ADG, AMPS, and the BSC close the 'Guilds Week'
Saturday, January 11, 2025 at 5:30PM
Cláudio Alves in ADG, Best Cinematography, Best Sound, Conclave, Emilia Perez, Nosferatu, Oscars (24), Production Design, Punditry, The Substance, guild awards, precursor awards

by Cláudio Alves

The guilds are coming together in support for CONCLAVE.

To talk about awards in the face of such a catastrophe as the LA fires feels fundamentally wrong. And yet, we need to acknowledge them to explain why this past week has been so odd for those following the Oscar race. Amid the ongoing calamity, various Hollywood guilds have delayed their announcements and extended voting periods. This includes the Academy, but for this post's purpose, the PGA, WGA, and ASC are the organizations we're specifically referring to. Not all guilds followed suit, of course. The Art Directors Guild and the Association of Motion Picture Sound have shared their slate of honorees for the season. Also, since they're not based in California, the British Society of Cinematographers was unaffected. Let's consider their nominees…

For brevity's sake, only the film nominees will be listed here. The Oscar race is our main focus, anyway.

 

ART DIRECTORS GUILD

Contemporary Feature Film 

 

Period Feature Film 

 

Fantasy Feature Film

 

Animated Feature Film

Many of the usual suspects showed up here, along with a few notable inclusions and absences. For example, why is Anora struggling with the guilds, missing here after failing to secure a nod from the Costume Designers? The film's visual conception is one of its strongest elements, with even its naysayers agreeing on the picture's aesthetic quality, the importance of design in defining the characters, the cultural and class discrepancies within the narrative. It's especially eyebrow-raising when Civil War and Twisters made it despite having much less buzz. Could this suggest a modicum of industry resistance to Sean Baker's movie? 

In contrast, Saturday Night keeps being mentioned when many had already dismissed the behind-the-scenes comedy as a contender. The Alien: Romulus guild resurgence is also worth considering, since it comes in the aftermath of an unusually strong Oscar shortlist showing. Still, not all of the Academy's Best Production Design selections have been embraced by the ADG. Even if your favorite isn't here, there's still a chance. As a final note, excluding Memoir of a Snail from this Animated Feature category is a crime. Does it portend an Oscar snub in the picture's future? Moana 2 remains its biggest obstacle there.

 

ASSOCIATION OF MOTION PICTURE SOUND

 

Neither The Substance nor Conclave are in contention for the Oscar, having been left off the Best Sound shortlist. Rather than detracting from the AMPS' choices, it's a point in their favor. Though we tend to refer to these prizes as precursors, it's always better when they establish an identity separate from the Oscars. After all, the point of all this is celebrating great artists from our beloved seventh art. Personally, I'm rooting for Fargeat's body horror since it contains some of the most memorable noises of the year. Just remembering some of them makes the stomach squirm. 

But, prediction-wise, these nods mostly underline just how popular A Complete Unknown remains. At this point, I wouldn't be surprised if it goes all the way and wins the Best Sound Academy Award.

 

BRITISH SOCIETY OF CINEMATOGRAPHERS

Cinematography in a Feature Film

 

 

Pour one out for Jomo Fray, who's probably about to be snubbed by the Academy despite delivering one of the defining cinematography achievements of 2024. But congratulations to these nominees, whose approaches offer a wide variety of aesthetics. I only wish I was happier about Guilhaume, a remarkable artist who's finally being recognized. However, it's for one of the worst works in his filmography, both as a film and a photographic feat. While I applaud a lot of the anti-naturalistic lighting choices in the French musical, its overall visual strategy is defined by inconsistencies and incongruences. Emilia Pérez is a stylistic mess full of unmotivated yet incredibly showy camera movement, a disorderly counterpoint to its competition whose discipline is much more commendable. Still, it's hard to be mad at Guilhaume, whose contribution to such films as Ava, The Five Devils, Little Girl, Paradise, and Paris 13th District was nothing short of awards-worthy. And yet, he hasn't even won a César!

 

What do you make of these recent guild honors? Do you see any new narrative forming?

Article originally appeared on The Film Experience (http://thefilmexperience.net/).
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