Awards season is currently in full swing, and the Atlanta Film Critic Circle, of which I am a voting member, has announced the winners and top films of its 2024 AFCC Awards.
Now in its 8th year and comprising of 38 film critics who live within the Atlanta, GA area, the Atlanta Film Critics Circle selected Sean Baker’s Anora as the best film of the year. In addition, Anora also won Best Original Screenplay and lead Mikey Madison won both Best Breakthrough Performance and Best Lead Actress as the titular character, an exotic dancer who falls for a rich Russian client and goes on a journey of self discovery and love. The film oscillates between hilarious and heartbreaking and is fully deserving of the praise this award season, as evident by its three AFCC Award wins.
Other big winners with the Atlanta Film Critics Circle include The Brutalist, which landed at #4 on AFCC’s Top 10 Films list. Adrien Brody took home the Best Lead Actor award for his portrayal as László Tóth, an architect and Holocaust survivor who emigrates to the United States in the hopes of building his own American Dream. The nearly four hour historical drama also earned Brady Corbet the AFCC Award for Best Director. Top Film #3 Nickel Boys was another big winner with RaMell Ross and Joslyn Barnes taking home Best Adapted Screenplay, and the film’s brilliant use of the first person perspective earned it Best Cinematography as well.
Below is the full list of the 2024 AFCC Award winners.
BEST FILM:
Anora
TOP 10 FILMS (ranked):
1. Anora
2. Challengers
3. Nickel Boys
4. The Brutalist
5. Conclave
6. Dune: Part Two
7. Sing Sing
8. Wicked: Part One
9. The Wild Robot
10. I Saw the TV Glow
BEST LEAD ACTOR:
Adrien Brody, The Brutalist
BEST LEAD ACTRESS:
Mikey Madison, Anora
BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR:
Kieran Culkin, A Real Pain
BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS:
Ariana Grande, Wicked
BEST ENSEMBLE CAST:
Sing Sing
BEST DIRECTOR:
Brady Corbet, The Brutalist
BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY:
Sean Baker, Anora
BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY:
RaMell Ross and Joslyn Barnes, Nickel Boys
BEST DOCUMENTARY:
Sugarcane
BEST INTERNATIONAL FEATURE:
Kneecap (Ireland)
BEST ANIMATED FILM:
The Wild Robot
BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY:
Nickel Boys
BEST ORIGINAL SCORE:
Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross, Challengers
BEST STUNT WORK:
Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga
BEST BREAKTHROUGH PERFORMER:
Mikey Madison, Anora
BEST FIRST FEATURE FILM:
Josh Margolin, Thelma
BEST VOICE PERFORMANCE:
Lupita Nyong’o, The Wild Robot
BEST DOG:
Peggy as Dogpool, Deadpool & Wolverine
