What if Lisa Picked The Oscar Nominees — 2016 Edition


With the Oscar nominations due to be announced tomorrow, now is the time that the Shattered Lens indulges in a little something called, “What if Lisa had all the power.” Listed below are my personal Oscar nominations. Please note that these are not the films that I necessarily think will be nominated. The fact of the matter is that the many of them will not. Instead, these are the films that would be nominated if I was solely responsible for deciding the nominees this year. Winners are starred and listed in bold.

(You’ll also note that I’ve added four categories, all of which I believe the Academy should adopt — Best Voice-Over Performance, Best Casting, Best Stunt Work, and Best Overall Use Of Music In A Film.)

(Click on the links to see my nominations for 20152014, 2013, 2012, 2011, and 2010!)

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Best Picture

*American Honey*

Arrival

Hell or High Water

Kubo and the Two Strings

La La Land

Love & Friendship

A Monster Calls

Moonlight

The Neon Demon

The Nice Guys

andrea-arnold

Best Director

*Andrea Arnold for American Honey

Shane Black for The Nice Guys

Barry Jenkins for Moonlight

David MacKenzie for Hell or High Water

Nicholas Winding Refn for The Neon Demon

Denis Villeneuve for Arrival

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Best Actor

Andrew Garfield in Hacksaw Ridge

Ryan Gosling in The Nice Guys

Tom Hanks in Sully

Chris Pine in Hell or High Water

Ryan Reynolds in Deadpool

*Denzel Washington in Fences

arrival

Best Actress

*Amy Adams in Arrival

Kate Beckinsale in Love & Friendship

Viola Davis in Fences

Sasha Lane in American Honey

Emma Stone in La La Land

Anya Taylor-Joy in The Witch

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Best Supporting Actor

*Mahershala Ali in Moonlight

Tom Bennett in Love & Friendship

Jeff Bridges in Hell or High Water

Alden Ehrenreich in Hail Caesar!

John Goodman in 10 Cloverfield Lane

Patrick Stewart in Green Room

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Best Supporting Actress

*Naomie Harris in Moonlight

Felicity Jones in A Monster Calls

Riley Keough in American Honey

Jena Malone in The Neon Demon

Helen Mirren in Eye in the Sky

Angourie Rice in The Nice Guys

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Best Voice Over and/or Stop Motion Performance

Auli’i Cravalho in Moana

Ellen DeGeneres in Finding Dory

Ginnifer Goodwin in Zootopia

*Liam Neeson in A Monster Calls

Art Parkinson in Kubo and the Two Strings

Charlize Theron in Kubo and the Two Strings

hell-or-high-water

Best Original Screenplay

American Honey

*Hell or High Water

Kubo and the Two Strings

La La Land

The Nice Guys

The Witch

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Best Adapted Screenplay

*Arrival

The Jungle Book

Love & Friendship

Moonlight

A Monster Calls

Sully

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Best Animated Film

Finding Dory

*Kubo and the Two Strings

Moana

Sausage Party

The Secret Life of Pets

Zootopia

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Best Documentary Feature

The Confessions of Thomas Quick

Holy Hell

O.J.: Made in America

Rigged 2016

Weiner

*The Witness

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Best Casting

*American Honey

Everybody Wants Some!!

La La Land

Moonlight

Hell or High Water

Green Room

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Best Cinematography

American Honey

Arrival

Hell or High Water

La La Land

Moonlight

*The Neon Demon 

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Best Costume Design

The Conjuring 2

Hail, Caesar!

La La Land

*Love & Friendship

The Nice Guys

The Witch

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Best Editing

Arrival

Hell or High Water

Kubo and the Two Strings

*La La Land

Moonlight

A Monster Calls

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Best Makeup and Hairstyling

Captain America: Civil War

Deadpool

Doctor Strange

Everybody Wants Some!!

Hail, Caesar!

*The Neon Demon

Best Original Score

Hell or High Water

Kubo and the Two Strings

*La La Land

Moana

Moonlight

The Neon Demon

8a308a7e50428af372a418faee4de0a47288a895

Best Original Song

*”Audition (The Fool Who Dreams)” from La La Land

“How Far I’ll Go” from Moana

“Waving Goodbye” from The Neon Demon

“I’m so Humble” from Pop Star: Never Stop Never Stopping

“Drive It Like You Stole It” from Sing Street

“Go Now” from Sing Street

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Best Overall Use Of Music

*American Honey

The Conjuring Part Two

Hell or High Water

La La Land

The Neon Demon

Sing Street

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Best Production Design

Arrival

Don’t Breathe

Green Room

The Neon Demon

La La Land

*10 Cloverfield Lane

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Best Sound Editing

Captain America: Civil War

Deadpool

*Hacksaw Ridge

La La Land

A Monster Calls

Sully

sully-river-impact

Best Sound Mixing

Captain America: Civil War

Deadpool

Hacksaw Ridge

A Monster Calls

La La Land

*Sully

deadpool

Best Stunt Work

Captain America: Civil War

*Deadpool

Doctor Strange

Hacksaw Ridge

Jason Bourne

The Legend of Tarzan

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Best Visual Effects

Arrival

*Doctor Strange

The Jungle Book

Kubo and the Two Strings

A Monster Calls

Rogue One: A Star Wars Story

Films Listed By Number of Nominations:

13 Nominations — La La Land

1o Nominations — Hell or High Water

9 Nominations — Moonlight, The Neon Demon

8 Nominations — American Honey, Arrival, Kubo and the Two Strings, A Monster Calls

6 Nominations — The Nice Guys

5 Nominations — Deadpool, Love & Friendship

4 Nominations — Captain America: Civil War, Hacksaw Ridge, Hail Caesar!, Moana, Sully

3 Nominations — Doctor Strange, Green Room, Sing Street

2 Nominations — The Conjuring 2, Everybody Wants Some!!, Fences, Finding Dory, The Jungle Book, 10 Cloverfield Lane, The Witch, Zootopia

1 Nomination — The Confessions of Thomas Quick, Don’t Breathe, Eye in the Sky, Holy Hell, Jason Bourne, The Legend of Tarzan, O.J.: Made in America, Pop Star: Never Stop Never Stopping, Rigged 2016, Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, Sausage Party, The Secret Life of Pets, Weiner, The Witness

Films Listed By Number of Oscars Won:

4 Oscars — American Honey

3 Oscars — La La Land

2 Oscars — Arrival, Moonlight, The Neon Demon

1 Oscar — Deadpool, Doctor Strange, Fences, Hacksaw Ridge, Hell or High Water, Kubo and the Two Strings, Love & Friendship, A Monster Calls, Sully, 10 Cloverfield Lane, The Witness

Will the Academy agree with my predictions?  Probably not but we’ll find out on Tuesday!

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Playing Catch-Up: Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping (dir by Akiva Schaffer and Jorma Taccone)


Have you heard of Conner4Real?

If you haven’t, you’re probably just old or else you don’t keep up with what’s happening in the world of popular music.  His real name is Conner Friel and he used to be a member of the Style Boyz.  Of course, the Style Boyz eventually broke up.  Kid Brain became a farmer.  Kid Contact became a DJ.  And Kid Conner — well, he became Conner4Real and he became a bigger star as a solo artist than he ever was as a Style Boy.  His debut album, Thriller, Also, broke records.

But the follow-up, Connquest … well, Connquest wasn’t quite as acclaimed.  In fact, it was hated by just about everyone.  This is despite featuring classic songs like:

Finest Girl (Bin Laden Song)

Mona Lisa

and Equal Rights (featuring P!nk).

Fortunately, when Conner4Real was facing his greatest existential crisis, a film crew was present to record his struggle.  For those of us who were fascinated by the career of Conner4Real, Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping is a chance to see how Conner dealt with everything from his terminally ill pet turtle to the elaborate marriage proposal ceremony that led to Seal being attacked by wild wolves.  We would have gotten to see Conner and his manager defeat a swarm of mutant bees but, unfortunately, that happened right after the only time that Conner’s manager asked the film crew to stop filming.

Oh well, these things happen.

So, as you should have guessed from all that, Popstar is not a serious film.  It’s a mockumentary, with the emphasis on mock.  It was also one of the funniest films of 2016, a spot-on parody of the silliness and pretensions of fame.  Conner is a combination of Justin Bieber and Macklemore at their shallowest, a well-meaning but thoroughly empty-headed singer.  In fact, if Conner was played by anyone other than Andy Samberg, he would be so annoying that the film would run the risk of being unwatchable.

But fortunately, Conner is played by Andy Samberg.  It’s hard to think of anyone who plays dumb with quite the same panache as Andy Samberg does.  There are plenty of lines in Popstar that shouldn’t work but they do, specifically because they’re being delivered by Samberg.  He brings just the right amount of sweetly sincere stupidity to the role.  Almost despite yourself, you find yourself hoping that things will work out for Conner and the other Style Boyz.  Conner may not deserve to be as big a star as he is but it was obviously going to happen to some idiot so why not a sincere one?

Samberg is not the only funny person in Popstar.  The movie is full of funny people, from Sarah Silverman to Bill Hader to the always underrated Tim Meadows.  It’s also full of celebrity cameos and I have to admit that I usually tend to cringe when I see too many people playing themselves.  But in Popstar, it works.  One need only rewatch something like Zoolander 2 to see how well Popstar pulls off its celebrity cameos.

Sadly, as funny as Popstar was, it was also one of the biggest bombs of 2016.  (The trailer, it must be said, did not do the film justice.)  However, I expect that it will soon develop a strong cult following.  In a few years, we’ll get a sequel.  It probably won’t be as as good.

Oh well.  These things happen.

2016 in Review: Lisa Marie Picks The 26 Best Films of 2016!


Well, the time is here!  It’s time for me to reveal my picks for the best 26 films of 2016!

If there’s been any theme that I’ve found myself constantly returning to while looking back at the previous year, it’s that 2016 just wasn’t as good as 2015.  That’s certainly true as far as movies are concerned.  Whereas 2015 provided us with an embarrasment of riches, 2016 was — overall — a pretty bland year as far as cinema is concerned.

That doesn’t mean there weren’t some great films released in 2016.  I’m proud of this list below.  At the same time, I’m also a little bit frustrated.  As happens every year, there are a few films that, as of this writing, I have yet to see.  Weather permitting, I will see Silence and Jackie tomorrow and on Monday.  If I feel that they need to be included in my top 26, I will come back and edit this list.  And, of course, I still need to see some of the films that are no longer playing in theaters — Captain Fantastic, Hunt for the Wilderpeople, and some others.  The list below should be considered my picks for the best 2016 films that I actually got to see.

Also, I still need to write reviews for two of the films listed below.  Hopefully, I’ll be able to do that today.  As soon as those reviews are posted, I’ll add links.

With all that in mind, here’s the list!

american_honey_poster

  1. American Honey
  2. Arrival
  3. Kubo and the Two Strings
  4. The Neon Demon
  5. La La Land
  6. Moonlight
  7. The Nice Guys
  8. Hell or High Water
  9. A Monster Calls
  10. Love & Friendship
  11. Sing Street
  12. The Witch
  13. Hacksaw Ridge
  14. Sully
  15. The Green Room
  16. 10 Cloverfield Lane
  17. Captain America: Civil War
  18. Finding Dory
  19. Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping
  20. Fences
  21. Manchester By The Sea
  22. Eye in the Sky
  23. Hush
  24. The Conjuring 2
  25. Hail Caesar
  26. Everybody Wants Some!!

Hail,_Caesar!_Teaser_poster

You can check out my picks for previous years by clicking on 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, and 2015!

Agree?  Disagree?  Have a list of your own?  Let us know in the comments!

Previous Entries In The Best of 2016:

  1. TFG’s 2016 Comics Year In Review : Top Tens, Worsts, And Everything In Between
  2. Anime of the Year: 2016
  3. 25 Best, Worst, and Gems I Saw In 2016
  4. 2016 in Review: The Best of SyFy
  5. 2016 in Review: The Best of Lifetime
  6. 2016 in Review: Lisa Picks the 16 Worst Films of 2016!
  7. Necromoonyeti’s Top Ten Albums of 2016
  8. 2016 In Review: Lisa Marie’s 14 Favorite Songs of 2016
  9. 2016 In Review: 10 Good Things I Saw On Television in 2016
  10. 2016 in Review: Lisa Marie’s 10 Favorite Non-Fiction Books of 2016
  11. 2016 in Review: Lisa Marie’s 20 Favorite Novels of 2016

The St. Louis Film Critics Love La La Land


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La La Land got even more love this weekend when the St. Louis Film Critics announced their picks for the best of 2016!

BEST FILM: “La La Land” (Runner-up: Manchester By The Sea and Hell or High Water)

BEST DIRECTOR: Damien Chazelle, “La La Land” (Runner-up: Kenneth Lonergan, Manchester By The Sea and Denis Villeneuve, Arrival)

BEST ACTOR: Casey Affleck, “Manchester by the Sea” (Runner-up: Joe Edgerton, Loving)

BEST ACTRESS: Isabelle Huppert, “Elle” (Runner-up: Natalie Portman, Jackie)

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR: Mahershala Ali, “Moonlight” (Runner-up: Lucas Hedges, Manchester By the Sea)

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS: Viola Davis, “Fences” (Runner-up: Michelle Williams, Manchester By The Sea)

BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY: Whit Stillman, “Love and Friendship” (Runner-up: Eric Heisserer, Arrival)

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY: Taylor Sheridan, “Hell or High Water” (Runner-up: Kenneth Lonergan, Manchester By The Sea)

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY: Linus Sandgren, “La La Land” (Runner-up: James Laxton, Moonlight)

BEST EDITING: Sebastian Sepulveda, “Jackie” (Runner-up: Hacksaw Ridge and La La Land)

BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN: “The Handmaiden” (Runner-up: Fantastic Beasts and Where To Find Them, Jackie, La La Land)

BEST VISUAL EFFECTS: “The Jungle Book” (Runner-up: Doctor Strange)

BEST MUSIC SCORE: Justin Hurwitz, “La La Land” (Runner-up: Mica Levi, Jackie)

BEST MUSIC SOUNDTRACK: “Sing Street” (Runner-up: La La Land)

BEST SONG: “Audition (The Fools Who Dream)” from “La La Land” (Runner-up: City of Stars, La La Land)

BEST ACTION: “Captain America: Civil War” (Runner-up: Doctor Strange)

BEST ANIMATED FEATURE: “Zootopia” (Runner-up: Kubo and the Two Strings)

BEST COMEDY: “Hail, Caesar!” (Runner-up: Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping)

BEST DOCUMENTARY: “I Am Not Your Negro” (Runner-up: Weiner)

BEST HORROR/SCI-FI: “The Witch” (Runner-up: Arrival)

BEST FOREIGN FILM: “Elle” (Runner-up: The Handmaiden)

BEST SCENE: Opening Traffic Jam, “Another Day of Sun!” in “La La Land” (Runner-up: “If only it where that simple” from Hail Caesar!)

WORST: “Warcraft” (Runner-up: The Angry Birds Movie)

 

Here Are the 91 Songs That Have Been Deemed Eligible For Best Original Song!


la-la-land

Hi, Oscar watchers and predictors!

Well, the Academy has released the names of the 91 songs that have been deemed eligible for Best Original Song!

And here they are:

“Just Like Fire” from “Alice through the Looking Glass”
“Rise” from “American Wrestler: The Wizard”
“Friends” from “The Angry Birds Movie”
“Flicker” from “Audrie & Daisy”
“Seconds” from “Autumn Lights”
“A Minute To Breathe” from “Before the Flood”
“Glory (Let There Be Peace)” from “Believe”
“Mother’s Theme” from “Believe”
“Somewhere” from “Believe”
“The Only Way Out” from “Ben-Hur”
“Still Falling For You” from “Bridget Jones’s Baby”
“F That” from “The Bronze”
“Torch Pt. 2″ from “Citizen Soldier”
“Drift And Fall Again” from “Criminal”
“Take Me Down” from “Deepwater Horizon”
“Land Of All” from “Desierto”
“Sad But True (Dreamland Theme)” from “Dreamland”
“Angel By The Wings” from “The Eagle Huntress”
“Blind Pig” from “Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them”
“One Frame At A Time” from “Floyd Norman: An Animated Life”
“I’m Crying” from “Free State of Jones”
“Gold” from “Gold”
“Champion” from “Hands of Stone”
“Dance Rascal, Dance” from “Hello, My Name Is Doris”
“I See A Victory” from “Hidden Figures”
“Runnin” from “Hidden Figures”
“Sixty Charisma Scented Blackbirds” from “How to Let Go of the World and Love All the Things Climate
Can’t Change”
“My Superstar” from “Ice Age: Collision Course”
“Seeing You Around” from “Ithaca”
“The Empty Chair” from “Jim: The James Foley Story”
“Audition (The Fools Who Dream)” from “La La Land”
“City Of Stars” from “La La Land”
“Start A Fire” from “La La Land
“Cateura Vamos A Soñar (We Will Dream)” from “Landfill Harmonic”
“Better Love” from “The Legend of Tarzan”
“Never Give Up” from “Lion”
“Equation” from “The Little Prince”
“Turnaround” from “The Little Prince”
“Moonshine” from “Live By Night”
“Loving” from “Loving”
“Hurry Home” from “Max Rose”
“Gone 2015″ from “Miles Ahead”
“Wish That You Were Here” from “Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children”
“I’m Still Here” from “Miss Sharon Jones!”
“How Far I’ll Go” from “Moana
“We Know The Way” from “Moana
“Even More Mine” from “My Big Fat Greek Wedding 2″
“Waving Goodbye” from “The Neon Demon”
“I’m Back” from “Never Surrender”
“Find My Victory” from “Olympic Pride, American Prejudice”
“On Ghost Ridge” from “100 Years: One Woman’s Fight for Justice”
“Ordinary World” from “Ordinary World”
“Devil’s Girl” from “Outlaws and Angels”
“Levitate” from “Passengers”
“Ginga” from “Pelé: Birth of a Legend”
“Nobody Knows” from “Pete’s Dragon”
“Something Wild” from “Pete’s Dragon”
“Dancing With Your Shadow” from “Po”
“I’m So Humble” from “Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping”
“Stay Here” from “Presenting Princess Shaw”
“Celebrate Life” from “Queen Mimi”
“Back To Life” from “Queen of Katwe”
“Let The Games Begin” from “Race”
“Think About It” from “The Red Pill”
“The Rules Don’t Apply” from “Rules Don’t Apply”
“The Great Beyond” from “Sausage Party”
“Faith” from “Sing”
“Set It All Free” from “Sing”
“Drive It Like You Stole It” from “Sing Street”
“Go Now” from “Sing Street”
“The Veil” from “Snowden”
“Hymn” from “Snowtime!”
“Kiss Me Goodnight” from “Southwest of Salem: The Story of the San Antonio Four”
“Holdin’ Out” from “Storks”
“Heathens” from “Suicide Squad”
“Flying Home” from “Sully
“Montage” from “Swiss Army Man”
“Petit Metier” from “They Will Have to Kill Us First – Malian Music in Exile”
“Letter To The Free” from “13th”
“Down With Mary” from “Too Late”
“Can’t Stop The Feeling” from “Trolls”
“Get Back Up Again” from “Trolls”
“Smile” from “The Uncondemned”
“We Will Rise” from “Veeram-Macbeth”
“LA Venus” from “We Are X”
“New Dogs, Old Tricks” from “What Happened Last Night”
“Runnin’ Runnin’” from “What Happened Last Night”
“What’s Happening Today” from “What Happened Last Night”
“Who I Am” from “What Happened Last Night”
“The Ballad Of Wiener-Dog” from “Wiener-Dog”
“Try Everything” from “Zootopia”

moana

The Las Vegas Film Critics Society Take A Gamble With Their 2016 Nominees!


Let’s take a gamble with the nominees of the Las Vegas Film Critics Society!

(Ha ha — I’m so cute.)

Anyway, the winners will be announced tomorrow!

Best Picture
Moonlight
La La Land
Manchester by the Sea
Nocturnal Animals
Hell or High Water

Best Actor
Chris Pine – Hell or High Water
Jake Gyllenhaal – Nocturnal Animals
Casey Affleck – Manchester by the Sea
Ryan Gosling – La La Land
Denzel Washington – Fences

Best Actress
Emma Stone – La La Land
Natalie Portman – Jackie
Taraji P. Henson – Hidden Figures
Amy Adams – Arrival
Annette Bening – 20th Century Women

Best Supporting Actor
Jeff Bridges – Hell or High Water
Mahershala Ali – Moonlight
Lucas Hedges – Manchester by the Sea
Michael Shannon – Nocturnal Animals
Ben Foster – Hell or High Water

Best Supporting Actress
Octavia Spencer – Hidden Figures
Naomie Harris – Moonlight
Viola Davis – Fences
Greta Gerwig – 20th Century Women
Michelle Williams – Manchester by the Sea

Best Director
Garth Davis – Lion
Theodore Melfi – Hidden Figures
Barry Jenkins – Moonlight
J.A. Bayona – A Monster Calls
Tom Ford – Nocturnal Animals

Best Original Screenplay
Manchester by the Sea
The Witch
Hell or High Water
Moonlight
La La Land

Best Adapted Screenplay
Hidden Figures
Lion
Nocturnal Animals
Arrival
A Monster Calls

Best Cinematography
Moonlight
Nocturnal Animals
Arrival
La La Land
Rogue One

Best Editing
La La Land
Moonlight
Nocturnal Animals
Arrival
Hacksaw Ridge

Best Score
Jackie
Nocturnal Animals
Arrival
Lion
La La Land

Best Song
“City of Stars” (La La Land)
“How Far Will I Go” (Moana)
“I See Victory” (Hidden Figures)
“The Great Beyond” (Sausage Party)
“Finest Girl (Bin Laden Song) (Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping)

Best Action Film
Deadpool
Captain America: Civil War
Rogue One
Hacksaw Ridge
Doctor Strange

Best Documentary
8 Days a Week
Weiner
OJ: Made in America
13
The Eagle Huntress

Best Costume Design
Jackie
The Witch
Fantastic Beasts
Love & Friendship
La La Land

Best Visual Effects
Jungle Book
Doctor Strange
Fantastic Beasts
Arrival
A Monster Calls

Best Art Direction
Jackie
La La Land
Arrival
A Monster Calls
Fantastic Beasts

Best Animated Film
Kubo and the Two Strings
Sausage Party
Finding Dory
Zootopia
Moana

Best Foreign Film
Elle
Neruda
The Handmaiden
Toni Erdmann
The Salesman

Best Comedy
Deadpool
Don’t Think Twice
The Edge of Seventeen
Sausage Party
The Nice Guys

Best Horror/Sci-Fi
The Witch
The Neon Demon
Arrival
10 Cloverfield Lane
Don’t Breathe

Best Family Film
The Hunt for the Wilderpeople
Moana
Zootopia
The Jungle Book
Kubo and the Two Strings

Best Ensemble
Hidden Figures
Manchester by the Sea
Moonlight
Fences
Hell or High Water

Breakout Filmmaker
Barry Jenkins – Moonlight
Robert Eggers – The Witch
Kelly Fremon Craig – Edge of Seventeen
Daniel Kwan & Daniel Scheinert – Swiss Army Man
Nate Parker – Birth of a Nation

Youth in Film
Madina Nalwanga – Queen of Katwe
Lewis MacDougall – A Monster Calls
Lucas Hedges – Manchester by the Sea
Hailee Steinfeld – Edge of Seventeen
Alex B. Hibbert – Moonlight