The Directors Guild of America announced their nominees for their annual awards today and the five names on the list should come as no surprise given that their films have all received strong critical notices over the last few months. While these are all strong and not unexpected choices, there are a couple of omissions from the guild’s nominees that do stand out – Quentin Tarantino (Django Unchained), David O. Russell (Silver Linings Playbook) and Paul Thomas Anderson (The Master).
What’s notable about these nomination snubs is how it may affect the outcome of the Academy Awards. The winner of the DGA award has a high statistical probability of going on to win the Best Director Oscar. And the film that was directed by the winner of the Best Director Oscar usually cops the Best Picture honor that same night. With the announcement of the Academy Award nominations just two days away, it is looking like a long shot for Tarantino, Anderson or Russell to be hearing their name being called out.
Here are the nominees along with their directorial team –
Ben Affleck, Argo
Unit Production Manager: Amy Herman
First Assistant Director: David Webb
Second Assistant Director: Ian Calip
Second Second Assistant Directors: Clark Credle, Gavin Kleintop
First Assistant Director (Turkey Unit): Belkis Turan
Kathryn Bigelow, Zero Dark Thirty
Unit Production Manager: Colin Wilson
First Assistant Director: David A. Ticotin
Second Assistant Directors: Ben Lanning, Sarah Hood
First Assistant Director (Jordan Unit): Scott Robertson
Second Assistant Directors (Jordan Unit): Jonas Spaccarotelli, Yanal Kassay
Second Second Assistant Director (Jordan Unit): Tarek Afifi
Unit Production Manager (India Unit): Rajeev Mehra
Tom Hooper, Les Misérables
Unit Production Manager: Patrick Schweitzer
First Assistant Director: Ben Howarth
Second Assistant Director: Harriet Worth
Second Second Assistant Director: Dan Channing Williams
Ang Lee, Life of Pi
Unit Production Manager: Michael J. Malone
Unit Production Manager (Taiwan): Leo Chen
First Assistant Directors: William M. Connor, Cliff Lanning
Second Assistant Directors: Robert Burgess, Ben Lanning
Unit Production Manager (India Unit): Sanjay Kumar
First Assistant Director (India Unit): Nitya Mehra
Second Assistant Director (India Unit): Ananya Rane
Second Second Assistant Directors (India Unit): Namra Parikh, Freya Parekh
Second Assistant Directors (Montreal Unit): Derek Wimble, Renato De Cotiis
Steven Spielberg, Lincoln
Unit Production Manager: Susan McNamara
First Assistant Director: Adam Somner
Second Assistant Director: Ian Stone
Second Second Assistant Directors: Eric Lasko, Trevor Tavares
