
- Well it happened, ladies and gents! Ben Affleck’s mega-popular Argo “Crash“-ed its way to “Best Picture” victory. Just like Paul Haggis’ come-from-behind champion in 2006, Argo took home the very same wins in the very same categories (Picture, Screenplay, and Editing), in addition to being announced the winner by Jack Nicholson yet again. The Crash deja vu didn’t stop there — Ang Lee sailed past Steven Spielberg to win the “Best Director” prize, with his competing film once again losing to a movie that only garnered three wins total for the night, and again was proclaimed the victor by Jack Nicholson. History repeats itself folks, but in this case I couldn’t have been happier. Affleck’s tearful yet gracious speech, coupled with Argo’s impressive dominance throughout the awards season, made for a fitting end to a very competitive race where we still didn’t fully know what would happen until the last word was uttered by guest-presenter, Michelle Obama. Check out the full winners here, and thanks again for participating in our LIVE Blog and tuning in for Sunday’s last-minute LIVE Power Hour episode. Read more on Circuit Round-Up (Week Ending 2/24)…
Read more on Circuit Round-Up (Week Ending 2/24)…
Categories: Circuit Round-Up Tags: american idol, anna belickis, Argo, circuit 3, clayton davis, Joey Magidson, Joseph Braverman, Mark Johnson, Michael Ward, Nicole Melkonian, oscar predictions, oscar winners, Robert Hamer, Terence Johnson, Tiff Chai

- We are now officially two weeks away from Oscar Sunday, which only means The Awards Circuit is working double-time to bring you the latest and greatest in awards news. We started off our charitable offerings with some fun yet informative banter on Power Hour, each of us sharing our thoughts on the state of the race (as in: Argo or Lincoln; ignore ALL else). On top of revealing who went home on Academy Idol — the most shocking elimination of the season, by the way — Editor-in-Chief Clayton Davis was proud to announce your 2012 Awards Circuit Community Award nominees! I hope a vast majority of your votes made an impact on this year’s ACCA lineup. Also, don’t forget to keep voting while the polls remain open! Read more on Circuit Round-Up (Week Ending 2/10)…
Read more on Circuit Round-Up (Week Ending 2/10)…
Categories: Circuit Round-Up Tags: anna belickis, Argo, Awards Circuit Power Hour, clayton davis, Joey Magidson, joeys dvd pick of the week, Joseph Braverman, Mark Johnson, Mike Ward, Nicole Melkonian, Oscar Circuit, Paul Thomas Anderson, Robert Hamer, Side by Side, Sundance, Terence Johnson, Tiff Chai, Top Gun, ves

- Just when The Awards Circuit thought Argo would put the brakes on its steamrolling of the competition, it shocks us again with key victories at SAG and DGA. It’s now abundantly clear that Ben Affleck’s third directorial outing is the frontrunner heading into the Oscar ceremony. Read more on Circuit Round-Up (Week Ending 2/3)…
Read more on Circuit Round-Up (Week Ending 2/3)…
Categories: Circuit Round-Up Tags: anna belickis, Argo, Awards Circuit Power Hour, Ben Affleck, Christian Bale, clayton davis, DGA, Joey Magidson, joeys dvd pick of the week, Joseph Braverman, Mark Johnson, Michael Ward, Nicole Melkonian, Oscar Circuit, Robert Hamer, SAG, seven psychopaths, Sundance Film Festival, Terence Johnson, Tiff Chai

- As the talk of 2012 slowly comes to an end, The Awards Circuit moves forward by embracing the new film year. Joey Magidson and Terence Johnson spent a full nine days in Park City, Utah getting to know the films and filmmakers that could make a huge impact in 2013. Check out their interviews, reviews and daily video blogs for the latest Sundance reports. Be sure to also glance at the Sundance Award Winners, just announced last night. It’s no surprise that the festival’s big awards champion, Fruitvale, is now in the nurturing yet powerful hands of The Weinstein Company.
Read more on Circuit Round-Up (Week Ending 1/27)…
Read more on Circuit Round-Up (Week Ending 1/27)…
Categories: Circuit Round-Up Tags: anna belickis, Awards Circuit Power Hour, clayton davis, J.J. Abrams, Joey Magidson, Joey's DVD Picks of the Week, Joseph Braverman, Mark Johnson, Mike Ward, Nicole Melkonian, Oscar Circuit, PGA Awards, Robert Hamer, Star Wars, Sundance Film Festival, Terence Johnson, Tiff Chai

Read more on Circuit Round-Up (Week Ending 1/20)…
Categories: Circuit Round-Up Tags: american idol, anna belickis, Argo, clayton davis, golden globes, Joey Magidson, joeys dvd pick of the week, Joseph Braverman, Kill Your Darlings, Mark Johnson, Mike Ward, Mud, Nicole Melkonian, Robert Hamer, Sundance, Terence Johnson, Tiff Chai

- The only way to sum up the week is with two simple words: Oscar® Nominations. As you might have heard in our special LIVE Power Hour episode, The Awards Circuit staff was more than a little shocked by the unveiling of the nominees. All we kept thinking as the Director’s category was being announced was, “Okay, where’s Bigalow; where’s Affleck?” And when neither appeared, we felt like a sick joke had been played on the prognostication community. But oh no, this was actually the case, and many more snubs and surprises lay ahead for us and the rest of the country. Here’s how you reacted in a special edition of Circuit 3. Also, don’t forget to check how our predictions matched up with the results (for those who are curious, Staff Writer Mark Johnson was this year’s prognostication champion with 89/122 correct predictions).
Read more on Circuit Round-Up (Week Ending 1/13)…
Read more on Circuit Round-Up (Week Ending 1/13)…
Categories: Circuit Round-Up Tags: anna belickis, Ben Affleck, clayton davis, Compliance, critics choice award winners, DGA, Gangster Squad, golden globe predictions, Joey Magidson, joeys dvd pick of the week, John H. Foote, Joseph Braverman, Mark Johnson, Mike Ward, Nicole Melkonian, oscars 2013, Robert Hamer, Sundance Film Festival, Terence Johnson, Tiff Chai

- The penultimate week before Oscars are announced has come to an end, ballots have been turned in, and now only five days separate us between not knowing the Academy Award™ nominations and finding out how just how in-touch (or out-of-touch) The Awards Circuit is with 2013′s Oscar® lineup. I, for one, can’t control my nerves thanks to a mixture of excitement, anticipation and fear that a favorite or several will be snubbed like always. Making our jobs somewhat easier was the early unveiling of the Producers Guild of America nominations, which saw under-the-radar players like Moonrise Kingdom and Skyfall in the mix. And in what’s becoming an increasingly unfortunate pattern, The Master – yet again — was snubbed. Does that mean its chances are now shot completely? Read more on Circuit Round-Up (Week Ending 1/6)…
Read more on Circuit Round-Up (Week Ending 1/6)…
Categories: Circuit Round-Up Tags: anna belickis, clayton davis, Daniel Ashtiany, In Line 365, Joey Magidson, John H. Foote, Joseph Braverman, Looper, Mark Johnson, Mike Ward, Nicole Melkonian, oscar predictions 2013, PGA nominations, Robert Hamer, Terence Johnson, The Painting, Tiff Chai

- Happy New Year (almost), readers of The Awards Circuit. In less than twenty-four hours, we’ll all be citizens of the year 2013, so get excited! I don’t need a crystal ball to know how many of you spent the last few days of the year. Based on the popularity of our “reaction” thread for Django Unchained and Les Misérables, I daresay much was being debated, loved and thrown to the wolves (nice knowing you, Tom Hooper!) amongst you moviegoers that saw these two awards juggernauts. Read more on Circuit Round-Up (Week Ending 12/30)…
Read more on Circuit Round-Up (Week Ending 12/30)…
Categories: Circuit Round-Up Tags: anna belickis, Bradley Cooper, chasing ice, clayton davis, Daniel Ashtiany, Django Unchained, Jason Clarke, Jeff Orlowski, Joey Magidson, joeys dvd pick of the week, John H. Foote, Joseph Braverman, Les Miserables, Mark Johnson, Michael Ward, Nicole Melkonian, oscar predictions 2013, Promised Land, Robert Hamer, Terence Johnson, The Words, Tiff Chai, Tom Hooper

- Happy holidays, fans of The Awards Circuit! I hope everyone is staying warm and enjoying the time with friends and family this holiday season. This past week was another busy — although slightly less chaotic than last week — one for us at the site, but we carried on with grace and gusto as always! Starting things off, the African-American Film Critics Association announced their winners, where Zero Dark Thirty and Middle of Nowhere both won huge. For the latter film, the momentum it’s built throughout the awards circuit now puts it firmly in contention for a “Best Original Screenplay” slot. Zero Dark Thirty’s Mark Boal, however, is a shoo-in for the category. Other critics groups that unveiled their yearly champions include Houston Film Critics Society, San Francisco Film Critics, Kansas City Film Critics, Florida Film Critics Circle, Chicago Film Critics Association and Dallas Fort-Worth Film Critics. The Golden Satellite Awards also gave a ginormous boost to Silver Linings Playbookwith multiple wins (including “Best Film”), which now could be a very, very major threat if it steals the presumed Globe win away from Les Miserables. Read more on Circuit Round-Up (Week Ending 12/23)…
Read more on Circuit Round-Up (Week Ending 12/23)…
Categories: Circuit Round-Up Tags: anna belickis, circuit 3, clayton davis, Daniel Ashtiany, Jack Reacher, Joaquin Phoenix, Joey Magidson, joeys dvd pick of the week, John H. Foote, Joseph Braverman, judd apatow, Liberal Arts, Mark Johnson, Mike Ward, Nicole Melkonian, oscar predictions 2013, Robert Hamer, Steven Spielberg, Terence Johnson, The Simpsons Season 15, The Voice, Tiff Chai, tom cruise

- Aside from the 84th Annual Academy Awards™, there was no bigger week this year at The Awards Circuit than this one. Sunday began with three critics groups — Los Angeles Film Critics Association, Boston Film Critics and New York Film Critics Online — announcing their winners and runners-up for the best in Film 2012. Zero Dark Thirty continued its dominance with the critics groups, but wavering contenders like Dwight Henry and Joaquin Phoenix a hefty boost by winning “Best Supporting Actor” and “Best Actor,” respectively, from LAFCA. As this was going on, we managed to successfully debut our first-ever LIVE Power Hour Podcast. Ann Dowd, winner of the National Board of Review’s “Best Supporting Actress” award, was an utter delight as our guest and we wish her all the best in this highly competitive awards season.
Read more on Circuit Round-Up (Week Ending 12/16)…
Read more on Circuit Round-Up (Week Ending 12/16)…
Categories: Circuit Round-Up Tags: anna belickis, Best Original Song, clayton davis, Daniel Ashtiany, Golden Globe Nominations, Joey Magidson, joeys dvd pick of the week, John H. Foote, Joseph Braverman, Mark Johnson, Mike Ward, Nicole Melkonian, oscar predictions 2013, oscars 2013, Robert Hamer, SAG Nominations, Sizing Up series, Ted, Terence Johnson, Tiff Chai, Zero Dark Thirty

- The week is almost over at The Awards Circuit, but what a week it was! On top of Editor-in-Chief Clayton Davis’ updated Oscar Predictions, the New York Film Critics Circle, National Board of Review and Boston Online Film Critics Association had quite a lot to say in regards to this highly competitive awards season. Considering this film was wrapped in secrecy since the start of the year, it’s both crazy and exciting that Zero Dark Thirty has become the first “frontrunner” of the Oscar race. Those quotes are there for a reason — the film remains number one because of the recent onslaught of award dominance, but this is still any film’s prize for the taking…and that’s what makes this year’s award season the most exciting one in ages. Read more on Circuit Round-Up (Week Ending 12/9)…
Read more on Circuit Round-Up (Week Ending 12/9)…
Categories: Circuit Round-Up Tags: anna belickis, Circuit 3: Julianne Moore, clayton davis, Daniel Ashtiany, grammy nominations, Joey Magidson, joeys dvd pick of the week, John H. Foote, Joseph Braverman, LAFCA, Les Miserables, Mark Johnson, Mike Ward, National Board of Review, New York Film Crtics Circle, Nicole Melkonian, oscar predictions 2013, Robert Hamer, Satellite Award nominations, Searching for Sugar Man, Sizing up, Terence Johnson, the dark knight rises, The Voice, Tiff Chai, Zero Dark Thirty

- Hello again, all ye faithful readers of The Awards Circuit. As I’m sure you noticed, we were experiencing some technical difficulties earlier in the week due to increased online traffic and had to perform a full update so you all could have the most comfortable experience possible browsing through our beloved site. We thank you deeply for you patience during that necessary transition and update process, and now that it’s finally over…let’s recap the week!
Read more on Circuit Round-Up (Week Ending 12/2)…
Read more on Circuit Round-Up (Week Ending 12/2)…
Categories: Circuit Round-Up Tags: anna belickis, Best Live Action Short shortlist, Best Visual Effects shortlist, Circuit 3: Ridley Scott, clayton davis, dancing with the stars, Daniel Ashtiany, Gotham Awards, Independent Spirit Award Nominations, Joey Magidson, Joey's DVD Picks of the Week, John H. Foote, Joseph Braverman, Lawless, Mark Johnson, Mike Ward, Nicole Melkonian, oscar predictions 2013, oscars 2013, PGA Awards, Robert Hamer, Terence Johnson, The Voice, Tiff Chai

- Hello again, fans of The Awards Circuit. We hope you all had an extremely fulfilling (and filling) Thanksgiving Weekend! This week brought us a host of events, perhaps none more involving than the official launch of Academy Idol Season 6. Last Sunday, we asked you to VOTE for your favorite film(s) amongst the competing Original Films fighting for a spot as a Top 13 Finalist. Which five moved on to become the first members of this elite group? Here are your results. Don’t be discouraged if you don’t see your favorite movie among the lineup. Chances are that the AC staff will save some fan favorites to fight another day during next week’s Wild Card Show, which will also include two films chosen by Editor-in-Chief Clayton Davis that weren’t in the original Top 26 lineup. We hope you contributed your suggestions on the matter, as they will greatly aid Clayton in the decision-making process. Read more on Circuit Round-Up (Week Ending 11/25)…
Read more on Circuit Round-Up (Week Ending 11/25)…
Categories: Circuit Round-Up Tags: anna belickis, Awards Circuit Power Hour, Best of Hitchcock, clayton davis, dancing with the stars, Daniel Ashtiany, For Your Consideration, james spader, jd ernand, Joey Magidson, joeys dvd pick of the week, John H. Foote, Joseph Braverman, Kelly Reilly, Les Miserables, Lincoln, Mark Johnson, Michael Ward, Nicole Melkonian, Oscar Question of the day, Robert Hamer, Terence Johnson, Thanksgiving, The Voice, Tiff Chai, Tom Wilkinson, West of Memphis

- Cue Richard Strauss’ “Also sprach Zarathustra” in honor of the announcement of The Awards Circuit’s infamous online movie competition…Academy Idol!! Yes, thanks to the help of our “Academy Idol” liaison and former staff member, Myles Hughes, we unleashed what could possibly be the best viral video of the year: The Introduction of Academy Idol Six’s Top 26. Like Scar sings in The Lion King, you best “BE PREPARED!” for the competition by making sure to vote for your absolute favorites. Trust me when I say that at any week, any film is vulnerable no matter its commercial stature or indie sophistication, so your votes are of the utmost importance. We will commence with the first round of voting this week to determine the films moving forward as Finalists, so please…do us a favor…ROCK THE VOTE!
Read more on Circuit Round-Up (Week Ending 11/19)…
Read more on Circuit Round-Up (Week Ending 11/19)…
Categories: Circuit Round-Up Tags: anna belickis, circuit 3, clayton davis, dancing with the stars, Daniel Ashtiany, Joey Magidson, Joey's DVD Picks of the Week, John H. Foote, Joseph Braverman, Mark Johnson, Martin Scorsese, Michael Arndt, Michael Ward, Nicole Melkonian, oscar predictions 2013, Robert Hamer, Star Wars Episode 7, Terence Johnson, The Awards Circuit Power Hour, The Voice, Tiff Chai

- Hello again, readers of The Awards Circuit! Before I begin the week’s recap, I want to first start off by saying a big “THANK YOU” to Daniel Ashtiany for taking over the reins for me while I was covering the AFI Film Fest. Great job, mate! Speaking of Los Angeles’ second major film festival of the year — which sadly came to an end on Thursday — did you happen to check out the AFI Fest wrap-up article, citing the best of the best in above-the-line categories (Tiff Chai, Nicole Melkonian and I select our individual picks)? At the very least, I hope we helped rev up a bit of excitement for some of the hottest movies coming out this winter!
Read more on Circuit Round-Up (Week Ending 11/11)…
Read more on Circuit Round-Up (Week Ending 11/11)…
Categories: Circuit Round-Up Tags: anna belickis, Awards Circuit Power Hour, Bond Week, circuit 3, clayton davis, Daniel Ashtiany, Joey Magidson, Joey's DVD Picks of the Week, John H. Foote, Joseph Braverman, Lincoln, lionsgate, Mark Johnson, Mike Ward, Nicole Melkonian, oscar predictions 2013, oscars 2013, Robert Hamer, Skyfall, Summit Entertainment, Terence Johnson, Tiff Chai

Hello there, Awards Circuit readers! I hope you’ve all been enjoying the coverage of the 2012 AFI Film Festival, brought to you by myself, Nicole Melkonian and Tiff Chai. Sadly, the festival has come to an end, but not to worry – there is indeed a silver lining (no pun intended). Below, you will find each of our personal selections as to what is the very best of the best of AFI Film Fest 2012, with one reveal possibly indicative of how next year’s Oscar® ceremony will go down. Without further ado, here are the AFI Fest Staff Awards in above-the-line categories… Read more on AFI Film Fest 2012: Favorites of the Festival…
Categories: Article Tags: ang lee, Best of AFI Fest 2012, Bradley Cooper, David O. Russell, Jacki Weaver, Jennifer Lawrence, Joseph Braverman, Kon-Tiki, Laurence Anyways, Marion Cotillard, Min-Soo Jo, Nicole Melkonian, Pauline Collins, Suzanne Clement, Tiff Chai, TOM HOLLAND, Xavier Dolan

- Hello Readers! What a week we’ve had here at the AC to see us into November. For one week only I’ll be bringing you our Sunday round up of all the juiciest bits from the past seven days, as our regular host Joseph is currently doing a sterling job of covering AFI-Fest.
Read more on Circuit Round-Up (Week Ending 11/04)…
Categories: Circuit Round-Up Tags: Bound By Flesh, Circuit Round-Up, clayton davis, Film, film reviews, Flight, hitchcock, Joey Magidson, John H. Foote, Joseph Braverman, Life of Pi, Mark Johnson, Nicole Melkonian, Robert Zemeckis, Samsara, Skyfall, Starlet, Terence Johnson, The Bay, Tiff Chai, Wreck-It Ralph

Read more on Circuit Round-Up (Week Ending 10/28)…
Categories: Circuit Round-Up Tags: Article, Awards Circuit Power Hour, Daniel Ashtiany, Editor Snippets, Joey Magidson, Joey's DVD Picks of the Week, Joseph Braverman, LFF, London Film Festival, Mark Johnson, Mike Ward, Nicole Melkonian, oscar predictions 2013, Review Snippets, Robert Hamer, Terence Johnson, tiffany chai, Top 10 Best Video Game Movies

- With the 2012 Presidential Election right around the corner, and Lincoln a serious contender for “Best Picture,” this week at The Awards Circuit felt more than ever like an arduous yet exciting journey on the campaign trail. Starting us off with this political theme was Joey Magidson, who released his 10 Best Movie Presidents article for your viewing pleasure. Even our Awards Circuit Power Hour episode was heavy on the politics — Oscar politics, that is, centered on politically heavy dramas, Lincoln and Argo, and more “current state of the race” talk. I also pitch a theory to my colleagues about the possibility/likelihood of John Hawkes missing out on a “Best Actor” nod due to the “Hitchcock” factor and the bigger studios having more control over the awards season this year.
Read more on Circuit Round-Up (Week Ending 10/21)…
Read more on Circuit Round-Up (Week Ending 10/21)…
Categories: Circuit Round-Up Tags: anna belickis, Ava DuVernay, Awards Circuit Power Hour, Blu Circuit, clayton davis, dancing with the stars, Daniel Ashtiany, FYC (For Your Consideration), FYC Tracker, Gotham Independent Awards, Gotham Nominations, J.D. Ernand, Joaquin Phoenix, Joey Magidson, joeys dvd pick of the week, John H. Foote, Joseph Braverman, Lincoln, Mark Johnson, Middle of Nowhere, Mike Ward, Nicole Melkonian, oscar predictions, oscar predictions 2013, Robert Hamer, Terence Johnson, The Voice, Tiff Chai
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