Alliance of Women Film Journalists 2022 Winners

The Alliance of Women Film Journalists* spread the wealth, awarding three wins each to The Banshees of Inisherin, Everything Everywhere All at Once and Women Talking. The AWFJ EDA Awards recognize the best films overall as well as films driven by women.

“We are particularly proud that this year’s member-chosen list of nominees included a significant number of female candidates in non-gender categories. and that we also have female winners in these categories, including Sarah Polley, who receives the EDA Award for Best Director for the multi-nominated and honored Women Talking,” said Jennifer Merin, President of the 95-member AWFJ. “We’re hoping for similar results at this year’s Oscars and various guild awards. as well as with other critics award groups.”

In 2022, the Alliance of Women Film Journalists counted over 500 “EDA Award-eligible films with a female direction and/or femme-centric orientation.”

Nominees and winners of the Alliance of Film Journalists

Best movie
• (WINNER) THE BANSHEES OF ISHERIN
• EVERYTHING, EVERYWHERE AT ONCE
• THE FABELMANS
• TAR
• THE QUEEN
• TALKING WOMEN

Best Director
• The Daniels – EVERYTHING EVERYWHERE
• Martin McDonagh – THE BANSHEES OF INISHERIN
• (WINNER) Sarah Polley – WOMEN TALK
• Gina Prince-Bythewood – THE QUEEN
• Steven Spieiberg – THE FABELMANS
• Charlotte Wells – AFTER THE SUN

Best Screenplay, Original
• AFTER THE SUN – Charlotte Wells
• (WINNER) THE BANSHEES OF INISHERIN – Martin McDonagh
• EVERYTHING EVERYWHERE – the DANIELS
• THE FABELMANS – Steven Spielberg and Tony Kushner
• TAR—Todd Field
• THE LADY KING – Dana Stevens and Maria Bello

Best Screenplay, Adapted
• ALL QUIET ON THE WEST FRONT – Edward Berger, Lesley Patterson, Ian Stokell
• GLASS ONION – Rian Johnson
• SHE SAID – Rebecca Lenkiewicz
• THE WHALE – Samuel D. Hunter
• (WINNER) WOMEN TALKING – Sarah Polley and Miriam Toews
• THE MIRACLE – Alice Birch, Emma Donoghue, Sebastian Lelio

Best Documentary
• EVERYTHING THAT BREATHES – Shaunak Sen
• (WINNER) ALL BEAUTY AND THE BLOODSHED – Laura Poitras
• DESCENDANTS – Margaret Brown
• FIRE OF LOVE – Sara Dosa
• GOOD NIGHT OPPY – Ryan White
• THE JANES – Tia Lessen and Emma Pildes

Best Animated Film
• (WINNER) GDT’S PINOCCHIO – Guillermo del Toro and Mark Gustafson
• MARCEL THE SHELL WITH SHOES – Dean Fleischer camp
• Puss in Boots: THE LAST WISH – Joel Crawford and Januel Mercado
• THE SEAFOOD – Chris Williams
• BURDING RED – Domee Shi
• WENDELL & WILD—Henry Selick

Best Actress
• Cate Blanchett – TAR
• Viola Davis – THE QUEEN
• Danielle Deadwyler – BIS
• Vicki Krieps – CORSAGE
• Emma Thompson – GOOD LUCK TO YOU LEO GRANDE
• (WINNER) Michelle Yeoh – ANYTHING EVERYWHERE

Best Actress in a Supporting Role (Draw)
• Angela Bassett – BLACK PANTHER: WAKANDA FOREVER
• Jessie Buckley – WOMEN TALK
• Hong Chau – THE WHALE
• (WINNER) Kerry Condon – THE BANSHEES OF INISHERIN
• (WINNER) Jamie Lee Curtis – ANYTHING EVERYWHERE
• Janelle Monae – GLASS ONION

Best actor
• Austin Butler—ELVIS
• (WINNER) Colin Farrell – THE BANSHEES OF INISHERIN
• Brendan Fraser – THE WHALE
• Paul Mescal—AFTERSON
• Bill Nighy – LIFE
• Jeremy Pope – THE INSPECTION

Best Actor in a Supporting Role
• Brendon Gleeson – THE BANSHEES OF INISHERIN
• Brian Henry Tyree—CAUSEWAY
• Barry Keoghan – THE BANSHEES OF INISHERIN
• Eddie Redmayne – THE GOOD NURSE
• (WINNER) Ke Huy Quan – EVERYTHING EVERYWHERE
• Ben Wishaw – WOMEN TALK

Best Ensemble Cast – Casting Director
• THE BANSHEES OF INISHERIN – Louise Kiely
• EVERYTHING EVERYWHERE – Sarah Finn
• TRIANGLE OF SADNESS – Pauline Hansson
• BLACK PANTHER: WAKANDA FOREVER – Sarah Finn
• THE QUEEN – Aisha Coley
• (WINNER) WOMEN TALKING – John Buchan and Jason Knight

Best Camera (tie)
• BANSHEES BY INISHERIN – Ben Davis
• THE FABELMANS – Janusz Kaminski
• REALM OF LIGHT – Roger Deakins
• EVERYTHING EVERYWHERE – Larkin Seiple
• (WINNER) TOP GUN: MAVERICK – Claudio Miranda
• (WINNER) THE LADY KING – Polly Morgan

Best edit
• ELVIS – Jonathan Redmond and Matt Villa
• (WINNER) EVERYTHING EVERYWHERE – Paul Rogers
• TAR – Monica Willis
• TOP GUN – Eddie Hamilton
• THE QUEEN – Terilyn A. Shropshire
• WOMEN TALK – Christopher Donaldson, Rosalyn Kallop

Best Foreign Language Film (Draw)
• NOTHING NEW IN THE WEST
• BARDO
• (WINNER) DECISION TO LEAVE
• EVENT
• (WINNER) RRR
• HOLY OMER

EDA Female Focus Awards
These awards only honor WOMEN

Best Director
• Chinoye Chukwu – BIS
• Marie Kreutzer – CORSAGE
• (WINNER) Gina Prince-Bythewood – THE QUEEN
• Sarah Polley – WOMEN TALK
• Maria Schrader – SHE SAID
• Charlotte Wells – AFTER THE SUN

Best Screenwriter
• Alice Birch – THE MIRACLE and MOTHER’S SUNDAY
• Rebecca Lenkiewicz – SHE SAID
• (WINNER) Sarah Polley and Miriam Toews – WOMEN TALK
• Domee Shi – BECOMES RED
• Dana Stevens and Maria Bello – THE QUEEN
• Charlotte Wells – AFTER THE SUN

Best Animated Woman
• (WINNER) Connie – Isabella Rossellini – MARCEL THE SHELL WITH SHOES
• Izzy – Keke Palmer – LIGHT YEAR
• Kat – Poetry Ross – WENDELL & WILD
• Kitty Softpaws – Salma Hayek – KITTEN IN BOOTS: LAST WISH
• Mei – Rosalyn Chiang – BECOME RED
• Ming – Sandra Oh – BECOME RED

Best Woman Breakthrough Performance
• Frankie Corio – AFTER THE SUN
• (WINNER) Danielle Deadwyler – BIS
• Stephanie Hsu – EVERYTHING EVERYWHERE
• Thuso Mbedu – THE WOMAN KING
• Amber Middonner – Loot
• Sadie Sink – THE WHALE

Outstanding Contribution by a Woman in the Motion Picture Industry
• (WINNER) Viola Davis – For making THE WOMAN KING her lifelong passion project and creating opportunities for other creative women.
• Nina Menkes and Maria Giese for BRAINWASHED, the analysis and illustration of the misogynist portrayal of women in Hollywood films.
• Domee Shi for being the first woman to direct a film for Pixar and for becoming Pixar’s VP of Creative
• Jacqueline Stewart for her continued advocacy for the underrepresented and her appointment as President of the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures.
• Michelle Yeoh – Lifetime Achievement Award

EDA Special Mention Awards

Grand Dame Award for Defying Ageism
• Jamie Lee Curtis
• Viola Davis
• (WINNER) Emma Thompson
• Michelle Yeoh

Prize for the age difference of the most outrageous lovers
• CONFESS FLETCH – Jon Hamm, born 1971, and Lorenza Izzo, born 1989
• (WINNER) FUTURE CRIMES – Viggo Mortensen, born 1958, and Lea Sedoux, born 1985
• DEEP WATER – Ben Affleck, born 1972, and Ana de Armas, born 1988
• EIFEL – Romain Duris born 1974 and Emma Mackey born 1996

She Deserves A New Agent Award (NOTE: This is not a disparagement. On the contrary, it suggests the actor is better than the role she was given.)
• (WINNER) Ana de Armas for BLONDE
• Bryce Dallas Howard for JURASSIC WORLD DOMINION
• Margot Robbie for BABYLON
• Rebel Wilson for the SENIOR YEAR

The most daring achievement
• Cate Blanchett – TAR
• Viola Davis – THE QUEEN
• Danielle Deadwyler – BIS
• (WINNER) Emma Thompson – GOOD LUCK TO YOU LEO GRANDE
• Michelle Yeoh – EVERYTHING EVERYWHERE

Time Waster Remake or Sequel Award
• FIRE STARTER
• HALLOWEEN END
• (WINNER) JURASSIC WORLD DOMINION
• PINOCCHIO (Disney)

AWFJ Hall of Shame Award (Eligible for both women and men)
• Alec Baldwin and the RUST crew for continuing to deny responsibility for the on-set shooting that killed cinematographer Halyna Hutchins. The situation is still chaotic. A wrongful death case has been settled, but criminal investigations are ongoing. In November, Baldwin sued crew members for giving him the loaded prop cannon that killed cinematographer Halyna Hutchins. According to news reports, Baldwin also wrote to Hutchins husband Matthew that the gun should never be fired from any particular camera angle.
• BLONDE and Andreas Dominik
• Will Smith for his conduct at and after the Oscars
• (WINNER) Harvey Weinstein forever and ever

* – I am a member of the Union of Film Journalists