Three first-time nominees and two earning their second career nominations comprise the field of directors vying for the DGA Award for Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Feature Film for 2009.
Those in their second go-around in the DGA Award competition are: James Cameron, whose latest nomination is for Avatar (Twentieth Century Fox); and Quentin Tarantino who is nominated for Inglourious Basterds (The Weinstein Company and Universal Pictures).
Cameron was first nominated–and won the DGA Award–for Titanic in 1997. Tarantino’s initial nomination came on the strength of Pulp Fiction in ’94.
The trio of first-time director nominees in the feature category this year are: Kathryn Bigelow for The Hurt Locker (Summit Entertainment); Lee Daniels for Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire (Lionsgate); and Jason Reitman for Up In The Air (Paramount Pictures).
Bigelow and Reitman share another common bond. They are both on the rosters of commercial production houses. Bigelow signed last year with RSA Films for spots. Reitman’s long-time roost for commercials is Tate USA.
The winner in the feature category will be named at the 62nd annual DGA Awards Dinner on Saturday, January 30, at the Hyatt Regency Century Plaza Hotel in Los Angeles
The DGA Award for Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Feature Film has traditionally been one of the industry’s most accurate barometers for who will win the Best Director Academy Award. Only six times since the DGA Awards began in 1948 has the feature film winner not gone on to win the corresponding Academy Award. Those six exceptions to the rule were:
• Director Anthony Harvey won the DGA Award for The Lion in Winter in ’68 while Carol Reed took home the Oscar® for Oliver!
• Francis Ford Coppola received the DGA honor for The Godfather in ’72 while the Academy selected Bob Fosse for Cabaret.
• Steven Spielberg received his first DGA Award for The Color Purple in ’85 while the Oscar® went to Sydney Pollack for Out of Africa.
• Ron Howard was chosen by the DGA for his direction of Apollo 13 in ’95 while Academy voters selected Mel Gibson for Braveheart.
• And Ang Lee won the DGA Award for his direction of Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon in 2000 while Steven Soderbergh won the Academy Award for Traffic.
Director David Serota Joins Accomplice-Media
Accomplice-Media, the commercial production company led by executive producer Amy McIntyre, has added director David Serota to its roster.
The Los Angeles-based Serota has already wrapped his first assignment for Accomplice--a campaign for Ace Hardware via the Chicago and Kansas City-based agency BarkleyOKRP that breaks in early 2025.
“I was drawn to David’s work from the start,” McIntyre said. “His ability to capture human stories with such authenticity pulls you into the moment of each scene. Beyond his immense talent, David’s salt-of-the-earth nature and connection to our own approach to production makes him a pleasure to collaborate with.”
Serota shared, “From the first time I spoke to Amy and the team, I knew that Accomplice was the place for me. It was like discovering long-lost friends I’d never met. There was an immediate shorthand because of shared artistic sensibilities and who they are as human beings. It’s no wonder the company has been so successful for as long as it has. Amy takes care of her directors and her clients by being a high-level communicator.”
Originally from Philadelphia, Serota received a BA in philosophy before changing courses and graduating with a degree in directing from L.A. Film School. He said his approach to filmmaking is about finding the beauty in the everyday. It is the dignity and resolve of ordinary people and the unique details of their lives that help us frame our own more clearly.
“Every ad campaign has the power to touch an audience and to remind you that the best time is often right now,” Serota said. “That nudge to go do the thing you were gonna do before you got all busy. Book the flight. Build the pillow fort. Start the company. They make you feel like what... Read More