Boyle Lands Best Director Prize At DGA Awards
Danny Boyle has scooped the top accolade at the Directors Guild of America Awards for his hit film Slumdog Millionaire. Boyle beat out competition from Ron Howard (Frost/Nixon), David Fincher (The Curious Case of Benjamin Button), Gus Van Sant (Milk) and Christopher Nolan (The Dark Knight) at the ceremony in Los Angeles on Saturday night.
The Best Director nod is a key indicator of possible Oscar success for Boyle later this month, who is up for the same nod, while the movie will compete in nine other categories.
Accepting his award onstage from directors Joel and Ethan Coen, who took home the prize last year, Boyle thanked the movie's distributors for taking on the hit film - which was originally meant for a DVD-only release.
He told the crowd, "I should start by curiously thanking Warner Bros for actually having the grace to do the right thing, when I think it would have been a lot easier to do the wrong thing, and pass the film on to Fox Searchlight, who are an extraordinary bunch of people.
"To step into the shoes of people like the Coen brothers, it's phenomenal. I have stolen from them all my career, in a naked and appalling way."
Veteran film critic Roger Ebert walked away with the honorary life membership award and received tributes from Steven Spielberg, Clint Eastwood, Martin Scorsese and Oliver Stone.
The main winners are as follows:
Outstanding Directorial Achievement in a Feature Film: Danny Boyle, Slumdog Millionaire
Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Movies for Television/Miniseries: Jay Roach, Recount
Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Dramatic Series Night: Dan Attias, The Wire
Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Comedy Series: Paul Feig, The Office
Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Musical Variety: Bucky Gunts, the opening ceremony of the Beijing Olympics
Outstanding Directorial Achievement in a Reality Programme: Tony Croll, America's Next Top Model
Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Documentary: Ari Folman, Waltz With Bashir
Honorary Life Member Award: Roger Ebert...
The Best Director nod is a key indicator of possible Oscar success for Boyle later this month, who is up for the same nod, while the movie will compete in nine other categories.
Accepting his award onstage from directors Joel and Ethan Coen, who took home the prize last year, Boyle thanked the movie's distributors for taking on the hit film - which was originally meant for a DVD-only release.
He told the crowd, "I should start by curiously thanking Warner Bros for actually having the grace to do the right thing, when I think it would have been a lot easier to do the wrong thing, and pass the film on to Fox Searchlight, who are an extraordinary bunch of people.
"To step into the shoes of people like the Coen brothers, it's phenomenal. I have stolen from them all my career, in a naked and appalling way."
Veteran film critic Roger Ebert walked away with the honorary life membership award and received tributes from Steven Spielberg, Clint Eastwood, Martin Scorsese and Oliver Stone.
The main winners are as follows:
Outstanding Directorial Achievement in a Feature Film: Danny Boyle, Slumdog Millionaire
Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Movies for Television/Miniseries: Jay Roach, Recount
Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Dramatic Series Night: Dan Attias, The Wire
Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Comedy Series: Paul Feig, The Office
Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Musical Variety: Bucky Gunts, the opening ceremony of the Beijing Olympics
Outstanding Directorial Achievement in a Reality Programme: Tony Croll, America's Next Top Model
Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Documentary: Ari Folman, Waltz With Bashir
Honorary Life Member Award: Roger Ebert...
- 2/1/2009
- WENN
Slumdog Millionaire Gets AFI Nod
Danny Boyle's Slumdog Millionaire has been given a major movie nod - after a prestigious awards board named it one of the most significant films of the year.
The drama was honoured by The American Film Institute (AFI), whose 13 jury members listed it as one of this year's eight "Moments of Significance in Film, TV and Web," on Sunday.
The movie tells the story of an 18 year-old boy from the slums of Mumbai who falls in love with a young orphaned girl.
An AFI spokesperson says it "stands as a monument to the possibilities of cross-cultural storytelling".
Other significant moments applauded include media coverage of U.S. President-elect Barack Obama's run for The White House and NBC's footage of the Summer Olympics in Beijing.
Comedienne Tina Fey also impressed with her hit TV series 30 Rock and jeering impersonation of Republican Vice-Presidential candidate Sarah Palin on comedy sketch show Saturday Night Live.
The winners of the AFI Awards, selected by industry professionals and critics, will be honoured at a luncheon next month.
The drama was honoured by The American Film Institute (AFI), whose 13 jury members listed it as one of this year's eight "Moments of Significance in Film, TV and Web," on Sunday.
The movie tells the story of an 18 year-old boy from the slums of Mumbai who falls in love with a young orphaned girl.
An AFI spokesperson says it "stands as a monument to the possibilities of cross-cultural storytelling".
Other significant moments applauded include media coverage of U.S. President-elect Barack Obama's run for The White House and NBC's footage of the Summer Olympics in Beijing.
Comedienne Tina Fey also impressed with her hit TV series 30 Rock and jeering impersonation of Republican Vice-Presidential candidate Sarah Palin on comedy sketch show Saturday Night Live.
The winners of the AFI Awards, selected by industry professionals and critics, will be honoured at a luncheon next month.
- 12/30/2008
- WENN
Denver -- NBC's "Today" rode the Beijing Olympic wave earlier this month to its best ratings performance over two weeks since 2000.
"Today," which had the entire crew of Matt Lauer, Meredith Vieira, Ann Curry and Al Roker in China during the Olympics, towered above the competition in the three-way broadcast breakfast-cast race.
For the week ended Aug. 22, "Today" averaged 6.2 million viewers, Nielsen Media Research said Friday. That's 2.4 million viewers ahead of ABC's "Good Morning America" and 3.7 million more than CBS's "the Early Show." For the two weeks of the Olympics, "Today" was on top by similar margins.
That's music to the ears of Jim Bell, the executive producer of "Today" for the past three and a half years.
"We had one of those amazing two weeks," Bell said Friday afternoon after returning from producing "Today" in Denver for the Democratic National Convention. "I don't know how we could overstate how...
"Today," which had the entire crew of Matt Lauer, Meredith Vieira, Ann Curry and Al Roker in China during the Olympics, towered above the competition in the three-way broadcast breakfast-cast race.
For the week ended Aug. 22, "Today" averaged 6.2 million viewers, Nielsen Media Research said Friday. That's 2.4 million viewers ahead of ABC's "Good Morning America" and 3.7 million more than CBS's "the Early Show." For the two weeks of the Olympics, "Today" was on top by similar margins.
That's music to the ears of Jim Bell, the executive producer of "Today" for the past three and a half years.
"We had one of those amazing two weeks," Bell said Friday afternoon after returning from producing "Today" in Denver for the Democratic National Convention. "I don't know how we could overstate how...
- 8/29/2008
- by By Paul J. Gough
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
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