Lincoln, Zero Dark Thirty, among Producers Guild nods

Critically acclaimed James Bond blockbuster Skyfall got a big boost to its Oscar hopes.

LOS ANGELES: Steven Spielberg’s presidential drama Lincoln, musical Les Miserables and Kathyrn Bigelow’s Osama bin Laden thriller Zero Dark Thirty were among 10 films earning Producers Guild Award nominations on Wednesday, as the Hollywood awards season gathered momentum.

Ben Affleck and George Clooney, two of the producers behind Affleck’s Iran hostage drama Argo and the team that brought Quentin Tarantino’s darkly humourous Django Unchained to the screen, also won nods for the awards handed out by the Producers Guild of America (PGA).

The critically acclaimed James Bond blockbuster Skyfall, which last weekend surpassed $1 billion at the worldwide box office, got a big boost to its Oscar hopes when producers Barbara Broccoli and Michael Wilson were included.

They joined an eclectic list that featured Ang Lee’s shipwreck tale Life of Pi and quirky comedy, Silver Linings Playbook.

Wes Anderson’s Moonrise Kingdom and mythical indie film Beasts of the Southern Wild, rounded out the feature film nominations, the PGA said in a statement.

The Producers Guild Awards will be handed out at a ceremony in Los Angeles on January 26 and will be a key indication of Hollywood sentiment ahead of the Oscars on February 24.

Many of the PGA-nominated movies are expected to feature strongly on the list of Oscar nominations when those are announced on January 10. Eight of the movies are also in the running for best picture Golden Globe trophies on January 13.

But the PGA had nothing for The Hobbit from director Peter Jackson and The Dark Knight Rises also failed to make the list.

The PGA nominated the producers of five films for its animated movie honours — Tim Burton’s Frankenweenie, Disney family films Wreck-it-Ralph and Brave, and ParaNorman and Rise of the Guardians.

The PGA also named its picks for producers of television movies and miniseries. Ryan Murphy’s American Horror Story, the team behind HBO film Game Change about Sarah Palin’s 2008 vice presidential bid, and Britain’s modern twist on detective Sherlock Holmes titled Sherlock, were among the five making the cut.

They were joined by Hatfields & McCoys, about a legendary family feud starring Kevin Costner who was also one of the producers, and the PBS chronicle of the ‘30s drought, The Dust Bowl.

Published in The Express Tribune, January 4^th, 2013.                

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