The first set of nominations for the Fantasy Film Studio League are in. The Independent Spirit nominations were announced on Tuesday of this week. The movies Winter's Bone and The Kids Are All Right ruled the roost for the nominations.
During the draft, we saw these two movies split across several studios. As a result, this week's nominations were split as well. Good to get some points on the board for the league, even more exciting to see EVERY studio put up some points.
We saw a three-way tie for first with three studios each grabbing three nominations. The Palovcsiks were tied for second place with two nominations a piece (although Kristie takes a slight lead on moral grounds). Dave Sarnowski, Erin Dischler & Steve Hackbarth, and Jake & Rachel all found their way onto the score board as well.
Great to see the league kick off. Next week we'll see both the Critic's Choice and Golden Globe nominations. Stay tuned for the updated board!
Sunday, December 5, 2010
Sunday, November 21, 2010
The Fantasy Film Studio League Season Has Begun!
With the official draft last night, the third season of the Fantasy Film Studio League began. It was a lot of fun, and I sincerely thank everyone who opted to play this year. One could tell by the picks chosen that folks had done their homework this year. This was awesome to see, and I hope for all of us that we actually get to see most of the films we supported and researched. I say most, becuase there are still some pieces of crap in here. Or maybe not... One never knows.
There certainly was some agreement on which films would lead the charge this year. Several films were picked over in the first few rounds by multiple movie moguls looking to lock in the lead this year. Below are some of the highlights:
Inception - Chosen in 8 categories, in 6 different studios
127 Hours - Chosen in 7 categories, in 5 different studios
The King's Speech - Chosen in 7 categories, in 5 different studios
The Social Network - Chosen in 6 categories, in 3 different studios
Some moguls had interesting drafting strategies. One chose to draft for their Best Original Score and Best Song categories in Rounds 3 and 4, but chose to wait for their acting categories until the last few rounds. One mogul opted to give up Toy Story 3 for Best Picture, choosing The Black Swan instead. The Black Swan, by the way was chosen in 7 categories, in 5 different studios (Toy Story 3 was quickly snapped up in the next pick. Only time will tell how that move will pay off). Also, somehow, Tron: Legacy was chosen for several awards!
Between the over abundance of food, and one mogul's determination that he receive "two minutes" for every single pick he had, the night proved fun and silly. I hope the season will prove as enjoyable for everyone involved. Be sure to check back here for updates on the season as well as movie reviews, and party preparations for the big night - The Academy Awards. Ann and I will be hosting our annual gala and we look forward to capping the night with the announcing of the winner of the 2010 Fantasy Film Studio League!
Good luck to everyone!
Cheers,
Danny.
There certainly was some agreement on which films would lead the charge this year. Several films were picked over in the first few rounds by multiple movie moguls looking to lock in the lead this year. Below are some of the highlights:
Inception - Chosen in 8 categories, in 6 different studios
127 Hours - Chosen in 7 categories, in 5 different studios
The King's Speech - Chosen in 7 categories, in 5 different studios
The Social Network - Chosen in 6 categories, in 3 different studios
Some moguls had interesting drafting strategies. One chose to draft for their Best Original Score and Best Song categories in Rounds 3 and 4, but chose to wait for their acting categories until the last few rounds. One mogul opted to give up Toy Story 3 for Best Picture, choosing The Black Swan instead. The Black Swan, by the way was chosen in 7 categories, in 5 different studios (Toy Story 3 was quickly snapped up in the next pick. Only time will tell how that move will pay off). Also, somehow, Tron: Legacy was chosen for several awards!
Between the over abundance of food, and one mogul's determination that he receive "two minutes" for every single pick he had, the night proved fun and silly. I hope the season will prove as enjoyable for everyone involved. Be sure to check back here for updates on the season as well as movie reviews, and party preparations for the big night - The Academy Awards. Ann and I will be hosting our annual gala and we look forward to capping the night with the announcing of the winner of the 2010 Fantasy Film Studio League!
Good luck to everyone!
Cheers,
Danny.
Sunday, November 7, 2010
Two Weeks Until The Draft!
Hey Film Fans:
We have two weeks left before the Fantasy Film Studio League Draft. Once everyone responds with their RSVP, I'll send out the drafting sheets. Then it will be up to each of you to review the films released in 2010 (and those yet to be released) in order to build your studio. The draft sheets should help you collect your thoughts and plan for the draft. Like last year, we're going to do a serpentine draft based on drafting order picked by random number generator.
This should be an interesting year for the Film League. Without clear front runners like Avatar and The Hurt Locker this year, the field is a little more wide open. There are some indie darlings, of course, but nothing with both critical and commercial success. Unless you count Toy Story 3.
I am really looking forward to draft night and to the League this year. I will be working to put more information on this blog this year and to keep the updates coming. See you all in a few weeks!
We have two weeks left before the Fantasy Film Studio League Draft. Once everyone responds with their RSVP, I'll send out the drafting sheets. Then it will be up to each of you to review the films released in 2010 (and those yet to be released) in order to build your studio. The draft sheets should help you collect your thoughts and plan for the draft. Like last year, we're going to do a serpentine draft based on drafting order picked by random number generator.
This should be an interesting year for the Film League. Without clear front runners like Avatar and The Hurt Locker this year, the field is a little more wide open. There are some indie darlings, of course, but nothing with both critical and commercial success. Unless you count Toy Story 3.
I am really looking forward to draft night and to the League this year. I will be working to put more information on this blog this year and to keep the updates coming. See you all in a few weeks!
Monday, October 25, 2010
It is time to launch the Fantasy Film League 2011!
Last year we created a movie game run similar to a fantasy football league. The whole thing started with a draft party and "studio selection.". Each person creates a studio and, through the draft, builds a roster with one picture, director, actor, actress, etc... Throughout the film awards season, studios earn points for each nomination and win that members of their studios receive. At the end of the season (the Academy Awards) the winning studio is announced.
We played the game last year and had a lot of fun. We also learned a lot that we will use to improve this year's game.
We look forward to kicking of the league with the drafting party on November 20th!
Cheers,
Danny
We played the game last year and had a lot of fun. We also learned a lot that we will use to improve this year's game.
We look forward to kicking of the league with the drafting party on November 20th!
Cheers,
Danny
Tuesday, March 9, 2010
Oscar Ballot Results!
The Scoreboard for the Danny & Ann's 11th Annual Academy Awards Ballot is listed below. After the Scoreboard stick around for some photos from the party as well as a list of all the past winners.
Thanks for playing everyone!
...AND THE WINNERS ARE:
Rank Name Score out of 127.00 Points
1 Nate Dekker 97.75
2 James gordon 89.50
3 Scott Engroff 83.50
4 Mike Palovcsik 83.50
5 Danny Sarnowski 79.50
6 Kristie Palovcsik 79.50
7 Jennifer Dekker 73.50
8 Dan Pavlovich 73.50
9 Greg Branson 70.50
10 Steve Hackbarth 69.75
11 Kate Kummer 67.50
12 John Sarnowski 65.50
13 Erin Dischler 64.50
14 Dustin Van Dusen 64.50
15 Chris Ricci 63.75
16 Mary Jo Gordon 63.50
17 David Sarnowski 62.50
18 Mindy Wiesjahn 62.50
19 Ann Sarnowski 59.50
20 Nick Kummer 59.50
21 Glenn Hanon 58.50
22 Rachel Stuhler 58.50
23 Teresa Gordon 56.50
24 Lori Hanon 53.50
25 Jake Sarnowski 51.50
26 Marcia Sarnowski 48.50
27 Cara Peck 48.50
28 Nicolee Wiesjahn 39.00
29 Frizell Bailey 38.00
Here is a list of past Ballot Winners by Year
Year Name of Winner Name of Best Picture
2009 Nate Dekker The Hurt Locker
2008 Danny Sarnowski Slumdog Millionaire
2007 Teresa Gordon No Country for Old Men
2006 Erin Dischler The Departed
2005 Kristie PalovcsikCrash
2004 Stacy Hoyt Million Dollar Baby
2003 Nate Dekker Lord of the Rings: Return of the King
2002 Katie Pope Chicago
2001 James Gordon A Beautiful Mind
2000 Katie Pope Gladiator
1999 Danny Sarnowski* American Beauty
Dan Pavlovich*
*Tied for first place
*****SHAMELESS PLUG*****
For those of you who enjoyed the ballot, please know that I have a more robust Movie-Award-Season-Experience-Game for you to consider playing next year. It is the Fantasty Film Studio League. It is run very much like a Fantasy Football League complete with draft night party. Each player picks a studio filled with a Best Picture, Director, Actor/Actress, Supporting Actor/Actress, and other awards and plays throughout the movie award "season" to score points based on the number of nominations and wins their "Studio" gathers. It's a great way to enjoy all of the different movie awards and to prepare for the Academy Awards Ballot next year. Let me know if you are intersted!
And Now Photos -
Here are some fun photos from Sunday night. You can find them on Picasa. Enjoy the gallery and watch as the three-tiered cake comes together. It was great to see all of you!
I am looking forward to next year already.
Cheers,
Danny
Thanks for playing everyone!
...AND THE WINNERS ARE:
Rank Name Score out of 127.00 Points
1 Nate Dekker 97.75
2 James gordon 89.50
3 Scott Engroff 83.50
4 Mike Palovcsik 83.50
5 Danny Sarnowski 79.50
6 Kristie Palovcsik 79.50
7 Jennifer Dekker 73.50
8 Dan Pavlovich 73.50
9 Greg Branson 70.50
10 Steve Hackbarth 69.75
11 Kate Kummer 67.50
12 John Sarnowski 65.50
13 Erin Dischler 64.50
14 Dustin Van Dusen 64.50
15 Chris Ricci 63.75
16 Mary Jo Gordon 63.50
17 David Sarnowski 62.50
18 Mindy Wiesjahn 62.50
19 Ann Sarnowski 59.50
20 Nick Kummer 59.50
21 Glenn Hanon 58.50
22 Rachel Stuhler 58.50
23 Teresa Gordon 56.50
24 Lori Hanon 53.50
25 Jake Sarnowski 51.50
26 Marcia Sarnowski 48.50
27 Cara Peck 48.50
28 Nicolee Wiesjahn 39.00
29 Frizell Bailey 38.00
Here is a list of past Ballot Winners by Year
Year Name of Winner Name of Best Picture
2009 Nate Dekker The Hurt Locker
2008 Danny Sarnowski Slumdog Millionaire
2007 Teresa Gordon No Country for Old Men
2006 Erin Dischler The Departed
2005 Kristie PalovcsikCrash
2004 Stacy Hoyt Million Dollar Baby
2003 Nate Dekker Lord of the Rings: Return of the King
2002 Katie Pope Chicago
2001 James Gordon A Beautiful Mind
2000 Katie Pope Gladiator
1999 Danny Sarnowski* American Beauty
Dan Pavlovich*
*Tied for first place
*****SHAMELESS PLUG*****
For those of you who enjoyed the ballot, please know that I have a more robust Movie-Award-Season-Experience-Game for you to consider playing next year. It is the Fantasty Film Studio League. It is run very much like a Fantasy Football League complete with draft night party. Each player picks a studio filled with a Best Picture, Director, Actor/Actress, Supporting Actor/Actress, and other awards and plays throughout the movie award "season" to score points based on the number of nominations and wins their "Studio" gathers. It's a great way to enjoy all of the different movie awards and to prepare for the Academy Awards Ballot next year. Let me know if you are intersted!
And Now Photos -
Here are some fun photos from Sunday night. You can find them on Picasa. Enjoy the gallery and watch as the three-tiered cake comes together. It was great to see all of you!
I am looking forward to next year already.
Cheers,
Danny
And We're Done...
Well, gang, it was a heck of a season! With the announcement that The Hurt Locker was the Best Picture of 2009 on Sunday night, we had our final win. The finalized scoreboard is below. Look after the jump for some thoughts about the season and its impact on the Academy Awards ballot. Interesting stuff...
Name / Nominations / Wins / Points
Danny Sarnowski / 47 / 27 / 175
Defending Champion Scott Engroff / 25 / 12 / 86
Paul Hogseth / 25 / 5 / 65
The Dekkers / 26 / 2 / 58
Ann Sarnowski / 20 / 3 / 49
Jake & Rachel / 16 / 1 / 35
Dan Pavlovich / 14 / 2 / 34
Steve & Erin / 14 / 0 / 28
Jimmy Gordon / 9 / 2 / 24
As we began the season together I stated that one of the desired outcomes of playing the game was to keep all of us informed about which films and performers were winning which awards in order to make us stronger for the Academy Awards voting. I would have to say that, statistically, this goal was achieved. Look at the scoreboard again with the players from our league in order of their performance for the Academy Awards ballot I ran on Sunday night.
Name / Rank / Total Players
Nate Dekker / 1 / 29
Jimmy Gordon / 2 / 29
Defending Champion Scott Engroff / 3 / 29
Danny Sarnowski / 4 / 29
Jen Dekker / 7 / 29
Dan Pavlovich / 8 / 29
Steve Hackbarth / 10 / 29
Erin Dischler / 13 / 29
Ann Sarnowski / 19 / 29
Rachel Stuhler / 22 / 29
Jake Sarnowski / 25 / 29
As you can see, 8/11 of the League Players who also played in the Academy Awards pool finished in the top half. The top four spots were occupied by League Players. Kudos to Nate for winning the whole enchilada and to Jimmy Gordon for going from last in the League to second for the night. A great performance. I would say that was a very strong showing from all of us. I was excited for, and proud of, all of us for a good season and a great Academy Awards ballot.
And so, The Fantasy Film Studio League has concluded its second successful season. I am extremely pleased with how things went and I had a great time playing the game with all of you. I hope that you'll all consider playing again next year and possibly inviting a few more folks to join us. Look for the invite near the last few weeks of November again to get the draft finished before the Film Independent Spirit Award nominees are announced in early December.
Until then, PLEASE GO SEE SOME MOVIES and stay in touch!
Cheers,
Danny.
Name / Nominations / Wins / Points
Danny Sarnowski / 47 / 27 / 175
Defending Champion Scott Engroff / 25 / 12 / 86
Paul Hogseth / 25 / 5 / 65
The Dekkers / 26 / 2 / 58
Ann Sarnowski / 20 / 3 / 49
Jake & Rachel / 16 / 1 / 35
Dan Pavlovich / 14 / 2 / 34
Steve & Erin / 14 / 0 / 28
Jimmy Gordon / 9 / 2 / 24
As we began the season together I stated that one of the desired outcomes of playing the game was to keep all of us informed about which films and performers were winning which awards in order to make us stronger for the Academy Awards voting. I would have to say that, statistically, this goal was achieved. Look at the scoreboard again with the players from our league in order of their performance for the Academy Awards ballot I ran on Sunday night.
Name / Rank / Total Players
Nate Dekker / 1 / 29
Jimmy Gordon / 2 / 29
Defending Champion Scott Engroff / 3 / 29
Danny Sarnowski / 4 / 29
Jen Dekker / 7 / 29
Dan Pavlovich / 8 / 29
Steve Hackbarth / 10 / 29
Erin Dischler / 13 / 29
Ann Sarnowski / 19 / 29
Rachel Stuhler / 22 / 29
Jake Sarnowski / 25 / 29
As you can see, 8/11 of the League Players who also played in the Academy Awards pool finished in the top half. The top four spots were occupied by League Players. Kudos to Nate for winning the whole enchilada and to Jimmy Gordon for going from last in the League to second for the night. A great performance. I would say that was a very strong showing from all of us. I was excited for, and proud of, all of us for a good season and a great Academy Awards ballot.
And so, The Fantasy Film Studio League has concluded its second successful season. I am extremely pleased with how things went and I had a great time playing the game with all of you. I hope that you'll all consider playing again next year and possibly inviting a few more folks to join us. Look for the invite near the last few weeks of November again to get the draft finished before the Film Independent Spirit Award nominees are announced in early December.
Until then, PLEASE GO SEE SOME MOVIES and stay in touch!
Cheers,
Danny.
Saturday, March 6, 2010
Independent Spirit Award Winners
Hey Fantasy Film Studio League Participants!
Today was the Film Independent Spirit Awards ceremony and we have some points to distribute for the league. The scoreboard has been updated below to reflect the winners. This is the final update as we head into the Academy Awards broadcast tomorrow night.
As the end will come too soon, let me just say that this year was a lot of fun. I had a really good time at the draft and in keeping the blog updated on everyone's progress. I hope that you all enjoyed it as well and I look forward to seeing everyone play again next year. I promise we'll get a solid website up and running which will allow you to view your studio and your picks throughout the season. Again - THANKS FOR PLAYING!
Updated Scoreboard Below:
Name / Nominations / Wins / Points
Danny Sarnowski / 47 / 22 / 160
Defending Champion Scott Engroff / 25 / 9 / 77
Paul Hogseth / 25 / 4 / 62
The Dekkers / 26 / 2 / 58
Ann Sarnowski / 20 / 3 / 49
Jake & Rachel / 16 / 1 / 35
Dan Pavlovich / 14 / 1 / 31
Erin & Steve / 14 / 0 / 28
Jimmy Gordon / 9 / 1 / 21
Danny.
Today was the Film Independent Spirit Awards ceremony and we have some points to distribute for the league. The scoreboard has been updated below to reflect the winners. This is the final update as we head into the Academy Awards broadcast tomorrow night.
As the end will come too soon, let me just say that this year was a lot of fun. I had a really good time at the draft and in keeping the blog updated on everyone's progress. I hope that you all enjoyed it as well and I look forward to seeing everyone play again next year. I promise we'll get a solid website up and running which will allow you to view your studio and your picks throughout the season. Again - THANKS FOR PLAYING!
Updated Scoreboard Below:
Name / Nominations / Wins / Points
Danny Sarnowski / 47 / 22 / 160
Defending Champion Scott Engroff / 25 / 9 / 77
Paul Hogseth / 25 / 4 / 62
The Dekkers / 26 / 2 / 58
Ann Sarnowski / 20 / 3 / 49
Jake & Rachel / 16 / 1 / 35
Dan Pavlovich / 14 / 1 / 31
Erin & Steve / 14 / 0 / 28
Jimmy Gordon / 9 / 1 / 21
Danny.
Update on Party Planning
The last week has been a busy one for us as we cruise into Academy Awards weekend. Ann has been baking cakes and cookies all week. The main dessert this year will taste incredible. Three different types of cake each with a different type of filling. Good stuff. She's also been shopping up a storm and she decorated the house to get us into "Movie Mode."
Today she prepared the cakes and got them filled. Tonight we will assemble and carve the cake and she will apply "the crumb coat" to protect and seal the cake. The main decorating of the cake will take place tomorrow.
We also cooked over 12 pounds of beef in three bottles of wine to prepare for one of the main dishes. Ann got additional work done on several other dishes and I've been busy creating placecards for each dish.
It's very important to note that my father put in some pretty serious time getting the website up and running and in better shape even than last year. The scoring system should be highly robust this year (no gripes!). Also, my brother-in-law James worked to create the logo/banner on the website incorporating several of this year's nominated films' posters along with a special poster he designed just for me. See if you can spot it at: www.thesarnowskis.com/oscars
Tonight is cake assembly, additional cooking, and prep. Tomorrow is final decorating, additional shopping, cooking all day, and a quick final clean before the show begins. Somewhere in there I need to get my picks done!
Danny.
Today she prepared the cakes and got them filled. Tonight we will assemble and carve the cake and she will apply "the crumb coat" to protect and seal the cake. The main decorating of the cake will take place tomorrow.
We also cooked over 12 pounds of beef in three bottles of wine to prepare for one of the main dishes. Ann got additional work done on several other dishes and I've been busy creating placecards for each dish.
It's very important to note that my father put in some pretty serious time getting the website up and running and in better shape even than last year. The scoring system should be highly robust this year (no gripes!). Also, my brother-in-law James worked to create the logo/banner on the website incorporating several of this year's nominated films' posters along with a special poster he designed just for me. See if you can spot it at: www.thesarnowskis.com/oscars
Tonight is cake assembly, additional cooking, and prep. Tomorrow is final decorating, additional shopping, cooking all day, and a quick final clean before the show begins. Somewhere in there I need to get my picks done!
Danny.
Saturday, February 27, 2010
Academy Awards Week is Upon Us!
Ann and I have begun the efforts to put this year's party together. Yesterday we finalized the menu and the witty names that accompany each item. Today we did some serious ingredient shopping. Ann has baked four separate cakes and has begun planning the dessert we'll all enjoy next Sunday. Tomorrow we'll add a few decorating touches and run some errands.
Ann will continue to work throughout the week with the cakes and to get some other items ready. Friday we'll have the first guests arrive and we'll spend ALL day on Saturday and Sunday cooking and prepping.
This year we plan to have a few mini-games to play during the night in addition to the Oscar Ballot. The games will cost $1 to play and we'll donate the money to charity.
Well, we've got some additional planning to take care of tonight. So, we're off!
See you all next week....
Ann will continue to work throughout the week with the cakes and to get some other items ready. Friday we'll have the first guests arrive and we'll spend ALL day on Saturday and Sunday cooking and prepping.
This year we plan to have a few mini-games to play during the night in addition to the Oscar Ballot. The games will cost $1 to play and we'll donate the money to charity.
Well, we've got some additional planning to take care of tonight. So, we're off!
See you all next week....
Sunday, February 21, 2010
Into the Final Stretch!
Hey Fantasy Film Studio League participants, we're almost there!
With the Writer's Guild and BAFTA awards announced this weekend, things are almost wrapped up for the Academy Awards. We only have the Independent Spirit Awards and the Razzies before the Oscars. We are two weeks and counting from tonight, so start reviewing these blog posts to see how you'll complete your Academy Awards ballots. Incidentally, we'll have the Academy Awards ballot website up and running soon to allow you to make your picks.
The Hurt Locker was a big winner this weekend, edging out Avatar in the Director, Picture, and Adapted Screenplay awards for which they were both nominated. The Best Actor and Best Actress fields at the BAFTAs were somewhat surprising in that Colin Firth and Carey Mulligan both took home wins. Jeff Bridges, Sandra Bullock, and Meryl Streep all got to sit one out for a change. Based on these two sets of awards the scoreboard has been updated below:
Name / Nominations / Wins / Points
Danny Sarnowski / 47 / 19 / 151
Defending Champion Scott Engroff / 25 / 9 / 77
Paul Hogseth / 25 / 3 / 59
The Dekkers / 26 / 1 / 55
Ann Sarnowski / 20 / 2 / 46
Jake & Rachel / 16 / 1 / 35
Dan Pavlovich / 14 / 1 / 31
Erin & Steve / 14 / 0 / 28
Jimmy Gordon / 9 / 1 / 21
For those of you who played last year, here is how the scoreboard looked after the Writer's Guild and BAFTA award winners were announced:
Name / Nominations / Wins / Points
Danny Sarnowski / 40 / 9 / 107
Mike Palovcsik / 43 / 6 / 104
Scott Engroff / 32 / 13 / 103
The Dekkers / 23 / 3 / 55
Ann Sarnowski / 19 / 1 / 41
Jake Sarnowski / 10 / 2 / 26
Ann and I will make a point of updating the blog over the next two weeks to document the preparations for the party this year. I hope that all of you will join us for the event and that the Film Studio League has been helpful for you to keep track of who has won awards this year.
Cheers,
Danny.
With the Writer's Guild and BAFTA awards announced this weekend, things are almost wrapped up for the Academy Awards. We only have the Independent Spirit Awards and the Razzies before the Oscars. We are two weeks and counting from tonight, so start reviewing these blog posts to see how you'll complete your Academy Awards ballots. Incidentally, we'll have the Academy Awards ballot website up and running soon to allow you to make your picks.
The Hurt Locker was a big winner this weekend, edging out Avatar in the Director, Picture, and Adapted Screenplay awards for which they were both nominated. The Best Actor and Best Actress fields at the BAFTAs were somewhat surprising in that Colin Firth and Carey Mulligan both took home wins. Jeff Bridges, Sandra Bullock, and Meryl Streep all got to sit one out for a change. Based on these two sets of awards the scoreboard has been updated below:
Name / Nominations / Wins / Points
Danny Sarnowski / 47 / 19 / 151
Defending Champion Scott Engroff / 25 / 9 / 77
Paul Hogseth / 25 / 3 / 59
The Dekkers / 26 / 1 / 55
Ann Sarnowski / 20 / 2 / 46
Jake & Rachel / 16 / 1 / 35
Dan Pavlovich / 14 / 1 / 31
Erin & Steve / 14 / 0 / 28
Jimmy Gordon / 9 / 1 / 21
For those of you who played last year, here is how the scoreboard looked after the Writer's Guild and BAFTA award winners were announced:
Name / Nominations / Wins / Points
Danny Sarnowski / 40 / 9 / 107
Mike Palovcsik / 43 / 6 / 104
Scott Engroff / 32 / 13 / 103
The Dekkers / 23 / 3 / 55
Ann Sarnowski / 19 / 1 / 41
Jake Sarnowski / 10 / 2 / 26
Ann and I will make a point of updating the blog over the next two weeks to document the preparations for the party this year. I hope that all of you will join us for the event and that the Film Studio League has been helpful for you to keep track of who has won awards this year.
Cheers,
Danny.
Friday, February 19, 2010
Shutter Island
Martin Scorsese's Shutter Island is a spectre. A ghostly vapor of a great film adapted from the page-turning novel of the same name.
For those who haven't seen the trailer here's the story: a pair of U.S. Marshals are called to Shutter Island to investigate a missing inmate from a high-security asylum for the criminally insane. The patient apparently walked right through the stone walls of her locked cell and is loose somewhere on the forbidding island. What starts as a detective story quickly becomes a locked-room witch hunt spanning Nazi-inspired human experimentation to government-funded conspiracies designed to topple the Communists.
As a disclaimer, I should note that I read the novel this week. I really enjoyed it and was eager to see the film. The novel is a fast, spooky, funny, mind-bending trip filled to overflowing with colorful characters, memorable dialogue, and unsettling nightmarish visuals. The filmmakers, either in an effort to condense the novel or keep to a studio-mandated running time, have trimmed much of these elements to craft their final product.
Not that film is without its merits. Leonardo DiCaprio, for instance, delivers a very solid and mature performance. His nuanced portrayal of the wounded hero Teddy Daniels gives the film its center. He's surrounded by a veritable who's who of character actors including Max Von Sydow, Elias Koteas, Jackie Earl Haley, Patricia Clarkson, Michelle Williams, and Ted Levine. Mark Ruffalo and Ben Kingsley do admirably well with the under-written parts they were handed.
It just doesn't feel like a "Scorsese picture." The soundtrack is a moody classical score - no anachronistic rock n' roll to be found here. No fast zooms or intricate tracking shots. No highly charismatic villains who we're all secretly rooting for. Even Thelma Schoonmaker, the three-time-Oscar-winning Editor who has worked on all of Scorsese's films, paints the pacing all wrong. At times her overlapping of the dialogue and action create a cacophony of inputs that add to the intensity of the storyline. At other times things seem sloppy after thoughts.
The visual hallucinations in the book feel immediate, urgent, and scary. They focus on the Teddy's unraveling and move the story and the characters to their ultimate crescendo. The film spends too much time focusing on Teddy's flashbacks to the atrocities he witnessed in World War II and on the infanticide that resides at the heart of the story. These sequences felt more ghoulish in the movie than the novel. They are essential to the story, but Scorsese seems to be pushing the wrong buttons - hard.
In the end, this feels like what it is - a studio picture with a high pedigree. Scorsese, who's singular style and vision has crafted some of the most memorable movie moments in the last three decades is handed the unenviable task of committing someone else's solidly realized vision to the screen. Dennis Lehane's novel was like reading a movie, a movie made by a master filmmaker. This picture feels like someone efforting to channel a master filmmaker.
Some will compare this picture to Kubrick's The Shining, the picture in which Stanley channeled Stephen King's work. That movie, while also not hewing extremely close to the source material, is still unsettling to watch. The pace, the sparse music, the utter emptiness of the hotel are haunting and memorable. Shutter Island, on the other hand, fades as you walk from the theater.
I would recommend you read the book of Shutter Island. Then curl up and watch a classic Scorsese movie to get over your fears and get some sleep. Try Goodfellas.
For those who haven't seen the trailer here's the story: a pair of U.S. Marshals are called to Shutter Island to investigate a missing inmate from a high-security asylum for the criminally insane. The patient apparently walked right through the stone walls of her locked cell and is loose somewhere on the forbidding island. What starts as a detective story quickly becomes a locked-room witch hunt spanning Nazi-inspired human experimentation to government-funded conspiracies designed to topple the Communists.
As a disclaimer, I should note that I read the novel this week. I really enjoyed it and was eager to see the film. The novel is a fast, spooky, funny, mind-bending trip filled to overflowing with colorful characters, memorable dialogue, and unsettling nightmarish visuals. The filmmakers, either in an effort to condense the novel or keep to a studio-mandated running time, have trimmed much of these elements to craft their final product.
Not that film is without its merits. Leonardo DiCaprio, for instance, delivers a very solid and mature performance. His nuanced portrayal of the wounded hero Teddy Daniels gives the film its center. He's surrounded by a veritable who's who of character actors including Max Von Sydow, Elias Koteas, Jackie Earl Haley, Patricia Clarkson, Michelle Williams, and Ted Levine. Mark Ruffalo and Ben Kingsley do admirably well with the under-written parts they were handed.
It just doesn't feel like a "Scorsese picture." The soundtrack is a moody classical score - no anachronistic rock n' roll to be found here. No fast zooms or intricate tracking shots. No highly charismatic villains who we're all secretly rooting for. Even Thelma Schoonmaker, the three-time-Oscar-winning Editor who has worked on all of Scorsese's films, paints the pacing all wrong. At times her overlapping of the dialogue and action create a cacophony of inputs that add to the intensity of the storyline. At other times things seem sloppy after thoughts.
The visual hallucinations in the book feel immediate, urgent, and scary. They focus on the Teddy's unraveling and move the story and the characters to their ultimate crescendo. The film spends too much time focusing on Teddy's flashbacks to the atrocities he witnessed in World War II and on the infanticide that resides at the heart of the story. These sequences felt more ghoulish in the movie than the novel. They are essential to the story, but Scorsese seems to be pushing the wrong buttons - hard.
In the end, this feels like what it is - a studio picture with a high pedigree. Scorsese, who's singular style and vision has crafted some of the most memorable movie moments in the last three decades is handed the unenviable task of committing someone else's solidly realized vision to the screen. Dennis Lehane's novel was like reading a movie, a movie made by a master filmmaker. This picture feels like someone efforting to channel a master filmmaker.
Some will compare this picture to Kubrick's The Shining, the picture in which Stanley channeled Stephen King's work. That movie, while also not hewing extremely close to the source material, is still unsettling to watch. The pace, the sparse music, the utter emptiness of the hotel are haunting and memorable. Shutter Island, on the other hand, fades as you walk from the theater.
I would recommend you read the book of Shutter Island. Then curl up and watch a classic Scorsese movie to get over your fears and get some sleep. Try Goodfellas.
Thursday, February 18, 2010
Have You Forgotten?
Before I write this post, a total off-topic thought: "Have You Forgotten?" by the band Red House Painters is an incredibly good song. It was featured on the Vanilla Sky soundtrack a few years back. If you have the means, I suggest finding it. Moody and melodic.
ANYWAY.....Have you forgotten that you are a member of the Fantasy Film Studio League? I have not! Things are gearing up for the Academy Awards in a few weeks (two weeks from Sunday already!), and there are a few awards this weekend. We'll see the Writer's Guild Awards and the BAFTAs announced this weekend. That should shake up the scoreboard a bit and we'll have some updates on Monday to help launch us into the final stretch.
Incidentally, this weekend also features the premiere of Shutter Island, the new picture from Martin Scorsese. It's adapted from a Dennis Lehane novel which I read earlier this week. Good, intense, pulpy stuff. If you're looking for a fast read, this is it. I'm looking forward to seeing how the Best Picture-directing, Best Director Award-Winning Scorsese returns to non-documentary features. This movie has been postponed a few times which rarely spells good news. Look for a review posted to the blog soon.
In Academy news - The live musical numbers have been axed from this year's telecast. Instead, pre-recorded segments of the nominated songs will be played. The producers have done this in an attempt to reduce the length of the show. Also meant to reduce the time is the placement of the nominees in the theatre. Apparently, a lot of screen time is wasted waiting for people to walk to the podium to accept the biggest honor of their lives. So, instead, let's rush them on and rush them off!
READY FOR A BLAST FROM THE PAST?
Some of you have commented on the state of the scoreboard this year. How the game is not as fun with a runaway first place (me). For the record, it's still pretty fun if you're in the lead. But I get your point. Last year we saw a lot more movement back and forth on the scoreboard each week or after each nomination and award show.
For those of you who participated last year, I thought I would give you a reminder of what the scoreboard looked like at this time last year. This is what the scoreboard looked like last year just before the Writer's Guild, BAFTAs, and Academy Awards. Enjoy the trip down memory lane!
Name / Nominations / Wins / Points
Danny Sarnowski / 40 / 7 / 101
Mike Palovcsik / 43 / 3 / 95
Scott Engroff / 32 / 9 / 91
The Dekkers / 23 / 2 / 52
Ann Sarnowski / 19 / 0 / 38
Jake Sarnowski / 10 / 2 / 26
Things were a little closer last year, but we still saw a lot of movement after this weekend. Look forward to a post on Monday night to recap the Writer's Guild and BAFTA Awards and to refresh your memories of how things played out last year!
Enjoy the weekend!
Danny.
ANYWAY.....Have you forgotten that you are a member of the Fantasy Film Studio League? I have not! Things are gearing up for the Academy Awards in a few weeks (two weeks from Sunday already!), and there are a few awards this weekend. We'll see the Writer's Guild Awards and the BAFTAs announced this weekend. That should shake up the scoreboard a bit and we'll have some updates on Monday to help launch us into the final stretch.
Incidentally, this weekend also features the premiere of Shutter Island, the new picture from Martin Scorsese. It's adapted from a Dennis Lehane novel which I read earlier this week. Good, intense, pulpy stuff. If you're looking for a fast read, this is it. I'm looking forward to seeing how the Best Picture-directing, Best Director Award-Winning Scorsese returns to non-documentary features. This movie has been postponed a few times which rarely spells good news. Look for a review posted to the blog soon.
In Academy news - The live musical numbers have been axed from this year's telecast. Instead, pre-recorded segments of the nominated songs will be played. The producers have done this in an attempt to reduce the length of the show. Also meant to reduce the time is the placement of the nominees in the theatre. Apparently, a lot of screen time is wasted waiting for people to walk to the podium to accept the biggest honor of their lives. So, instead, let's rush them on and rush them off!
READY FOR A BLAST FROM THE PAST?
Some of you have commented on the state of the scoreboard this year. How the game is not as fun with a runaway first place (me). For the record, it's still pretty fun if you're in the lead. But I get your point. Last year we saw a lot more movement back and forth on the scoreboard each week or after each nomination and award show.
For those of you who participated last year, I thought I would give you a reminder of what the scoreboard looked like at this time last year. This is what the scoreboard looked like last year just before the Writer's Guild, BAFTAs, and Academy Awards. Enjoy the trip down memory lane!
Name / Nominations / Wins / Points
Danny Sarnowski / 40 / 7 / 101
Mike Palovcsik / 43 / 3 / 95
Scott Engroff / 32 / 9 / 91
The Dekkers / 23 / 2 / 52
Ann Sarnowski / 19 / 0 / 38
Jake Sarnowski / 10 / 2 / 26
Things were a little closer last year, but we still saw a lot of movement after this weekend. Look forward to a post on Monday night to recap the Writer's Guild and BAFTA Awards and to refresh your memories of how things played out last year!
Enjoy the weekend!
Danny.
Wednesday, February 3, 2010
Academy Award Nominations Announced
For those of you waking up from a coma today or those "sitting in a cave...on Mars...with your figers in your ears" this week, you should know that the Academy Award nominations were announced yesterday. Either due to the incredible amount of press coverage that certain films have received this year (you know who you are) or from the increase in awareness from playing the Fantasy Film Studio League, I really wasn't surprised by too many of the awards.
The Hurt Locker and Avatar tied for the most nominations. Not surprising given their dominance through much of the season. Other non-events were Christoph Walz and Mo'Nique being nominated for Best Supporting categories and Meryl Streep, George Clooney, and Jeff Bridges pulling out the leading categories. In a non-shock to all involved, Sandra Bullock pulled out a nomination for The Blind Side. As disclosure, I have not seen this movie. But I get the sense that this is a career nomination for her. Worse, I fear that this could be a career win. Meaning she didn't really deserve it this year but she's done other notable work (see Russell Crowe winning for Gladiator when he deserved it for The Insider or L.A. Confidential). The issue is that Sandra Bullock, in my opinion, has not done award-worthy work before. She's a very talented comic actress, a group who does not get their fare shake in Hollywood. But that doesn't deserve an Academy Award. Depending on who you read, she's got the win all but sewn up. Too bad for Gabourey Sidibe and Carey Mulligan who are earning nominations and kudos for early work.
Of course, this year also features the first 10 nominees for Best Picture in decades. Along with several of the Producer's Guild nominees, The Blind Side actually picked up a nod for Best Picture (I may have to eventually see this picture). Up also snagged a Best Picture although everyone seems to agree that it will win the Best Animated Film category.
The scoreboard has been updated with the nominations below. I got the most nomiations with 10 this week. Defending Champion Scott Engroff came in second with 6nominations. Kudos to everyone else for picking up some nominations this week as well. We're in the countdown now. Just a few weeks until the biggest event of the season. Don't forget, all of this fanatical examination of the awards season should make all of you more dangerous in our annual Academy Awards pool!
Name / Nominations / Wins / Points
Danny Sarnowski / 47 / 14 / 136
Defending Champion Scott Engroff / 25 / 6 / 68
Paul Hogseth / 25 / 2 / 56
The Dekkers / 26 / 0 / 52
Ann Sarnowski / 20 / 2 / 46
Jake & Rachel / 16 / 0 / 32
Dan Pavlovich / 14 / 1 / 31
Erin & Steve / 14 / 0 / 28
Jimmy Gordon / 9 / 0 / 18
The Hurt Locker and Avatar tied for the most nominations. Not surprising given their dominance through much of the season. Other non-events were Christoph Walz and Mo'Nique being nominated for Best Supporting categories and Meryl Streep, George Clooney, and Jeff Bridges pulling out the leading categories. In a non-shock to all involved, Sandra Bullock pulled out a nomination for The Blind Side. As disclosure, I have not seen this movie. But I get the sense that this is a career nomination for her. Worse, I fear that this could be a career win. Meaning she didn't really deserve it this year but she's done other notable work (see Russell Crowe winning for Gladiator when he deserved it for The Insider or L.A. Confidential). The issue is that Sandra Bullock, in my opinion, has not done award-worthy work before. She's a very talented comic actress, a group who does not get their fare shake in Hollywood. But that doesn't deserve an Academy Award. Depending on who you read, she's got the win all but sewn up. Too bad for Gabourey Sidibe and Carey Mulligan who are earning nominations and kudos for early work.
Of course, this year also features the first 10 nominees for Best Picture in decades. Along with several of the Producer's Guild nominees, The Blind Side actually picked up a nod for Best Picture (I may have to eventually see this picture). Up also snagged a Best Picture although everyone seems to agree that it will win the Best Animated Film category.
The scoreboard has been updated with the nominations below. I got the most nomiations with 10 this week. Defending Champion Scott Engroff came in second with 6nominations. Kudos to everyone else for picking up some nominations this week as well. We're in the countdown now. Just a few weeks until the biggest event of the season. Don't forget, all of this fanatical examination of the awards season should make all of you more dangerous in our annual Academy Awards pool!
Name / Nominations / Wins / Points
Danny Sarnowski / 47 / 14 / 136
Defending Champion Scott Engroff / 25 / 6 / 68
Paul Hogseth / 25 / 2 / 56
The Dekkers / 26 / 0 / 52
Ann Sarnowski / 20 / 2 / 46
Jake & Rachel / 16 / 0 / 32
Dan Pavlovich / 14 / 1 / 31
Erin & Steve / 14 / 0 / 28
Jimmy Gordon / 9 / 0 / 18
Tuesday, January 26, 2010
Fantasy Film Studio League Update
For all of you purists who only check this blog when there's an update for the Fantasy Film Studio League - you are welcome for tonight's post. Also, you may have missed this weekend's post when I documented some of the process that Ann and I go through to pull off our annual Academy Awards party.
I'll keep tonight's update fairly brief. This weekend we saw the Screen Actor's Guild and Producer's Guild Awards. They only amounted to six total awards in the film categories (five for the SAG Awards and one for the Producer's Guild), but they muddled the waters of the award season picture thus far. Avatar, shut out for the SAG awards, was thought by many to be the run away favorite for the Producer's Guild Award for Best Picture. Surprisingly, the guild chose to award the Best Picture honor this year to The Hurt Locker. This is an interesting twist given the populist momentum that the Biggest Movie of All Time has going for it right now. By contrast, The Hurt Locker missed the SAG award for best picture and instead the honor went to Inlgorious Basterds. By the way, you may have read that Inglorious Basterds "swept" or "cleaned up" at the SAG awards this weekend. It won two awards. Two. One for Best Ensemble Cast (Best Picture equivalent) and one for Best Supporting Actor for Christoph Walz.
Defending Champion Scott Engroff recently changed his Best Picture from An Education to Inglorious Basterds (and he already had Christoph Walz for Best Supporting Actor), so this weekend was good for his studio. I happened to have The Hurt Locker for Best Picture along with Jeff Bridges (who won the SAG Award for Best Actor) and Mo'Nique (who picked up a Best Supporting Actress honor), so I did fairly well also. Nobody has Sandra Bullock for The Blind Side as Best Actress so the points for that award went unclaimed.
We're one week away from the last nominations of the season - The Academy Awards nominees will be announced Tuesday morning. You can count on an update from me that day and begin the countdown to the big event. The updated standings are below.
Cheers,
Danny.
Name / Nominations / Wins / Points
Danny Sarnowski / 37 / 14 / 116
Defending Champion Scott Engroff / 19 / 6 / 56
Paul Hogseth / 21 / 1 / 45
The Dekkers / 21 / 0 / 42
Ann Sarnowski / 16 / 2 / 38
Jake & Rachel / 13 / 0 / 26
Erin & Steve / 12 / 0 / 24
Dan Pavlovich / 10 / 1 / 23
Jimmy Gordon / 7 / 0 / 14
I'll keep tonight's update fairly brief. This weekend we saw the Screen Actor's Guild and Producer's Guild Awards. They only amounted to six total awards in the film categories (five for the SAG Awards and one for the Producer's Guild), but they muddled the waters of the award season picture thus far. Avatar, shut out for the SAG awards, was thought by many to be the run away favorite for the Producer's Guild Award for Best Picture. Surprisingly, the guild chose to award the Best Picture honor this year to The Hurt Locker. This is an interesting twist given the populist momentum that the Biggest Movie of All Time has going for it right now. By contrast, The Hurt Locker missed the SAG award for best picture and instead the honor went to Inlgorious Basterds. By the way, you may have read that Inglorious Basterds "swept" or "cleaned up" at the SAG awards this weekend. It won two awards. Two. One for Best Ensemble Cast (Best Picture equivalent) and one for Best Supporting Actor for Christoph Walz.
Defending Champion Scott Engroff recently changed his Best Picture from An Education to Inglorious Basterds (and he already had Christoph Walz for Best Supporting Actor), so this weekend was good for his studio. I happened to have The Hurt Locker for Best Picture along with Jeff Bridges (who won the SAG Award for Best Actor) and Mo'Nique (who picked up a Best Supporting Actress honor), so I did fairly well also. Nobody has Sandra Bullock for The Blind Side as Best Actress so the points for that award went unclaimed.
We're one week away from the last nominations of the season - The Academy Awards nominees will be announced Tuesday morning. You can count on an update from me that day and begin the countdown to the big event. The updated standings are below.
Cheers,
Danny.
Name / Nominations / Wins / Points
Danny Sarnowski / 37 / 14 / 116
Defending Champion Scott Engroff / 19 / 6 / 56
Paul Hogseth / 21 / 1 / 45
The Dekkers / 21 / 0 / 42
Ann Sarnowski / 16 / 2 / 38
Jake & Rachel / 13 / 0 / 26
Erin & Steve / 12 / 0 / 24
Dan Pavlovich / 10 / 1 / 23
Jimmy Gordon / 7 / 0 / 14
Sunday, January 24, 2010
And so it begins...
This weekend Ann and I began our Academy Awards party planning in earnest. We not only got to see a movie this weekend (we saw Avatar in 3D), but we really dove into the planning for the party. Each year we go through this process and it really doesn't change all that much from year to year. For all the questions and comments that we get each year, we thought that we would use this blog to give a glimpse into "the method."
First, we discuss what type of party we want to have. Every year we have the dialogue about how we'd love to keep it more intimate and familial and really have time to share with all of our guests and enjoy the show. Each year, however, we also realize that we really want to share the big night with as many friends and family as possible, so it ends up being a big affair. I always ask if this is the year that we'll go "black tie" and every year the answer is "not this year." Please don't take this to mean that we don't want some of you at the party. Not at all. In fact, we want YOU at the party and we want to spend more time with YOU at the party. It's all those OTHER people that we think about nixing from the list. Please, really, the more the merrier.
Next, we work on deciding how we want the food to work out. Are we planning a meal? Do we want to serve an entree? Or are we really working for more of an appetizer party? We've done it both ways. Back in 2000, when Gladiator took home the prize, things were more organized around appetizers. In later years, such as 2004, we added an entree (Mystic Ribeyes anyone?). Once we decide if we'll be serving a main dish, then we work around it to determine the sides or appetizers. Also, more recently we've taken to finding one or two "star" dishes that the food around which the party is centered. Last year's wedding cake for "Rachel Getting Married" is an example.
So, we know the size of the party, whether it will be a meal or just snacking, and we know a few "star" dishes. Then we really dig into the planning for the party. We do this in two directions:
A. Begin with the Nominees (or possible nominees) - This often leads us to silly names that may never get used. Also, due to the consistently great work of several filmmakers and actors, we get to re-use them (Clint Eastwraps or Morgan Fritos, for example).
B. Begin with the food - We pick recipes or dishes we want to serve and work to find a theme or a name associated with a nominee that we think will work.
This is easily the most fun part of the planning process for me. I really enjoy coming up with silly names and crafting things that we know our guests will enjoy. I also love watching Ann's brain work as she is really something as a hostess and chef. I don't understand how she comes up with some of the ideas, but I'm so happy that she does.
Once the food is locked we can begin the gritty details of the party. This has gotten considerably easier over the years. For several years, we strong-armed my brother-in-law, James, into crafting world-class invitations and ballots for us. One year he made a full DVD of all the trailers for each nominated film and made an accompanying booklet. It was sick. Since we all had children, however, we've worked to streamline some of these processes. We've used evite for the invitations and last year my father helped us build a website to serve as not only a ballot, but a scorecard as well. These will be used again this year. So that really leaves us with the guest list. It's always fun to think through who will join us for the party this year and to review the "watch list." The watch list is for those who have been invited to the party but have declined more than one year. If you choose to decline the party AND if you decline to participate in the ballot for more than one year, you're on the watch list. Two years and you're off the list. I know, it's tough, but this is just the way the world works. Do your best to stay off the watch list.
Anyway, we started all of this over the weekend. We've got some great ideas for potential foods and recipes and Ann has already been thinking about themes and decorating. With the 10 Best Picture nominees this year and the co-hosts of Alec Baldwin and Steve Martin, we're already really excited for the party.
This was "the method" and it's served us pretty well for more than a decade. We'll update this a few times over the next few weeks as we get things prepared for the party and I'll certainly update the Fantasy Film Studio League as nominations and awards continue to roll in. Keep checking back for updates and for insight into the big night. Until then, go see a movie!!!!
Cheers,
Danny.
First, we discuss what type of party we want to have. Every year we have the dialogue about how we'd love to keep it more intimate and familial and really have time to share with all of our guests and enjoy the show. Each year, however, we also realize that we really want to share the big night with as many friends and family as possible, so it ends up being a big affair. I always ask if this is the year that we'll go "black tie" and every year the answer is "not this year." Please don't take this to mean that we don't want some of you at the party. Not at all. In fact, we want YOU at the party and we want to spend more time with YOU at the party. It's all those OTHER people that we think about nixing from the list. Please, really, the more the merrier.
Next, we work on deciding how we want the food to work out. Are we planning a meal? Do we want to serve an entree? Or are we really working for more of an appetizer party? We've done it both ways. Back in 2000, when Gladiator took home the prize, things were more organized around appetizers. In later years, such as 2004, we added an entree (Mystic Ribeyes anyone?). Once we decide if we'll be serving a main dish, then we work around it to determine the sides or appetizers. Also, more recently we've taken to finding one or two "star" dishes that the food around which the party is centered. Last year's wedding cake for "Rachel Getting Married" is an example.
So, we know the size of the party, whether it will be a meal or just snacking, and we know a few "star" dishes. Then we really dig into the planning for the party. We do this in two directions:
A. Begin with the Nominees (or possible nominees) - This often leads us to silly names that may never get used. Also, due to the consistently great work of several filmmakers and actors, we get to re-use them (Clint Eastwraps or Morgan Fritos, for example).
B. Begin with the food - We pick recipes or dishes we want to serve and work to find a theme or a name associated with a nominee that we think will work.
This is easily the most fun part of the planning process for me. I really enjoy coming up with silly names and crafting things that we know our guests will enjoy. I also love watching Ann's brain work as she is really something as a hostess and chef. I don't understand how she comes up with some of the ideas, but I'm so happy that she does.
Once the food is locked we can begin the gritty details of the party. This has gotten considerably easier over the years. For several years, we strong-armed my brother-in-law, James, into crafting world-class invitations and ballots for us. One year he made a full DVD of all the trailers for each nominated film and made an accompanying booklet. It was sick. Since we all had children, however, we've worked to streamline some of these processes. We've used evite for the invitations and last year my father helped us build a website to serve as not only a ballot, but a scorecard as well. These will be used again this year. So that really leaves us with the guest list. It's always fun to think through who will join us for the party this year and to review the "watch list." The watch list is for those who have been invited to the party but have declined more than one year. If you choose to decline the party AND if you decline to participate in the ballot for more than one year, you're on the watch list. Two years and you're off the list. I know, it's tough, but this is just the way the world works. Do your best to stay off the watch list.
Anyway, we started all of this over the weekend. We've got some great ideas for potential foods and recipes and Ann has already been thinking about themes and decorating. With the 10 Best Picture nominees this year and the co-hosts of Alec Baldwin and Steve Martin, we're already really excited for the party.
This was "the method" and it's served us pretty well for more than a decade. We'll update this a few times over the next few weeks as we get things prepared for the party and I'll certainly update the Fantasy Film Studio League as nominations and awards continue to roll in. Keep checking back for updates and for insight into the big night. Until then, go see a movie!!!!
Cheers,
Danny.
Thursday, January 21, 2010
The British Are Coming!
The British Academy of Film & Television Arts (BAFTA) announced its nominees today and I've updated the Fantasy Film Studio League Scoreboard to reflect them. There are some familiar names among the nominees again today as the front runners for the season are taking shape. However, we saw with the Golden Globes last week that not all of the awards are a foregone conclusion. Below is a snap shot of how the group did with the BAFTA nominations.
Name / Number of BAFTA Nominations / Points Added to Total
Danny Sarnowski / 8 / 16
Defending Champion Scott Engroff / 6 / 12
Paul Hogseth / 5 / 10
The Dekkers / 5 / 10
Ann Sarnowski / 4 / 8
Jimmmy Gordon / 2 / 4
Dan Pavlovich / 2 / 4
Jake & Rachel / 2 / 4
Steve & Erin / 2 / 4
Good to see everyone getting a taste from the BAFTAs. We even saw a few awards for The Lovely Bones (kudos to Jimmy)! Also, Lone Scherfig, the director of An Education, was nominated over Jason Reitman for Up In the Air. This is a bit of an upset. Mainly it upsets ME because I have Jason Reitman while Defending Champion Scott Engroff has Lone Scherfig.
I wanted to throw a plug in there that this weekend the blog will begin to be updated by both me and Ann and we'll start to chronicle the preparations for the Academy Awards party. The show is on Sunday, March 7th, and we certainly hope that all of you can make it. Not only will the show be great, the party will be wonderful, and we will crown the NEW champion of the Fantasy Film Studio League! Sounds like a great night to me.
The full updated scoreboard is listed below. Also, remember that the Screen Actors and Producer's Guild Awards are this weekend so we'll have another update on Sunday night to highlight those winners. Then we're just a week away from the Academy Awards nominations!
Name / Nominations / Wins / Points
Danny Sarnowski / 37 / 11 / 107
Defending Champion Scott Engroff / 19 / 4 / 50
Paul Hogseth / 21 / 1 / 45
The Dekkers / 21 / 0 / 42
Ann Sarnowski / 16 / 2 / 38
Jake & Rachel / 13 / 0 / 26
Erin & Steve / 12 / 0 / 24
Dan Pavlovich / 10 / 1 / 23
Jimmy Gordon / 7 / 0 / 14
Cheers,
Danny
Name / Number of BAFTA Nominations / Points Added to Total
Danny Sarnowski / 8 / 16
Defending Champion Scott Engroff / 6 / 12
Paul Hogseth / 5 / 10
The Dekkers / 5 / 10
Ann Sarnowski / 4 / 8
Jimmmy Gordon / 2 / 4
Dan Pavlovich / 2 / 4
Jake & Rachel / 2 / 4
Steve & Erin / 2 / 4
Good to see everyone getting a taste from the BAFTAs. We even saw a few awards for The Lovely Bones (kudos to Jimmy)! Also, Lone Scherfig, the director of An Education, was nominated over Jason Reitman for Up In the Air. This is a bit of an upset. Mainly it upsets ME because I have Jason Reitman while Defending Champion Scott Engroff has Lone Scherfig.
I wanted to throw a plug in there that this weekend the blog will begin to be updated by both me and Ann and we'll start to chronicle the preparations for the Academy Awards party. The show is on Sunday, March 7th, and we certainly hope that all of you can make it. Not only will the show be great, the party will be wonderful, and we will crown the NEW champion of the Fantasy Film Studio League! Sounds like a great night to me.
The full updated scoreboard is listed below. Also, remember that the Screen Actors and Producer's Guild Awards are this weekend so we'll have another update on Sunday night to highlight those winners. Then we're just a week away from the Academy Awards nominations!
Name / Nominations / Wins / Points
Danny Sarnowski / 37 / 11 / 107
Defending Champion Scott Engroff / 19 / 4 / 50
Paul Hogseth / 21 / 1 / 45
The Dekkers / 21 / 0 / 42
Ann Sarnowski / 16 / 2 / 38
Jake & Rachel / 13 / 0 / 26
Erin & Steve / 12 / 0 / 24
Dan Pavlovich / 10 / 1 / 23
Jimmy Gordon / 7 / 0 / 14
Cheers,
Danny
Monday, January 18, 2010
Jennifer's Body
Disclaimer: Before reading this review, I think it's fair to mention that I do not know any teen agers very well. More to the point, I don't know any teen agers who live, act, and talk like the characters in Jennifer's Body. I didn't know any teen agers who spoke like Juno, either. While I enjoy the cadence and irony of their Diablo-Cody-created dialogue, their banter is a constant reminder that I am watching a movie. This particular movie seems to have been designed to be watched by high school kids on a cell phone, while texting friends about boys and driving. That is, until the studio-dictated lesbian scene kicks in. More on that in a moment.
I went into Jennifer's Body with improbably high expectations. I do enjoy Diablo Cody's writing. Juno was a very strong first script and her work as a contributor to Entertainment Weekly is usually wickedly witty. Her characters talk in ways that no one talks. It's like watching a Shakespeare adaptation where the dialogue has been left intact but the rest of the story updated. David Mamet has the same affliction, a power for words that belies his best intent of a believable story.
This story happens to surround Jennifer, played by Megan Fox, a slutty, catty, not-surprisingly insecure high school vixen. The essential plot is that while sneaking into the local dive bar to catch a band of "salty" indie rockers, Jennifer is changed into something terrifying. Something evil. Her friend, played with dorky eyeglasses (meant to indicate that she is NOT the hot one) by Amanda Seyfried, is the only person who can see how evil Jennifer has become. Perhaps the reason that no one else notices, and why we the audience don't care, is that Jennifer was already dangerous when the story began. Fox plays Jennifer as a mischevious tart who uses her sexuality to humiliate and control everyone in her life. This characterization allows Fox plenty of screen time in a cheerleader outfit or leg warmers, but it doesn't give us anything to care about.
Her character becomes possessed by a boy-eating demon, which should be scary. Instead, I spent much of the movie hoping someone would kill JENNIFER and leave the demon. The latter is much more interesting than the former and I'd pay to see a good movie about it. Rather than crafting a story worth caring about, however, the producers instead opted to orchestrate a scene in which a panty-clad Jennifer seduces her geeky friend. Their make out scene is the most gruesomely filmed and lit scene in the whole movie proving that the producers are more interested in devouring the purity and exploiting the weaknesses of high school boys than their demonic lead character.
The apparent villians in the movie (the aforementioned indie rockers) treat murder as such as flippant enterprise that it gave me chills. Say what you will about the horror films made over the years, at least most people CARED that someone was dying. The irony-laden, pop-culture-driven desire for fame and fortune that led these young men to the acts they perform is more dangerous than anything this movie has to offer.
I expected more from Diablo Cody. An intelligent, engaging writer and a powerful female voice in cinema, she should have been able to deliver more. Rosemary's Baby or even the original A Nightmare on Elm Street boasted more believable female leads. The horror genre has made a killing by killing defenseless teenage girls. This film seemed poised to flip the whole enterprise on its head and reverse the gender roles traditionally found in these pictures. Instead, with its high school hooker costumes and exploitative lesbian scene, this movie drives young women further into the meat grinder of horror movies. Feel free to skip this one.
I went into Jennifer's Body with improbably high expectations. I do enjoy Diablo Cody's writing. Juno was a very strong first script and her work as a contributor to Entertainment Weekly is usually wickedly witty. Her characters talk in ways that no one talks. It's like watching a Shakespeare adaptation where the dialogue has been left intact but the rest of the story updated. David Mamet has the same affliction, a power for words that belies his best intent of a believable story.
This story happens to surround Jennifer, played by Megan Fox, a slutty, catty, not-surprisingly insecure high school vixen. The essential plot is that while sneaking into the local dive bar to catch a band of "salty" indie rockers, Jennifer is changed into something terrifying. Something evil. Her friend, played with dorky eyeglasses (meant to indicate that she is NOT the hot one) by Amanda Seyfried, is the only person who can see how evil Jennifer has become. Perhaps the reason that no one else notices, and why we the audience don't care, is that Jennifer was already dangerous when the story began. Fox plays Jennifer as a mischevious tart who uses her sexuality to humiliate and control everyone in her life. This characterization allows Fox plenty of screen time in a cheerleader outfit or leg warmers, but it doesn't give us anything to care about.
Her character becomes possessed by a boy-eating demon, which should be scary. Instead, I spent much of the movie hoping someone would kill JENNIFER and leave the demon. The latter is much more interesting than the former and I'd pay to see a good movie about it. Rather than crafting a story worth caring about, however, the producers instead opted to orchestrate a scene in which a panty-clad Jennifer seduces her geeky friend. Their make out scene is the most gruesomely filmed and lit scene in the whole movie proving that the producers are more interested in devouring the purity and exploiting the weaknesses of high school boys than their demonic lead character.
The apparent villians in the movie (the aforementioned indie rockers) treat murder as such as flippant enterprise that it gave me chills. Say what you will about the horror films made over the years, at least most people CARED that someone was dying. The irony-laden, pop-culture-driven desire for fame and fortune that led these young men to the acts they perform is more dangerous than anything this movie has to offer.
I expected more from Diablo Cody. An intelligent, engaging writer and a powerful female voice in cinema, she should have been able to deliver more. Rosemary's Baby or even the original A Nightmare on Elm Street boasted more believable female leads. The horror genre has made a killing by killing defenseless teenage girls. This film seemed poised to flip the whole enterprise on its head and reverse the gender roles traditionally found in these pictures. Instead, with its high school hooker costumes and exploitative lesbian scene, this movie drives young women further into the meat grinder of horror movies. Feel free to skip this one.
Sunday, January 17, 2010
The Hurt Locker
Kathryn Bigelow's muscular, tense, and gritty war thriller The Hurt Locker deserves much of the praise that has been hurled its way. This movie is easily the best of the Iraq war movies that Hollywood has created. It is vastly superior to films like Jarhead, Rendition, The Kingdom, In The Valley of Elah, or Body of Lies. It is the closest that we've seen recently to the power and tragedy of films like Apocalypse Now or Saving Private Ryan. The tension is sickening and the constant barrage of stress and danger that the characters endure is nearly unimaginable. The visceral punch that Bigelow packs, however, at times veers the film closer to cliche territory.
Jeremy Renner gives a striking performance as a danger junkie who gets his rocks off dismantling bombs in Iraq. The good news for him is that he gets LOTS of opportunities to practice. Renner sweats and swears as he works to reverse engineer the murderous work of Iraqi insurgents. His team members are forced to sweat it out along with him, exposed to the elements, snipers, a city full of potential enemies, and Renner's carelessness. These scenes are intense and they move the film along like a freight train. Some of them do stretch credulity, however. I'm loathe to believe that any soldier in the Army in a war zone can be as blatantly insubordinate as Renner's character. The thought that "cowboys" like this who seem to be fighting their own private war are the ones on the ground is a frightening thought.
The movie attempts to show us how Renner has been shaped into this danger junkie through the world around him. Every doorway or alley in the movie seems to teem with the threat of death and every pile of trash could be a bomb waiting to go off. This constant threat has warped Renner's character into what he ultimately becomes. The film's conclusion is heart breaking as it is terrifying. The choices made by men who only feel alive while on the brink of death are difficult for most of us to understand.
The rest of the cast does a good job of keeping the stakes high and the drama poignant. Ralph Fiennes, David Morse, and Guy Pierce walk on and off in brief cameos while Anthony Mackie provides an equally-praise-worthy performance as a team member who (like us) is filled with both awe and fear for his team member Renner.
A few subplots involving a local youth with whom Renner briefly bonds and a self-authorized hunting mission by the team stretch the believability of the film and remind us that we're watching a movie. A tense, taut, scorching war movie, but a movie just the same.
Jeremy Renner gives a striking performance as a danger junkie who gets his rocks off dismantling bombs in Iraq. The good news for him is that he gets LOTS of opportunities to practice. Renner sweats and swears as he works to reverse engineer the murderous work of Iraqi insurgents. His team members are forced to sweat it out along with him, exposed to the elements, snipers, a city full of potential enemies, and Renner's carelessness. These scenes are intense and they move the film along like a freight train. Some of them do stretch credulity, however. I'm loathe to believe that any soldier in the Army in a war zone can be as blatantly insubordinate as Renner's character. The thought that "cowboys" like this who seem to be fighting their own private war are the ones on the ground is a frightening thought.
The movie attempts to show us how Renner has been shaped into this danger junkie through the world around him. Every doorway or alley in the movie seems to teem with the threat of death and every pile of trash could be a bomb waiting to go off. This constant threat has warped Renner's character into what he ultimately becomes. The film's conclusion is heart breaking as it is terrifying. The choices made by men who only feel alive while on the brink of death are difficult for most of us to understand.
The rest of the cast does a good job of keeping the stakes high and the drama poignant. Ralph Fiennes, David Morse, and Guy Pierce walk on and off in brief cameos while Anthony Mackie provides an equally-praise-worthy performance as a team member who (like us) is filled with both awe and fear for his team member Renner.
A few subplots involving a local youth with whom Renner briefly bonds and a self-authorized hunting mission by the team stretch the believability of the film and remind us that we're watching a movie. A tense, taut, scorching war movie, but a movie just the same.
It was a wierd night in Hollywood...
Well, the Golden Globes just wrapped up and they were...strange. I had high hopes for Ricky Gervais and things just didn't come together. He had a decent bit about Mel Gibson, but it's tough to imagine an easier target. Except maybe for NBC which got slammed all night for its Leno/O'Brien decisions. Other than that, there wasn't much to the night and most of the stars were NOT obviously drunk. That was a bit of a let down from other years. The Pre Show Red Carpet coverage was, however, almost the most embarassing, awkward, and poorly-produced piece of television I've ever seen - even on NBC! (See, it's VERY easy to make fun of NBC)
On the awards front, there were some surprises. I'll keep my comments to the film categories, as this is not a Fantasy Television Studio League (although that sounds like a really awesome idea for next year, any takers?). AVATAR continued its global dominance and added Best Director and Best Picture - Drama to its list of accolades. As of today the film has made over $1.6 billion and is poised to beat Titanic's world wide and domestic records in the next three weeks. Kudos to James Cameron and his team for doing it again and for proving bigger is better. You can read my review on this blog posted on 12/18 if you're curious for my opinion of the movie. Or you can always go see it for yourself and come up with your own damned opinion.
Other wins that were notable include Sandra Bullock winning for The Blind Side and Jeff Bridges for Crazy Heart. Both of these seemed like long shots at the beginning of the season and are starting to look like better money each week. Also, The Hangover won for Best Picture - Comedy or Musical. This was a pretty big win for a movie like that. Usually the HFPA gives the nod to pictures such as Vicky Cristina Barcelona or Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street, or Dreamgirls. It was such a lowbrow picture for them to honor. It WAS very funny, however. Quentin Tarantino went home empty handed, which is surprising given how much the Hollywood Foreign Press Association seems to love him and his work. Christoph Walz did take the Best Supporting Actor statue home, so there's something.
Anyway, the updated standings are listed below. This week we see the British Academy of Film & Television Arts (BAFTAs) Nominees and the winners for the Producer and Screen Actor's Guild Awards will be announced. Check the blog for the updated scoreboard. Good luck this week!
Name / Nominations / Wins / Points
Danny Sarnowski / 29 / 11 / 91
Scott Engroff / 13 / 4 / 38
Paul Hogseth / 16 / 1 / 35
The Dekkers / 16 / 0 / 32
Ann Sarnowski / 12 / 2 / 30
Jake & Rachel / 11 / 0 / 22
Erin & Steve / 10 / 0 / 20
Dan Pavlovich / 8 / 1 / 19
Jimmy Gordon / 5 / 0 / 10
On the awards front, there were some surprises. I'll keep my comments to the film categories, as this is not a Fantasy Television Studio League (although that sounds like a really awesome idea for next year, any takers?). AVATAR continued its global dominance and added Best Director and Best Picture - Drama to its list of accolades. As of today the film has made over $1.6 billion and is poised to beat Titanic's world wide and domestic records in the next three weeks. Kudos to James Cameron and his team for doing it again and for proving bigger is better. You can read my review on this blog posted on 12/18 if you're curious for my opinion of the movie. Or you can always go see it for yourself and come up with your own damned opinion.
Other wins that were notable include Sandra Bullock winning for The Blind Side and Jeff Bridges for Crazy Heart. Both of these seemed like long shots at the beginning of the season and are starting to look like better money each week. Also, The Hangover won for Best Picture - Comedy or Musical. This was a pretty big win for a movie like that. Usually the HFPA gives the nod to pictures such as Vicky Cristina Barcelona or Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street, or Dreamgirls. It was such a lowbrow picture for them to honor. It WAS very funny, however. Quentin Tarantino went home empty handed, which is surprising given how much the Hollywood Foreign Press Association seems to love him and his work. Christoph Walz did take the Best Supporting Actor statue home, so there's something.
Anyway, the updated standings are listed below. This week we see the British Academy of Film & Television Arts (BAFTAs) Nominees and the winners for the Producer and Screen Actor's Guild Awards will be announced. Check the blog for the updated scoreboard. Good luck this week!
Name / Nominations / Wins / Points
Danny Sarnowski / 29 / 11 / 91
Scott Engroff / 13 / 4 / 38
Paul Hogseth / 16 / 1 / 35
The Dekkers / 16 / 0 / 32
Ann Sarnowski / 12 / 2 / 30
Jake & Rachel / 11 / 0 / 22
Erin & Steve / 10 / 0 / 20
Dan Pavlovich / 8 / 1 / 19
Jimmy Gordon / 5 / 0 / 10
Saturday, January 16, 2010
The First Awards Have Been Distributed!
Well, the first awards of the season, the Critic's Choice Awards, were distributed last night. That means that the first batch of points for "wins" have also been distributed throughout the Fantasy Film Studio League. There were a lot of interesting wins last night and the scoreboard has been updated. See below.
Kathryn Bigelow became the first woman to win Best Director at the Critic's Choice Awards and her film, The Hurt Locker, took home the Best Picture award. Paul Hogseth earned three points for his Best Director pick and I picked up the Best Picture win. The Best Actress award was actually shared/split between Meryl Streep for Julie & Julia and Sandra Bullock for The Blind Side. Scott Engroff correctly chose Meryl Streep, but no one had Sandra Bullock for Best Actress in the League. The updated scoreboard is listed below. Remember, the Golden Globes will be presented tomorrow night. Good luck to everyone!
Name / Nominations / Wins / Points
Danny Sarnowski / 28 / 6 / 74
Paul Hogseth / 16 / 1 / 35
Dekkers / 16 / 0 / 32
Engroff / 13 / 2 / 32
Ann Sarnowski / 13 / 0 / 27
Jake & Rachel / 11 / 0 / 22
Steve & Erin / 10 / 0 / 20
Dan Pavlovich / 8 / 0 / 16
Jimmy Gordon / 5 / 0 / 10
Kathryn Bigelow became the first woman to win Best Director at the Critic's Choice Awards and her film, The Hurt Locker, took home the Best Picture award. Paul Hogseth earned three points for his Best Director pick and I picked up the Best Picture win. The Best Actress award was actually shared/split between Meryl Streep for Julie & Julia and Sandra Bullock for The Blind Side. Scott Engroff correctly chose Meryl Streep, but no one had Sandra Bullock for Best Actress in the League. The updated scoreboard is listed below. Remember, the Golden Globes will be presented tomorrow night. Good luck to everyone!
Name / Nominations / Wins / Points
Danny Sarnowski / 28 / 6 / 74
Paul Hogseth / 16 / 1 / 35
Dekkers / 16 / 0 / 32
Engroff / 13 / 2 / 32
Ann Sarnowski / 13 / 0 / 27
Jake & Rachel / 11 / 0 / 22
Steve & Erin / 10 / 0 / 20
Dan Pavlovich / 8 / 0 / 16
Jimmy Gordon / 5 / 0 / 10
Monday, January 11, 2010
I Love AND Hate Movies
So.....the other day Ann and I were flipping through the channels and I caught about two seconds of a movie. As random as it was, it was "The January Man" from 1989. I said to Ann, "Oh, I like this movie. It's "The January Man" with Kevin Kline, Alan Rickman, and Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio." Ann could not believe I even knew the movie. I then responded "it's a great movie. We own it. It's in the vault if you want to watch it." Things like that make me remember how much I love movies. It is a fun movie, if you haven't seen it. A fun one-off movie with wildly colorful characters (including a greatly odd performance by Alan Rickman, go figure). It's a little lost in time given its plot characteristics centering around 1980s computer technology and its insistence that Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio is an attractive woman. Still, a good Sunday matinee.
And then there are things that make me hate movies. Today I read an article explaining that Sony is already rebooting the Spider-Man franchise as a gritty, dark, "Batman Begins"-style origin story. This franchise is only eight years old and it really bugs me that the studio is already scrapping it and starting over. I'm not a fan at all of the last Spider-Man movie (it was God awful), but this is just ridiculous. This makes me hate the movies.
And now, on to the reason you came to this site -- The updated Fantasy Film Studio League standings after the Writer's Guild nominations. There were a few surprises in today's announcement from the Writer's Guild. The movies "Up" and "Inglorious Basterds" were shut out and "The Hangover" was included. "Crazy Heart" also made the cut in the Adapted category. "Star Trek" and "Avatar" also made the cut giving some serious cred to sci-fi this year. Speaking of "Avatar," Jake and Rachel paid the intra-season change fee in order to drop "District 9" for "Avatar" in the Original Screenplay category. "District 9" was actually adapted from a graphic novel created by the writer and director in order to attract investors' capital. This move turned out to be a good one as they received a nomination today for that choice. Scott Engroff scored two nominations today and Paul, Erin & Steve, and Danny all scored one as well.
Remember, the Golden Globes are this weekend as well as the Critic's Choice Awards. The nominations have been fun, but the awards are about to start coming. Also, remember that nominations receive two points each while a win pays three points. The updated standings are below....
Name / Nominations / Points
Danny Sarnowski / 28 / 56
The Dekkers / 16 / 32
Paul Hogseth / 16 / 32
Scott Engroff / 13 / 26
Ann Sarnowski / 12 / 24
Jake & Rachel / 11 / 22
Erin & Steve / 10 / 20
Dan Pavlovich / 8 / 16
Jimmy Gordon / 5 / 10
And then there are things that make me hate movies. Today I read an article explaining that Sony is already rebooting the Spider-Man franchise as a gritty, dark, "Batman Begins"-style origin story. This franchise is only eight years old and it really bugs me that the studio is already scrapping it and starting over. I'm not a fan at all of the last Spider-Man movie (it was God awful), but this is just ridiculous. This makes me hate the movies.
And now, on to the reason you came to this site -- The updated Fantasy Film Studio League standings after the Writer's Guild nominations. There were a few surprises in today's announcement from the Writer's Guild. The movies "Up" and "Inglorious Basterds" were shut out and "The Hangover" was included. "Crazy Heart" also made the cut in the Adapted category. "Star Trek" and "Avatar" also made the cut giving some serious cred to sci-fi this year. Speaking of "Avatar," Jake and Rachel paid the intra-season change fee in order to drop "District 9" for "Avatar" in the Original Screenplay category. "District 9" was actually adapted from a graphic novel created by the writer and director in order to attract investors' capital. This move turned out to be a good one as they received a nomination today for that choice. Scott Engroff scored two nominations today and Paul, Erin & Steve, and Danny all scored one as well.
Remember, the Golden Globes are this weekend as well as the Critic's Choice Awards. The nominations have been fun, but the awards are about to start coming. Also, remember that nominations receive two points each while a win pays three points. The updated standings are below....
Name / Nominations / Points
Danny Sarnowski / 28 / 56
The Dekkers / 16 / 32
Paul Hogseth / 16 / 32
Scott Engroff / 13 / 26
Ann Sarnowski / 12 / 24
Jake & Rachel / 11 / 22
Erin & Steve / 10 / 20
Dan Pavlovich / 8 / 16
Jimmy Gordon / 5 / 10
Thursday, January 7, 2010
Fantasy Film Studio League Update!
Well Gang, I hope that you enjoyed your holidays and got some rest. From here on out it is a sprint through awards season. The nominations have continued with both the Producer's Guild and the Director's Guild announcing their nominees this week. Next week brings us the Writer's Guild nominations and both the Critic's Choice Awards and the Golden Globes. We'll finally have some winners to declare along side our nominees. Good stuff.
Some random trivia before we get to the updated leaderboard....
- The Producer's Guild has opted to move forward with 10 best picture nominees to be consistent with the Academy Awards this year
- The American Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences last nominated 10 movies for the Best Picture award back in 1943. The movie that won was Casablanca.
- The Golden Globes is being hosted this year by Ricky Gervais (who has been the best part of the telecast for the last three years or so). The last time the Golden Globes had a host was in 1995 when Forrest Gump took home the award for Best Motion Picture - Drama.
And now to the updated scoreboard. We did some slight movement in the nominations this week, but since the Producer's Guild was so generous with their nominations, most players received at least two points. My heart goes out to the Studios who chose to ride The Road and The Lovely Bones all the way as those have simply not panned out yet this year.
Name / Nominations / Points
Danny Sarnowski / 27 / 54
The Dekkers / 16 / 32
Paul Hogseth / 15 / 30
Ann Sarnowski / 12 / 24
Scott Engroff / 11 / 22
Jake & Rachel / 10 / 20
Erin & Steve / 9 / 18
Dan Pavlovich / 8 / 16
Jimmy Gordon / 5 / 10
That's it for now folks. We'll check in next week with an update following the Writer's Guild nominations and then ride into the weekend with the Critic's Choice and Golden Globe Awards.
Cheers,
Danny.
Some random trivia before we get to the updated leaderboard....
- The Producer's Guild has opted to move forward with 10 best picture nominees to be consistent with the Academy Awards this year
- The American Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences last nominated 10 movies for the Best Picture award back in 1943. The movie that won was Casablanca.
- The Golden Globes is being hosted this year by Ricky Gervais (who has been the best part of the telecast for the last three years or so). The last time the Golden Globes had a host was in 1995 when Forrest Gump took home the award for Best Motion Picture - Drama.
And now to the updated scoreboard. We did some slight movement in the nominations this week, but since the Producer's Guild was so generous with their nominations, most players received at least two points. My heart goes out to the Studios who chose to ride The Road and The Lovely Bones all the way as those have simply not panned out yet this year.
Name / Nominations / Points
Danny Sarnowski / 27 / 54
The Dekkers / 16 / 32
Paul Hogseth / 15 / 30
Ann Sarnowski / 12 / 24
Scott Engroff / 11 / 22
Jake & Rachel / 10 / 20
Erin & Steve / 9 / 18
Dan Pavlovich / 8 / 16
Jimmy Gordon / 5 / 10
That's it for now folks. We'll check in next week with an update following the Writer's Guild nominations and then ride into the weekend with the Critic's Choice and Golden Globe Awards.
Cheers,
Danny.
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