24th Annual Gotham Independent Film Awards – winners

The Independent Filmmaker Project (IFP) tonight announced the winners of the 24thAnnual Gotham Independent Film Awards at its awards ceremony held at Cipriani Wall Street, in New York City.

Winning the Best Feature award was Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance), Alejandro González Iñárritu’s stylistically adventurous existential comedy in which a Hollywood actor attempts to revive his career and obliterate his superhero image past by producing and starring in a serious Broadway drama. Iñárritu previously received a Gotham Tribute in 2006.

The award for Best Documentary went to CITIZENFOUR, Laura Poitras’ inside, of-the-moment telling of the Edward Snowden revelations on the massive covert surveillance programs run by the NSA and other intelligence agencies – the third film in her trilogy on post-9/11 America.

Poitras previously won this award in 2010 for The Oath, the second film in the trilogy.

Canada’s Top Ten Films announced

Canada’s Top Ten Film Festival presents screenings, filmmaker Q&As, free events, and onstage discussions with celebrated Canadians Keanu Reeves, Naomi Klein, Avi Lewis and Sandra Oh

TIFF toasted the nation’s cinematic trailblazers tonight, announcing the top 10 feature, short film and student film selections for the 14th annual Canada’s Top Ten Film Festival. Established by TIFF in 2001, the Canada’s Top Ten Film Festival celebrates and promotes contemporary Canadian cinema and raises awareness of Canadian achievements in film. The 10-day festival runs January 2 to 11, 2015 at TIFF Bell Lightbox in Toronto and presents public screenings of the selected films accompanied by introductions and Q&A sessions with filmmakers, as well as special events and free engagements. On January 10, the festival welcomes Canadian author and activist Naomi Klein and filmmaker Avi Lewis for an onstage conversation and a sneak peek at This Changes Everything, the upcoming documentary inspired by Klein’s new book. The one and only Keanu Reeves will close the festival, taking the stage on January 11 for an intimate discussion about his iconic career. The festival’s tour across Canada includes stops in Vancouver, Edmonton, Calgary, Winnipeg and Montreal; Vancouver’s The Cinematheque will host a special onstage conversation with star of the big and small screen Sandra Oh.

42nd Annual Annie Awards – nominations announced

The International Animated Film Society, ASIFA-Hollywood, announced nominations today for its 42nd Annual Annie Awards™ recognizing the year's best in the field of animation. For a complete list of nominations, please visit www.annieawards.org.

The Annie Awards cover 36 categories and include Best Animated Feature, Best Animated Special Production, Commercials, Short Subjects and Outstanding Individual Achievements. The winners will be announced at a black tie ceremony on Saturday, January 31, 2015 at UCLA's Royce Hall. A pre-reception and press line begins at 5:00 pm with the awards ceremony following at 7:00 pm. A post-show celebration immediately follows the ceremony. All events will be held at Royce Hall.

Best Animated Features nominations include: Big Hero 6 (Walt Disney Animation Studios), Cheatin' (Plymptoons Studio), How to Train Your Dragon 2 (DreamWorks Animation SKG), Song of the Sea (GKIDS/Cartoon Saloon), The Book of Life (Reel FX), The Boxtrolls (Focus Features/Laika), The LEGO Movie (Warner Bros. Pictures), and The Tale of The Princess Kaguya (GKIDS/Studio Ghibli).

Producers Guild of America announces documentary and television nominees for 2015 PGA Awards

The Producers Guild of America on Monday announced the nominees for best documentary, TV series/specials and digital series.

Also set to be honoured at the ceremony are Jon Feltheimer with the Milestone Award, Mark Gordon with the Norman Lear Achievement Award in Television and Gale Anne Hurd with the David O. Selznick Achievement Award.

One of the awards season’s marquee events, the Producers Guild Awards celebrates the finest producing work of the year, and gives the Guild an opportunity to honour some of the living legends who have shaped our profession. Considered a strong prognosticator for the Best Picture Oscar®, the announcement of the Guild’s Darryl F. Zanuck Producer of the Year Award in Theatrical Motion Pictures is one of the most eagerly-anticipated of the season.

19th Annual Satellite Awards – nominations

The International Press Academy (IPA) announced its nominations for the 19th Annual Satellite™ Awards in the Motion Pictures and Television categories. Each year, the IPA celebrates nominees from domestic and international submissions for 38 categories: 19 in Motion Pictures, 13 in Television, 2 in Blu-ray DVDs and 4 in Video Games.

Special achievement awards and nominations for the Blu-ray and Video Game categories will be announced on January 5, 2015.

The special achievement awards include The Mary Pickford Award for outstanding artistic contribution, The Nikola Tesla Award for visionary achievements in filmmaking technology and The Auteur Award for creative vision and unique artistry made on audiences and fellow artists alike.

30th Film Independent Spirit Awards Nominations Announced

Film Independent, the nonprofit arts organization that produces the Film Independent Spirit Awards, the Los Angeles Film Festival and Film Independent at LACMA, announced nominations for the 2015 Spirit Awards this morning. Film Independent President Josh Welsh presided over the press conference held at the W Hollywood, with actors Rosario Dawson and Diego Luna presenting the nominations. Nominees for Best Feature included Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance), Boyhood, Love is Strange, Selma and Whiplash.

"As we celebrate 30 years of great independent film," said Josh Welsh, President of Film Independent, "this year's nominees are an astonishingly strong group of films and filmmakers which demonstrate the uniqueness of vision we honor at this show."

Inherent Vice was selected to receive the Robert Altman Award, which is bestowed upon one film's director, casting director and ensemble cast. The Altman Award was created in 2008 in honor of legendary director Robert Altman who was known for creating extraordinary ensemble casts.

2014 American Music Awards – winners

The 42nd American Music Awards was held tonight at the Nokia Theatre L.A. Live in Los Angeles, California. The event was hosted by Pitbull, and performers included Taylor Swift, Charli XCX, Magic!, 5 Seconds of Summer, Imagine Dragons, Sam Smith, Iggy Azalea, Lorde, Ariana Grande, The Weeknd, Selena Gomez, One Direction, Nicki Minaj, Fergie, Garth Brooks, Mary J. Blige and Jennifer Lopez.

The top winner was One Direction. They took three awards – Artist of the Year, Favorite Band, Duo Or Group – Pop/Rock, and Favorite Album – Pop/Rock. Katy Perry also claimed three wins. She won Single of the Year, Favorite Female Artist – Pop/Rock, and Favorite Artist — Adult Contemporary.

Iggy Azalea and Beyoncé both won two apiece. Iggy Azalea's wins were for Favorite Artist and Favourite Album in the Rap/Hip-Hop category. Beyoncé was winner for Favorite Female Artist and Favourite Album in the Soul/R&B Female section.

2014 Rencontres internationales du documentaire de Montréal awards – winners

The 17th annual Rencontres internationales du documentaire de Montréal / Montreal International Documentary Festival held its awards presentation last night prior to the closing night screening of Spartiates (Spartans) by Nicolas Wadimoff. The film is an observational look at a mixed martial arts trainer in a rough neighbourhood of Marseille struggling to keep his school going while also being competitive himself.

The top prize of Best Canadian Feature went to Sol by Marie-Hélène Cousineau and Susan Avingaq, while the Best International Feature was Once Upon a Time by Kazim Öz. The Audience Award went to the timely and relevant Citizenfour by Laura Poitras. Amar Wala's The Secret Trial 5 was winner of the Magnus Isaacson Award, given in honour of the late, great documentarian for socially-conscious work of cinema by an emerging director.

10 live action shorts advance in 2015 Oscar race

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences today announced that 10 live action short films will advance in the voting process for the 87th Academy Awards®. One hundred forty-one pictures had originally qualified in the category.

The 10 films are listed below in alphabetical order by title, with their production companies:

Cinema Eye Honors Announces Nominees For 8th Annual Nonfiction Film Awards

Thirty-six feature films and six shorts will vie for this year’s Cinema Eye Honors for Nonfiction Filmmaking as nominees were announced this evening at a reception at CPH:DOX in Copenhagen, Denmark. Winners will be announced January 7, 2015 at the Museum of the Moving Image in New York City.

Laura Poitras’ first-person recounting of Edward Snowden’s NSA leaks, Citizenfour, led all films with six nominations, including Outstanding Nonfiction Feature, while Steve James’ documentary about film critic Roger Ebert, Life Itself, and Iain Forsythe & Jane Pollard’s intimate look at musician Nick Cave, 20,000 Days on Earth received five each. They are joined in the Nonfiction Feature Film category by The Overnighters, Jesse Moss’ tale of a a North Dakota oil boom town, which has two nominations, and Virunga, Orlando von Einsiedel’s story of an African National Park under siege, which scored three.

2014 Rencontres internationales du documentaire de Montréal, Nov 12–23

The 17th annual Rencontres internationales du documentaire de Montréal / Montreal International Documentary Festival is coming up from November 12 to 23. With 141 films from 44 countries and more than a hundred guests, this year’s RIDM is more exciting than ever.

The festival will present 21 world premieres, 19 North American premieres, 21 Canadian premieres and 47 Quebec premieres. Quebec has pride of place in the line-up with no fewer than 35 local films of all lengths by our most accomplished filmmakers and our most promising up-and-comers.

The RIDM is honoured to open with the world premiere of Le nez by Quebec filmmaker Kim Nguyen. The Rebelle (War Witch) director takes us on a fascinating journey through the mysterious world of the sense of smell. Closing the festival is another world premiere: the new documentary Spartiates by Swiss filmmaker Nicolas Wadimoff (Clandestins and Aisheen - Still Alive in Gaza). We travel to the outskirts of Marseille, where a mixed martial arts instructor - a larger-than-life personality and a strict taskmaster - is struggling to keep his school open.

20th Anniversary MTV Europe Music Awards (EMA) – winners

One of the biggest global annual music events celebrating the hottest artists from around the world, the 2014 MTV EMA (Europe Music Awards) was punctuated with outrageous, unexpected moments, once-in-a-lifetime collaborations and rousing performances that will undoubtedly go down in history. This year's show transformed Glasgow's SSE Hydro into an unforgettable time-travelling extravaganza, catapulting viewers through memories of the most outlandish moments in the MTV EMA's 20-year history.

The show kicked-off by transporting viewers back to 1994, where a young Nicki Minaj watched the first-ever MTV EMA from her bedroom before traveling into the future, making a grand entrance into the 2014 MTV EMA in a frilled ball gown and sequined bra . "Her Royal Minajesty" truly commandeered the evening, taking home the award for Best Hip Hop, and even giving the audience a show-stopping, jaw-dropping blend of her biggest hits including 'Super Bass', 'Anaconda' and a global debut performance of her new track 'Bed of Lies', which featured a surprise appearance by Skylar Grey. The host also made it rain, telling the Glasgow crowd, "it's my round!" before showering them with enough "Minaj money" for 1,000 free drinks.

Nominations and first winners announced for the EFA (European Film Awards) 2014

At the Seville European Film Festival the European Film Academy and EFA Productions proudly announced the nominations for the 27th European Film Awards. The more than 3,000 EFA Members will now vote for the winners who will be presented during the awards ceremony on 13 December in Riga, European Capital of Culture 2014.

Pawel Pawlikowski’s black-and-white film Ida led the field with five nominations. They were for Best European Film, Director, Screenplay, and Actress nominations for its co-stars Agata Trzebuchowska and Agata Kulesza. Lukasz Zal and Ryszard Lenczewski were named European Cinematographer by a jury selecting winners for the craft/technical categories.

Russian director Andrey Zvyagintsev‘s Leviathan was next with four nominations. It was also nominated for Best European Film, Director and Screenplay, and Aleksei Serebryakov was nominated for European Actor.

Shortlist of 10 animated shorts announced for 2014 Oscars

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences today announced that 10 animated short films will advance in the voting process for the 87th Academy Awards. Fifty-eight pictures had originally qualified in the category.

The Academy’s Short Films and Feature Animation Branch Reviewing Committee viewed all the eligible entries for the preliminary round of voting at screenings held in New York and Los Angeles.

Short Films and Feature Animation Branch members will now select three to five nominees from among the 10 titles on the shortlist. Branch screenings will be held in Los Angeles, London, New York and San Francisco in December.

20 Animated Features submitted to 2014 Oscars

Twenty features have been submitted for consideration in the Animated Feature Film category for the 87th Academy Awards®.

Several of the films have not yet had their required Los Angeles qualifying run. Submitted features must fulfill the theatrical release requirements and comply with all of the category’s other qualifying rules before they can advance in the voting process. At least eight eligible animated features must be theatrically released in Los Angeles County within the calendar year for this category to be activated.