Fig”
“Will & Harper”
“The Wild Robot”
Lupita Nyong’o – “The Wild Robot”
“The Fall Guy”
Arkasha Stevenson – “The First Omen”
“Sing Sing”

ABOUT THE Austin Film Critics Association

Since its inception, the members of the Austin Film Critics Association have been doing their best to Keep Austin Weird. With upsets like Ellen Page’s win over Helen Mirren in 2006 and “The Dark Knight” besting “Slumdog Millionaire” in 2008, it’s no surprise the AFCA has been called everything from “wildly contrarian” (Entertainment Weekly) to “progressive…compared to their counterparts” (FEARnet). Either way, these Austinites have established themselves as a collective that everyone in Hollywood must keep an eye on come awards season.

Founded in 2005 by Cole Dabney & Bobby McCurdy, the AFCA has seen its membership grow from single digits to well over 30 members with a diverse roster of professional film critics who regularly review movies for daily newspapers, weekly alternatives, local radio, monthly magazines, and websites with international prominence.

Each December, AFCA members vote on the year’s best in film, celebrating excellence on both sides of the camera. Awards are given annually in a number of “Oscar” categories and several unique AFCA categories, including the Robert R. “Bobby” McCurdy Memorial Breakthrough Artist Award, Best First Film, Best International Film, Best Ensemble and Best Austin Film.

The various outlets our members contribute to include Austin American-Statesman, the Austin Chronicle, Birth.Movies.Death, Cinapse, Daily Grindhouse, the Daily Dot, the Daily Texan, Double Toasted, Film School Rejects, FirstShowing.net, GotchaMovies, Hammer to Nail, Hill Country News, Horror’s Not Dead, KOOP 91.7 FM Radio, Movies.com, Nerdist, One Movie Punch, One Of Us, ScreenCrush, Smells Like Screen Spirit, and True View Reviews.