DGA nods give Scorsese, Russell new awards boost
Los Angeles (AFP) - Martin Scorsese, David O Russell and Alfonso Cuaron gained new awards season momentum Tuesday with nominations from the Directors Guild of America (DGA), a key indicator of Oscars hopes.
Scorsese's "The Wolf of Wall Street," Russell's crime caper "American Hustle" and Mexican Cuaron's 3D space spectacular "Gravity" earned their directors the DGA's coveted best feature film nod.
Britons Steve McQueen and Paul Greengrass were also shortlisted for, respectively, historical drama "12 Years a Slave" and high-seas Somali pirate tale "Captain Phillips," starring Tom Hanks.
The DGAs are seen as a reliable indicator of prospects for the Academy Awards, the climax of Hollywood's annual awards season which is in full swing.
In the last 10 years, all but one of the winners of the DGA's top prize went on to win the best director Oscar. Last year's DGA winner, Ben Affleck, did not get the Oscar for "Argo" because he was not nominated in that category. But the film won the best film Academy Award, as well as best writing and editing.
Legendary filmmaker Scorsese, 71, who has been nominated for the DGA prize 10 times, earned the nod this year for "Wolf of Wall Street," a tale of 1990s high finance scandal starring Leonardo DiCaprio.
Russell has also been nominated by the DGA before, for 2010's "The Fighter." The other three are first-time DGA nominees.
The five-strong DGA field was unveiled a week after the Producers Guild of America (PGA) announced its list of 10 movies nominated for best film, including all the DGA picks.
In addition the DGA nominated Woody Allen's "Blue Jasmine," black and white road movie "Nebraska," Disney drama "Saving Mr Banks," AIDS campaigner story "Dallas Buyers Club" and Spike Jonze comedy "Her."
Hollywood is gearing up for the year's first big awards show, the Golden Globes, next Sunday, with "12 Years a Slave" and "American Hustle" garnering the most nominations with seven nods apiece.
In what analysts say is one of the most crowded fields for years, "Nebraska" was next in line with five Globes nominations.
The PGA prizes will be handed out on January 19, followed by the DGAs on January 25. The Oscars, nominees for which will be unveiled on January 16, will be announced at Tinseltown's season-closing awards show on March 2.
