Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden announced the annual selection of 25 movies to be inducted into the National Film Registry of the Library of Congress for 2021. Selected for their cultural, historic or aesthetic importance to preserve the nation’s film heritage, the newest selections include major roles for Jennifer Lopez and Cicely Tyson, extraordinary animated features, comedy and music, and films that took on racially-motivated violence against people of color decades ago.
Kenneth Branagh’s Belfast took Best Picture honors, and Branagh won for Best Director and Best Screenplay, in the Phoenix Film Critic’s Society’s 2021 awards. The film also captured awards for Ciaran Hinds for Best Actor in a Supporting Role and for Jude Hill for Best Performance by a Youth. With five wins, Belfast tied with Dune for the most honored film of the year.
The Power of the Dog was named the Best Picture of 2021 by the Southeastern Film Critics Association, along with Best Director and Best Adapted Screenplay for Jane Campion, Best Actor for Benedict Cumberbatch, Best Supporting Actor for Kodi Smit-McPhee and Best Supporting Actress for Kirsten Dunst. This is the second time a film directed by Jane Campion has won Best Picture and Best Director as SEFCA also recognized her film The Piano in 1993.
“Belfast” along with “West Side Story” lead this year’s film contenders for the 27th Annual Critics Choice Awards, earning eleven nominations each. In addition to Best Picture, “Belfast” racked up several acting nominations including Best Supporting Actor nods for both Jamie Dornan and Ciarán Hinds, Best Supporting Actress for Caitríona Balfe, Best Young Actor/Actress for Jude Hill, and Best Acting Ensemble, while Kenneth Branagh could take home both the Best Director and Best Original Screenplay trophies. “Belfast” also earned nominations for Haris Zambarloukos for Best Cinematography, Jim Clay and Claire Nia Richards for Best Production Design, and Úna Ní Dhonghaíle for Best Editing.
The Philadelphia Film Critics Circle named Jane Campion’s The Power of the Dog the Best Film of 2021 at its fifth annual year-end awards. The Power of the Dog received six award including Best Director and Best Script (both for Jane Campion), Best Actor (Benedict Cumberbatch), Best Supporting Actor (for Kodi Smit-McPhee) and Best Soundtrack/Score (for Johnny Greenwood.)
Kenneth Branagh’s Belfast and Jane Campion’s The Power of the Dog lead the nominations for the 79th Annual Golden Globe Awards, with seven nominations each, including Best Motion Picture – Drama and Best Director.
The Boston Online Film Critics Association (BOFCA) loved Jane Campion’s The Power of the Dog, awarding the film top honors in an impressive 7 categories including Best Picture, Best Director and Best Screenplay for Campion, Best Cinematography, Best Actor for Benedict Cumberbatch, Best Supporting Actor for Kodi Smit-McPhee, and Best Supporting Actress for Kirsten Dunst.
The Bosnian war film Quo vadis, Aida? took the top prize for Best European Film at the 2021 European Film Awards hosted by German actress Annabelle Mandeng. The film also won Best European Director for Jasmila Žbanić and Best European Actress for Jasna Đuričić. The Danish animated documentary Flee directed Jonas Poher Rasmussen was also a big winner, taking the awards for European Documentary and European Animated Feature.
The Producers Guild of America (PGA) announced the 2022 Documentary Motion Picture nominees that will advance to the final round of voting for the 33rd Annual Producers Guild Awards. Last year, producer Craig Foster was honored with the award for Outstanding Producer of Documentary Motion Picture for “My Octopus Teacher,” which documented a year spent by Foster forging a relationship with a wild common octopus in a South African kelp forest.
Lady Gaga will receive the Icon Award at the Palm Springs International Film Awards for her performance in House of Gucci. The Film Awards will take place in-person on January 6, 2022 at the Palm Springs Convention Center, with the festival running through January 17, 2022.
AFI announced the 2021 honorees – 10 outstanding films and 10 outstanding TV programs deemed culturally and artistically representative of this year’s most significant achievements in the art of the moving image. Belfast and Summer of Soul (…Or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised) were honored in a category for “Special Awards,” designated for works of excellence that fall outside of the Institute’s criteria of American film and television.
Henry Vallejo’s film Powerful Chief (Manco Cápac) is Peru’s official Oscar entry for Best International Feature Film at the 94th Academy Awards taking place on March 27, 2022 at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood.