The five nominees for the DGA Award recognizing Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Feature Film for 2016 are: Damien Chazelle for La La Land; Garth Davis for Lion; Barry Jenkins for Moonlight; Kenneth Lonergan for Manchester by the Sea; and Denis Villeneuve for Arrival.
“These phenomenal filmmakers have captured our hearts and minds, breathing life into stories rarely told and revealing worlds rarely seen,” said Paris Barclay, Directors Guild of America president. “What makes this recognition truly special is the knowledge that these five directors have made a lasting impression on their peers–directors and members of the director’s team who intimately understand the blood, sweat and tears necessary to create a feature film.”
Chazelle, Jenkins, Lonergan and Villeneuve are first-time DGA Award nominees. Davis, though, is no stranger to the nominees’ circle, having not only scored a DGA nod previously but also two this year. On the former score, he received his first DGA nomination in 2009 in the Commercials category for U.S. Cellular’s “Shadow Puppets.” (Davis is currently handled for commercials and branded content by RESET in the U.S., RESET at Academy in the U.K., and Exit Films in Australia/New Zealand.)
As for his two DGA nominations this year, Lion landed Davis not only the aforementioned Feature competition recognition but also a nod in the Guild’s First-Time Feature Film Director category.
Joining Davis are First-Time Feature Director category nominees Kelly Fremon Craig for The Edge of Seventeen; Tim Miller for Deadpool; Nate Parker for The Birth of a Nation; and Dan Trachtenberg for 10 Cloverfield Lane.
Winners will be announced at the 69th Annual DGA Awards on Saturday evening, February 4, at the Beverly Hilton.
The nominees for OUTSTANDING DIRECTORIAL ACHIEVEMENT IN FEATURE FILM FOR 2016 are (in alphabetical order):
DAMIEN CHAZELLE
La La Land
(Lionsgate)
Mr. Chazelle’s Directorial Team:
– Unit Production Manager: Michael Beugg
– First Assistant Director: Peter Kohn
– Second Assistant Director: Paula Case
– Assistant Unit Production Manager: Bart Lipton
– Second Second Assistant Director: Brett Robinson
– Additional Second Assistant Director: Dodi Rubenstein
This is Mr. Chazelle’s first DGA Award nomination.
GARTH DAVIS
Lion
(The Weinstein Company)
Mr. Davis’s Directorial Team:
– First Assistant Director: Chris Webb
– First Assistant Director: Ananya Rane (India Unit)
– Second Assistant Directors: Mark Ingram (Australia Unit), Sunny Tiku (India Unit), KP Singh (India Unit), Shaunak Kapur (India Unit)
This is one of two DGA Award nominations this year for Mr. Davis. He is also nominated in the First-Time Feature Film category for Lion. He was previously nominated for the DGA Award for Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Commercials in 2009 for “Shadow Puppets,” U.S. Cellular.
BARRY JENKINS
Moonlight
(A24)
Mr. Jenkins’s Directorial Team:
– Unit Production Manager: Jennifer Radzikowski
This is Mr. Jenkins’s first DGA Award nomination.
KENNETH LONERGAN
Manchester by the Sea
(Amazon Studios and Roadside Attractions)
Mr. Lonergan’s Directorial Team:
– Unit Production Manager: Declan Baldwin
– First Assistant Director: Michael J. Moore
– Second Assistant Director: David Blazina
– Second Second Assistant Directors: Tim LaDue, Scooter Perrotta
This is Mr. Lonergan’s first DGA Award nomination.
DENIS VILLENEUVE
Arrival
(Paramount Pictures)
Mr. Villeneuve’s Directorial Team:
– Unit Production Manager: Stan Wlodkowski
– First Assistant Director: Donald L. Sparks
– Second Assistant Director: Brigitte Goulet
– Second Second Assistant Director: Karine P. Labelle
This is Mr. Villeneuve’s first DGA Award nomination.
New category: First-Time Feature Film Director
In addition, Mr. Barclay announced the five nominees for a new category, which debuted last year, recognizing the achievement of first-time feature film directors. First announced by Steven Spielberg at the 2015 DGA Awards, the Outstanding Directorial Achievement of a First-Time Feature Film Director was created to showcase up-and-coming feature film talent.
“They say that ‘the only thing that stays the same is change,’ and that’s especially true when it comes to the art of filmmaking when driven by fresh viewpoints and new methods,” said Barclay. “The future of film is dependent on newly blazed trails and creative leaps of faith which is what we’re honoring with our first-time feature film director award. Congratulations to these five emerging filmmakers who have created projects that are as bold as they are innovative.”
The nominees for OUTSTANDING DIRECTORIAL ACHIEVEMENT OF A FIRST-TIME FEATURE FILM DIRECTOR FOR 2016 are (in alphabetical order):
GARTH DAVIS
Lion
(The Weinstein Company)
Mr. Davis’s Directorial Team:
– First Assistant Director: Chris Webb
– First Assistant Director: Ananya Rane (India Unit)
– Second Assistant Directors: Mark Ingram (Australia Unit), Sunny Tiku (India Unit), KP Singh (India Unit), Shaunak Kapur (India Unit)
This is one of two DGA Award nominations this year for Mr. Davis. He is also nominated in the Feature Film category for Lion. He was previously nominated for the DGA Award for Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Commercials in 2009 for “Shadow Puppets,” U.S. Cellular.
KELLY FREMON CRAIG
The Edge of Seventeen
(STX Entertainment)
Ms. Fremon Craig’s Directorial Team:
– Unit Production Manager: Brendan Ferguson
– Production Manager: Dan Clarke
– First Assistant Director: James Bitonti
– Second Assistant Director: Daniel Mansfield
This is Ms. Fremon Craig’s first DGA Award nomination.
TIM MILLER
Deadpool
(Twentieth Century Fox)
Mr. Miller’s Directorial Team:
– Unit Production Manager: John J. Kelly
– First Assistant Director: James Bitonti
– Second Assistant Director: Daniel Mansfield
This is Mr. Miller’s first DGA Award nomination.
NATE PARKER
The Birth of a Nation
(Fox Searchlight Pictures)
Mr. Parker’s Directorial Team:
– Unit Production Manager: Mark Moran
– First Assistant Director: Tomas Deckaj
– Second Assistant Director: Mark C. Stevens
– Second Second Assistant Director: Scott Bowers
This is Mr. Parker’s first DGA Award nomination.
DAN TRACHTENBERG
10 Cloverfield Lane
(Paramount Pictures)
Mr. Trachtenberg’s Directorial Team:
– Unit Production Manager: Robert J. Dohrmann
– First Assistant Director: Jason Blumenfeld
– Second Assistant Director: Paul B. Uddo
– Second Second Assistant Director: Jonathan M. Warren
– Location Manager: Batou A. Chandler
This is Mr. Trachtenberg’s first DGA Award nomination.
