Jeanine Basinger
Jury Co-ChairWesleyan UniversityAFI Board of Trustees
Richard Frank
Jury Co-ChairProducerAFI Board of Trustees
Debbie Allen
Actor/Director/Producer/Choreographer/ Dancer/Singer/Songwriter
Shawn Edwards
African American Film Critics Association
Cynthia Erivo
Actress/Singer/Songwriter
Bob Gazzale
American Film Institute
Mark Harris
Historian
Molly Haskell
Historian
Ann Hornaday
The Washington Post
Rian Johnson
Director/Producer/Writer
Lisa Kennedy
Critic/Journalist
Debra Lee
AFI Board of Trustees
David Mandel
Producer/Writer
Marlee Matlin
Actress/Producer
Akira Mizuta Lippit
University of Southern California
Leonard Maltin
Historian
Mary McNamara
The Los Angeles Times
Claudia Puig
Los Angeles Film Critics Association
Matt Roush
TV Guide
Maureen Ryan
Critic/Journalist
Amy Sherman-Palladino
Director/Producer/Writer
Wes Studi
Actor/Producer
Robert Thompson
Syracuse University
Peter Travers
Rolling Stone
Lulu Wang
Director/Producer/Writer
Richard Frank
Chair, AFI Jury for TelevisionProducer AFI Board of Trustees
John Amos
Actor
Aymar Jean Christian
Northwestern University
Bob Gazzale
American Film Institute
Lesli Linka Glatter
Director/Producer
L.S. Kim
University of California, Santa Cruz
Debra Lee
AFI Board of Trustees
Mary McNamara
The Los Angeles Times
Matt Roush
TV Guide
Maureen Ryan
Critic/Journalist
Ellen Seiter
University of Southern California
Betty Thomas
Actor/Director/Producer
Robert Thompson
Syracuse University
Tom Pollock
Chair, AFI Jury for Motion PicturesProducer AFI Board of Trustees
Jeanine Basinger
Wesleyan UniversityAFI Board of Trustees
Bob Gazzale
American Film Institute
Renee Graham
The Boston Globe
Mark Harris
Historian
Ann Hornaday
The Washington Post
Annette Insdorf
Historian
Callie Khouri
Director/Screenwriter/Producer
Delroy Lindo
Actor/Producer
Akira Mizuta Lippit
University of Southern California
Leonard Maltin
Historian
Amy Nicholson
NPR
Peter Travers
Rolling Stone
Courtney B. Vance
Actor/Producer
Robert Thompson
Syracuse University
Sonia Saraiya
Vanity Fair
Maureen Ryan
Critic/Journalist
Matt Roush
TV Guide
Mary McNamara
The Los Angeles Times
Debra Lee
AFI Board of Trustees
L.S. Kim
University of California, Santa Cruz
Ernest Dickerson
Director/Cinematographer
Bob Gazzale
American Film Institute
David Benioff
Director/Screenwriter/Producer
Paris Barclay
Director/Producer
Richard Frank
Chair, AFI Jury for TelevisionProducerAFI Board of Trustees
Alfre Woodard
Actor/Producer
Peter Travers
Rolling Stone
Claudia Puig
Los Angeles Film Critics Association
Amy Nicholson
NPR
Leonard Maltin
Historian
Akira Mizuta Lippit
University of Southern California
Lisa Kennedy
The Denver Post
Ann Hornaday
The Washington Post
Mark Harris
Historian
Bob Gazzale
American Film Institute
Joan Chen
Actor/Director/Screenwriter/Producer
Jeanine Basinger
Wesleyan UniversityAFI Board of Trustees
Tom Pollock
Chair, AFI Jury for Motion Pictures ProducerAFI Board of Trustees
Robert Thompson
Syracuse University
Janet Staiger
University of Texas, Austin
Maureen Ryan
Variety
Matt Roush
TV Guide
Mary McNamara
The Los Angeles Times
Debra Lee
BET Networks AFI Board of Trustees
L.S. Kim
University of California, Santa Cruz
Jennifer Getzinger
Director
Bob Gazzale
American Film Institute
Gabrielle Carteris
SAG-AFTRAAFI Board of Trustees
David Bianculli
NPR
Paris Barclay
Director/Producer
Richard Frank
Chair, AFI Jury for TelevisionProducerAFI Board of Trustees
Peter Travers
Rolling Stone
Amy Nicholson
NPR
Leonard Maltin
Historian
Lisa Kennedy
The Denver Post
Ann Hornaday
The Washington Post
Bob Gazzale
American Film Institute
Jamie Lee Curtis
Actor/Director/Producer
Jay Cassidy
Editor
Halle Berry
Actor/ProducerAFI Board of Trustees
Jeanine Basinger
Wesleyan UniversityAFI Board of Trustees
Judd Apatow*
Director/Screenwriter/Producer
Tom Pollock
Chair, AFI Jury for Motion PicturesProducer AFI Board of Trustees
Diane English
Director/Screenwriter/Producer
Robert Thompson
Syracuse University
Maureen Ryan
Variety
Matt Roush
TV Guide
Mary McNamara
The Los Angeles Times
Lori McCreary
ProducerAFI Board of Trustees
Debra Lee
BET NetworksAFI Board of Trustees
Michelle King
Screenwriter/Producer
L.S. Kim
University of California, Santa Cruz
Darnell Hunt
University of California, Los Angeles
Jon Hamm
Actor/Director/Producer
Bob Gazzale
American Film Institute
Richard Frank
Chair, AFI Jury for TelevisionProducerAFI Board of Trustees
Peter Travers
Rolling Stone
Patricia Riggen
Director
Amy Nicholson
MTV News
Rachel Morrison
Cinematographer
Leonard Maltin
Historian
Akira Mizuta Lippit
University of Southern California
Lisa Kennedy
The Denver Post
Mark Harris
Historian
Bob Gazzale
American Film Institute
Robert Benton
Director/Screenwriter
Jeanine Basinger
Wesleyan UniversityAFI Board of Trustees
Elizabeth Banks
Actor/Director/Producer
Tom Pollock
Chair, AFI Jury for Motion PicturesProducerAFI Board of Trustees
Michael Wright
DreamWorks StudiosAFI Board of Trustees
Matt Williams
Screenwriter/Producer
Robert Thompson
Syracuse University
Renee Tajima-Peña
Director/ProducerUniversity of California, Los Angeles
Ellen Seiter
University of Southern California
Maureen Ryan
Variety
Matt Roush
TV Guide
Mary McNamara
The Los Angeles Times
Michelle MacLaren
Director/Producer
Bob Gazzale
American Film Institute
Henry Louis Gates, Jr.
Harvard University
Neal Baer
Screenwriter/ProducerAFI Board of Trustees
Richard Frank
Chair, AFI Jury for TelevisionProducerAFI Board of Trustees
Peter Travers
Rolling Stone
Emma Thomas
Producer
John Ridley
Director/Screenwriter
Carrie Rickey
The Philadelphia Inquirer
Bennett Miller
Director
Leonard Maltin
Historian
Lisa Kennedy
The Denver Post
Marshall Herskovitz
Producer/Director/ScreenwriterAFI Board of Trustees
Molly Haskell
Historian
Mark Harris
Historian
Bob Gazzale
American Film Institute
Jeanine Basinger
Wesleyan UniversityAFI Board of Trustees
Tom Pollock
Chair, AFI Jury for Motion PicturesProducerAFI Board of Trustees
Michael Wright
Michael WrightAFI Board of Trustees
Robert Thompson
Syracuse University
Chris Silbermann
ICM PartnersAFI Board of Trustees
Ellen Seiter
University of Southern California
Maureen Ryan
The Huffington Post
Matt Roush
TV Guide
Phylicia Rashad
Actor
James Poniewozik
TIME
L.S. Kim
University of California, Santa Cruz
Vince Gilligan
Producer/Director/Screenwriter
Bob Gazzale
American Film Institute
Anne Garefino
Producer
Richard Frank
Chair, AFI Jury for TelevisionProducerAFI Board of Trustees
Peter Travers
Rolling Stone Magazine
Claudia Puig
USA Today
Leonard Maltin
Historian
Akira Mizuta Lippit
University of Southern California
Matthew Libatique
Cinematographer
Kasi Lemmons
Director/Actor
Lisa Kennedy
Denver Post
Patty Jenkins
Director/Screenwriter
Marshall Herskovitz
Producer/Director/ScreenwriterAFI Board of Trustees
Mark Harris
Historian
Bob Gazzale
American Film Institute
Jeanine Basinger
Wesleyan UniversityAFI Board of Trustees
Tom Pollock
Chair, AFI Jury for Motion PicturesProducerAFI Board of Trustees
Noah Wyle
Producer/Actor
Robert Thompson
Syracuse University
Chris Silbermann
ICM PartnersAFI Board of Trustees
Ellen Seiter
University of Southern California
Maureen Ryan
The Huffington Post
Matt Roush
TV Guide Magazine
Frederick S. Pierce
AFI Board of Trustees
Jeff Nunokawa
Princeton University
Melissa Maerz
Entertainment Weekly
Bob Gazzale
American Film Institute
Dorothy Fontana
ScreenwriterSenior Lecturer, AFI Conservatory
Jon Avnet
Producer/Director/ScreenwriterAFI Board of Trustees
Richard Frank
Chair, AFI Jury for TelevisionProducerAFI Board of Trustees
Peter Travers
Rolling Stone Magazine
Claudia Puig
USA Today
Akira Mizuta Lippit
University of Southern California
Nancy Meyers
Producer/Director/Screenwriter
Leonard Maltin
Historian
Lisa Kennedy
The Denver Post
Marshall Herskovitz
Producer/Director/ScreenwriterAFI Board of Trustees
Mark Harris
Entertainment Weekly
Bob Gazzale
American Film Institute
Roman Coppola
Producer/Director/Screenwriter
Anne V. Coates
Editor
Jeanine Basinger
Wesleyan UniversityAFI Board of Trustees
Tom Pollock
Chair, AFI Jury for Motion PicturesProducerAFI Board of Trustees
Robert Thompson
Syracuse University
Janet Staiger
University of Texas at Austin
Chris Silbermann
International Creative ManagementAFI Board of Trustees
Katey Sagal
Maureen Ryan
The Huffington Post
Matt Roush
TV Guide Magazine
James Poniewozik
Time Magazine
Mary McNamara
Los Angeles Times
L.S. Kim
University of California, Los Angeles
Marta Kauffman
Producer/Screenwriter
Bob Gazzale
American Film Institute
Chris Carter
Producer/Director/Screenwriter
Richard Frank
Chair, AFI Jury for TelevisionProducerAFI Board of Trustees
Peter Travers
Rolling Stone Magazine
Octavia Spencer
Actor
Claudia Puig
USA Today
Akira Mizuta Lippit
University of Southern California
Leonard Maltin
"Leonard Maltin's Movie Guide"
Lisa Kennedy
The Denver Post
Marshall Herskovitz
Producer/Director/ScreenwriterAFI Board of Trustees
Mark Harris
Entertainment Weekly
Bob Gazzale
American Film Institute
Brad Bird
Director/Screenwriter
Angela Bassett
Actor
Jeanine Basinger
Wesleyan UniversityAFI Board of Trustees
Tom Pollock
Chair, AFI Jury for Motion PicturesProducerAFI Board of Trustees
Ken Tucker
Entertainment Weekly
Betsy Thomas
Producer/Director/Screenwriter
Chris Silbermann
International Creative ManagementAFI Board of Trustees
Matt Roush
TV Guide Magazine
James Poniewozik
Time Magazine
Fred Pierce
ProducerAFI Board of Trustees
Janet Murray
Georgia Institute of Technology
Stephen Kronish
Producer/Screenwriter
Marde Gregory
University of California, Los Angeles
Tim Goodman
The Hollywood Reporter
Bob Gazzale
American Film Institute
Anna Everett
University of California, Santa Barbara
Richard Frank
Chair, AFI Jury for TelevisionProducerAFI Board of Trustees
Peter Travers
Rolling Stone Magazine
Suzanne Todd
Producer
Claudia Puig
USA Today
Diana Ossana
Producer/Screenwriter
Leonard Maltin
"Leonard Maltln's Movie Guide"
Akira Mizuta Lippit
University of Southern California
Jim Hosney
Jim Hosney
Marshall Herskovitz
Producer/Director/ScreenwriterAFI Board of Trustees
Mark Harris
Entertainment Weekly
Whoopi Goldberg
Actor
Bob Gazzale
American Film Institute
Jeanine Basinger
Wesleyan UniversityAFI Board of Trustees
AFI JURY FOR MOTION PICTURES
Tom PollockProducerChair, AFI Jury for Motion Pictures
Janet Staiger
University of Texas at Austin
John Shaffner
Academy of Television Arts & SciencesProduction DesignerAFI Board of Trustees
Maureen Ryan
AOL
Matt Roush
TV Guide Magazine
James Poniewozik
Time Magazine
Mary McNamara
Los Angeles Times
Anna McCarthy
New York University
Henry Jenkins
Henry Jenkins
Jennifer Love Hewitt
Producer/Actor
Marshall Herskovitz
Producer/Director/ScreenwriterAFI Board of Trustees
Bob Gazzale
American Film Institute
Steven Bochco
Producer/Screenwriter
Richard Frank
Chair, AFI Jury for TelevisionProducerAFI Board of Trustees
Michael Wood
Princeton University
Lisa Schwarzbaum
Entertainment Weekly
Claudia Puig
USA Today
Elvis Mitchell
THE TREATMENT
Leonard Maltin
ENTERTAINMENT TONIGHT"Leonard Maltin's Movie Guide"
Akira Mizuta Lippit
University of Southern California
Bob Gazzale
American Film Institute
Jane Gaines
Columbia University
Lee Daniels
Producer/Director
Diablo Cody
Producer/Screenwriter
Donn Cambern
Editor
Jeanine Basinger
Wesleyan University
Tom Pollock
Chair, AFI Jury for Motion PicturesProducerAFI Board of Trustees
Robert J. Thompson
Syracuse University
John Shaffner
Academy of Television Arts & Sciences
Ellen Seiter
University of Southern California
Maureen Ryan
Chicago Tribune
Matt Roush
TV Guide Magazine
CCH Pounder
Actor
Lisa Parks
University of California, Santa Barbara
David Milch
Producer/Screenwriter
Brian Lowry
Variety
L.S. Kim
University of California, Santa Cruz
Bambi Haggins
Arizona State University
Stanley Brooks
Producer
Neal Baer
Chair, AFI Jury for TelevisionProducer/Screenwriter
Lisa Schwarzbaum
Entertainment Weekly
Richard Schickel
Historian/Author/Documentary Filmmaker
Claudia Puig
USA Today
Tom Pollock
ProducerAFI Board of Trustees
Chon Noriega
University of California, Los Angeles
Elvis Mitchell
THE TREATMENT
Leonard Maltin
ENTERTAINMENT TONIGHT
Patty Jenkins
Producer/Director
Mark Harris
Entertainment Weekly/New York MagazineAuthor
Leo Braudy
University of Southern California
Dustin Lance Black
Producer/Director/Screenwriter
Sean Astin
Actor
Norman Jewison
Chair, AFI Jury for Motion PicturesProducer/Director
Tony To
Producer/Director
Beretta E. Smith-Shomade
University of Arizona
John Shaffner
Academy of Television Arts & Sciences
Ellen Seiter
University of Southern California
Matt Roush
TV Guide
Del Reisman
AFI Conservatory Screenwriter
James Poniewozik
Time Magazine
Kathleen Nolan
Actor
Mary McNamara
Los Angeles Times
Jean Picker Firstenberg
AFI President Emerita
John Caldwell
University of California, Los Angeles
Neal Baer
Producer/Screenwriter
Richard Frank
Chair, AFI Jury for TelevisionAFI Trustee Emeritus
Tom Pollock
ProducerAFI Board of Trustees
Robert Towne
Producer/Director/Screenwriter
Anne Thompson
Variety
Vivian Sobchack
AFI Trustee EmeritaUniversity of California, Los Angeles
Richard Schickel
Time Magazine
Daniel Petrie, Jr.
Producer/Director/Screenwriter
Elvis Mitchell
THE TREATMENT
Rick Jewell
University of Southern California
Jim Hosney
American Film Institute
Mark Harris
Entertainment WeeklyAuthor
Mary Corey
University of California, Los Angeles
Jeanine Basinger
Wesleyan University
Leonard Maltin
Chair, AFI Jury for Motion PicturesENTERTAINMENT TONIGHT
Rich Frank
Chair, AFI Jury for TelevisionAFI Board of Trustees
Dick Askin
Academy of Television Arts & SciencesAFI Board of Trustees
Neal Baer
Producer/Screenwriter
Anna Everett
University of California, Santa Barbara
Nancy Franklin
The New Yorker
Barry Garron
The Hollywood Reporter
Melissa Gilbert
Producer/Director/ActorAFI Trustee Emerita
Horace Newcomb
University of Georgia
Del Reisman
AFI ConservatoryScreenwriter
Matt Roush
TV Guide
Maureen Ryan
Chicago Tribune
Robert Thompson
Syracuse University
Ron Underwood
Producer/Director/Screenwriter
Kristal Brent Zook
Hosftra University
Gary Winick
Producer/Director
Richard Schickel
Time Magazine
Tom Pollock
AFI Board of Trustees
David Picker
ProducerAFI Trustee Emeritus
Diana Ossana
Producer/Screenwriter/Novelist
Tara McPherson
University of Southern California
Leonard Maltin
ENTERTAINMENT TONIGHT
Lawrence Kasdan
Producer/Director/ScreenwriterAFI Trustee Emeritus
Mary Corey
University of California, Los Angeles
Donn Cambern
AFI ConservatoryDirector/Editor
David Ansen
Newsweek
Frank Pierson
Chair, AFI Jury for Motion PicturesAFI ConservatoryDirector/Screenwriter
Dick Askin
Academy of Television Arts & SciencesAFI Board of Trustees
Richard Frank
Chair, AFI Jury for TelevisionAFI Board of Trustees
Steven Bochco
Producer/Screenwriter
Kevin S. Bright
Producer/Director
Paul Brownfield
Los Angeles Times
Michael Dinner
Producer/Director/Screenwriter
Barry Garron
The Hollywood Reporter
Amanda D. Lotz
University of Michigan
Brian Lowry
Variety
Tara McPherson
University of Southern California
Matt Roush
TV Guide
Vivian Sobchack
University of California, Los AngelesAFI Board of Trustees
Kristal Brent Zook
Columbia University
Robert G. Rehme
Chair, AFI Jury for Motion PicturesProducerAFI Board of Trustees
Michael Apted
Directors Guild of AmericaProducer/Director/ScreenwriterAFI Board of Trustees
Roger Birnbaum
Spyglass EntertainmentAFI Board of Trustees
Leo Braudy
University of Southern California
James L. Brooks
Producer/Director/Screenwriter
Mary Corey
University of California, Los Angeles
Jane Gaines
Duke University
Elvis Mitchell
National Public Radio
Diana Ossana
Producer/Screenwriter
David V. Picker
ProducerAFI Trustee Emeritus
Tom Pollock
ProducerAFI Board of Trustees
Kenneth Turan
Los Angeles Times
Anne Thompson
The Hollywood Reporter
Marshall Herskovitz
Chair, AFI Jury for TelevisionChair, AFI Jury for TelevisionAFI Board of Trustees
Dick Askin
Academy of Television Arts & SciencesTribune Entertainment CompanyAFI Board of Trustees
Lionel Chetwynd
Producer/Screenwriter
Mary Corey
University of California, Los Angeles
Tony Jonas
Producer
Jeffrey Kramer
Producer
Melanie McFarland
Seattle Post Intelligencer
Tara McPherson
University of Southern California
James Poniewozik
Time Magazine
Dorothea Petrie
Producer
Matt Roush
TV Guide
Del Reisman
AFI Conservatory
Robert G. Rehme
Chair, AFI Jury for Motion Pictures Producer AFI Board of Trustees
Martha Coolidge
Director
David Denby
The New Yorker
Anna Everett
University of California, Santa Barbara
Norman Jewison
Producer/Director
Tom Pollock
ProducerAFI Board of Trustees
Jay Roach
Producer/Director
Lisa Schwarzbaum
Entertainment Weekly
Vivian Sobchack
University of California, Los AngelesAFI Board of Trustees
David Thomson
Film Historian
Stephen Ujlaki
San Francisco State University
Kenneth Turan
Los Angeles Times
Laura Ziskin
Laura Ziskin
Richard Frank
Chair, AFI Jury for TelevisionThe FirmAFI Board of Trustees
Richard Askin, Jr.
Academy of Television Arts & SciencesTribune Entertainment Company AFI Board of Trustees
Neal Baer
Producer/Screenwriter
David Bianculli
The Daily News
Alex Ben Block
Television Week
Barbara Corday
Producer/Screenwriter
Mary Corey
University of California, Los Angeles
Melanie McFarland
Seattle Post-Intelligencer
Tara McPherson
University of Southern California
Janet Murray
Georgia Institute of TechnologyAFI Board of Trustees
Horace Newcomb
University of GeorgiaGeorge Foster Peabody Awards
Jerry Offsay
Producer
Matt Roush
TV Guide
Roger Ebert
Chair, AFI Jury for Motion PicturesChicago Sun-TimesEBERT & ROEPER
David Ansen
Newsweek
Jeanine Basinger
Wesleyan UniversityAFI Trustee Emerita
Leo Braudy
University of Southern California
James Cromwell
Actor
Naomi Foner
Producer/Screenwriter
Joan Micklin Silver
Director/Screenwriter
Tom Pollock
ProducerAFI Board of Trustees
Robert G. Rehme
ProducerAFI Board of Trustees
Richard Schickel
Time MagazineProducer/Director/Screenwriter
Lisa Schwarzbaum
Entertainment Weekly
Michael Wood
Princeton University
Janet Yang
Producer
Diane Werts
Newsday
Dean Valentine
Former President & CEO, UPN
Penelope Spheeris
Director
Matt Roush
TV Guide
Dorothea Petrie
Producer
Horace Newcomb
University of GeorgiaGeorge Foster Peabody Awards
Brian Lowry
Variety
Helaine Head
University of Southern California
Ted Harbert
Producer
Chuck Fries
ProducerAFI Board of Trustees
Mary Corey
University of California, Los Angeles
Irby Brown
University of Richmond
Richard Frank
Chair, AFI Jury for TelevisionIntegrated Entertainment PartnersAFI Board of Trustees
Tom Pollock
ProducerAFI Board of Trustees
Anne V. Coates
Editor
Vivian Sobchack
University of California, Los AngelesAFI Board of Trustees
Leonard Schrader
AFI ConservatoryDirector/Screenwriter
Richard Schickel
Time MagazineProducer/Director/Screenwriter
Ted Perry
Middlebury CollegeAFI Trustee Emeritus
Curtis Marez
University of Southern California
Glenn Kenny
Premiere Magazine
Kirk Honeycutt
The Hollywood Reporter
Jay Boyar
Orlando Sentinel
Jeanine Basinger
Wesleyan UniversityAFI Trustee Emerita
John Badham
Director
Leonard Maltin
Chair, AFI Jury for Motion PicturesENTERTAINMENT TONIGHT
Richard Frank
Chair, AFI Jury for Television
Neema Barnett
Director
Barbara Corday
Producer
Lesli Linka Glatter
Producer/Director
Kay McFadden
The Seattle Times
Horace Newcomb
University of GeorgiaGeorge Foster Peabody AwardsAFI Trustee Emeritus
Daniel Petrie, Jr.
Producer/Director/ScreenwriteAFI Board of Trustees
Victoria Riskin
Writers Guild of AmericaScreenwriter
Matt Roush
TV Guide
Robert Thompson
Syracuse University
Anthony Thomopoulos
Former President, ABC EntertainmentMedia Arts Group, Inc.AFI Trustee Emeritus
Ken Tucker
Entertainment Weekly
Peter Werner
DirectorAFI Trustee Emeritus
Tom Pollock
ProducerAFI Board of Trustees
David Ansen
Newsweek
Jeanine Basinger
Chair, AFI Jury for Motion PicturesWesleyan UniversityAFI Trustee Emerita
Julie Dash
Producer/Director/Screenwriter
Lindsey Doran
Producer
Leonard Maltin
ENTERTAINMENT TONIGHT
Fay Kanin
ScreenwriterAFI Board of Trustees
Jim Hosney
Film Historian/Scholar
Ted Perry
Middlebury CollegeAFI Trustee Emeritus
Bob Rehme
ProducerAFI Board of Trustees
Carrie Rickey
The Philadelphia Inquirer
Tom Schatz
University of Texas, Austin
Saul Zaentz
Producer
Barrie Lawson Loeks
Loeks-Star Theatres
Lucy Liu
Actor
Brian Lowry
Los Angeles Times
Sidney Lumet
Director
Shirley MacLaine
Actor
Delbert Mann
Director
Todd McCarthy
Variety
Kay McFadden
The Seattle Times
Joyce Millman
Salon.com
Dennis Muren
Digital Effects Artist
Chon Noriega
University of California, Los Angeles
Beverly O’Neill
California Institute of the Arts
Ted Perry
Middlebury College
Polly Platt
Producer/Production Designer
Dale Pollock
N.C. School of the Arts
Dorothy Rabinowitz
The Wall Street Journal
Peter Rainer
New York Magazine
Ken Ralston
Digital Effects Artist
Robert Richardson
Cinematographer
Howard Rosenberg
Los Angeles Times
Laurence Rosenthal
Composer
Gena Rowlands
Actor
Leah Rozen
People Magazine
Eva Marie Saint
Actor
Edgar Scherick
Producer
Lisa Schwartzbaum
Entertainment Weekly
Jan Scott
Production Designer
John Singleton
Producer/Director/Screenwriter
Robert Sklar
New York University
Barbara Smith
American Cinematheque
Penelope Spheeris
Director
Steven Spielberg
Producer/Director/ScreenwriterAFI Board of Trustees
Rod Steiger
Actor
Jon Storm
Philadelphia Inquirer
Mary Sweeney
Producer/Screenwriter/Editor
Anne Thompson
Premiere Magazine
Robert Thompson
Syracuse University
Richard Sylbert
Production Designer
Steve Tisch
Producer
Kenneth Turan
Los Angeles TimesCinematographer
Amy Vincent
Cinematographer
Peter Werner
Director
Joanne Weintraub
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Michael Wilmington
Chicago Tribune
Ethel Winant
Producer
David Wolper
ProducerAFI Board of Trustees
Eugenio Zanetti
Production Designer
David Zurawik
Baltimore Sun
Hans Zimmer
Composer
Saul Zaentz
Producer
Debbie Allen
Producer/Director/ActorAFI Board of Trustees
Dede Allen
Editor
David Ansen
Newsweek
Darren Aronofsky
Director/Screenwriter
Alan Ball
Producer/Director/Screenwriter
Neema Barnette
Director
Ron Bass
Producer/Screenwriter
Robert Benton
Director/Screenwriter
Bob Boyle
Production Designer
Pieter Jan Brugge
Producer
Henry Bumstead
Production Designer
Michelle Byrd
Independent Features Project
Marcy Carsey
Producer
Mary Schmidt Campbell
NYU's Tisch School
Anne V. Coates
Editor
Richard Corliss
Time Magazine
Leslie Dilley
Production Designer
Richard Edlund
Digital Effects Artist
Nora Ephron
Producer/Director/Screenwriter
Steven Farber
Movieline
Milos Forman
Director
Stephen Gaghan
Screenwriter
Leslie Linka Glatter
Director
Jerry Goldsmith
Composer
Gary David Goldberg
Producer/Screenwriter
Tim Goodman
San Francisco Examiner
Mary Ann Grasso
National Assoc. of Theatre Owners
Christopher Guest
Director/Screenwriter/Actor
Amy Heckerling
Producer/Director/Screenwriter
Leonard Hill
Producer
Foster Hirsch
Scholar/Historian
Tina Hirsch
Editor
Winnie Holzman
Producer/Screenwriter
Kirk Honeycutt
The Hollywood Reporter
Dawn Hudson
Independent Feature Project West
Greg Hoblit
Producer/Director
Annette Insdorf
Columbia University
Mark Johnson
Producer
Spike Jonze
Director/Actor
Shirley Jones
Actor
Glenn Jordan
Producer/Director
Janusz Kamiński
Cinematographer
James Katz
Preservationist
Rita Kempley
The Washington Post
Kathleen Kennedy
ProducerAFI Board of Trustees
Callie Khouri
Screenwriter
James V. Kimsey
AFI Board of Trustees
Arnold Kopelson
Producer
Alan Ladd, Jr.
Producer
Martin Landau
Actor
Tom Pollock
Chair, AFI 2000 JuryAFI Board of Trustees
David Ansen
Film Journalist/Critic
Jeanine Basinger
Film Scholar
Bill Duke
AFI Board of Trustees
James Katz
Film Preservationist/Historian
Rita Kempley
Film Journalist/Critic
Michael Nesmith
AFI Board of Trustees
Thomas Schatz
Film Scholar
Vivian Sobchack
AFI Board of Trustees
Anne Thompson
Film Journalist/Critic
Saul Zaentz
Filmmaker
Steven Zaillian
Filmmaker
AFI MOVIES OF THE YEAR
127 HOURS
is a breathtaking, pulse-pounding journey into the mind of a man lost and alone. James Franco’s bravura performance drives this gripping true story of a young adventurer whose will to live in the most unsettling of circumstances proves a triumph of sacrifice. That a fast-paced, expansive film is found at the bottom of a claustrophobic crevice is a tribute to director Danny Boyle’s inventive mind and cements his stature as one of the world’s most exciting filmmakers. 127 HOURS will echo for years like cries from a red rock canyon, reminding of the power of cinema to set us free. Read the AFI Catalog entry
BLACK SWAN
leaps and soars in a haunting dance as timeless as Tchaikovsky. Director Darren Aronofsky’s fever-dream blurs the fine line that separates high art from high insanity, and his prima ballerina Natalie Portman captures the beauty and the pain of a dancer’s commitment in a transformative performance. Lifted to even greater heights by virtuoso visuals from cinematographer Matthew Libatique, BLACK SWAN embodies both a spellbinding portrait of an artist striving for perfection and a horror film about the monster in the mirror. Read the AFI Catalog entry
THE FIGHTER
packs a punch with such power that it smashes through the boxing genre and into a higher class. This true American tale is celebrated by director David O. Russell as an exploration of competitive dysfunction, while championing the fighter in each of the film’s characters. Mark Wahlberg stands tall and proud as the significant heart of a film filled with knockout performances from Melissa Leo, Amy Adams and Christian Bale’s Dicky, “The Pride of Lowell,” who spars with inner demons, but finds the will to be in his brother’s corner when it counts. Read the AFI Catalog entry
INCEPTION
is the most rare of movie miracles — an art film that succeeds as blockbuster entertainment. This achievement is born from the gifts of writer/director Christopher Nolan, who displays such a love for filmmaking that audiences cannot help but be enveloped by his rapture. Leonardo DiCaprio proves once again to be America’s leading man, guiding us through a mind-bending movie-within-a-movie, within-a-movie, within-a-movie — and cinematographer Wally Pfister’s dazzling images create an indelible dream that demands to be relived again and again. Read the AFI Catalog entry
THE KIDS ARE ALL RIGHT
embraces “My Generation” and “Generation Y” in one big group hug. Director and co-writer Lisa Cholodenko delivers a fresh, funny and vibrant film that not only keenly observes a family in modern day, but also asks its characters to consider the timeless meaning of a promise made. Annette Bening, Julianne Moore, Mark Ruffalo, Mia Wasikowska and Josh Hutcherson act and live as one in this brilliant indie gem that sparkles with studio-sized talent. Read the AFI Catalog entry
THE SOCIAL NETWORK
captures the zeitgeist of 2010, a world defined by the difference between “friending” and being a friend. A whip-smart screenplay by Aaron Sorkin unfolds at a pace as lightning-quick as the creation of the society-changing technology it chronicles. David Fincher’s beautifully realized direction syncs all the talents and tools at his fingertips to provide a penetrating look at the dark undercurrents of monumental success and the discontent it can ensnare in its web. Jesse Eisenberg’s deeply resonant performance as Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg updates his status to America’s fastest rising star. Read the AFI Catalog entry
THE TOWN
carries all the essential tools of the great American heist movie and breaks into the classics of the genre with its own unique authenticity. Smart, sassy and tough entertainment, the film confirms the arrival of Ben Affleck as a director of distinction, a storyteller whose deft touch gives action, character and performance equal weight. Outstanding performances by Jeremy Renner, Rebecca Hall and Jon Hamm inhabit the film’s deeply rooted, rich atmosphere of Charlestown, Massachusetts, where we learn from a new generation that crime does pay, if your heart is true. Read the AFI Catalog entry
TOY STORY 3
is a landmark film in America’s cultural legacy. An exclamation point to a story that has spanned fifteen years, this instant classic marshals all the forces of American film — character, story and computer wizardry — as Woody, Buzz and all of our friends grapple with mortality when Andy comes of age. Creator John Lasseter, director Lee Unkrich and the wizards of Pixar give the world the gift of a film both hilarious and heartbreaking, and one that ensures generations will be united to infinity and beyond. Read the AFI Catalog entry
TRUE GRIT
gallops into the Western canon with guns blazing. This spitfire poem by Joel and Ethan Coen springs from the pages of Charles Portis’s novel, but their own mastery of language — the diction and delivery of each line — makes this a classic uniquely theirs. Cinematographer Roger Deakins paints a landscape in awe-inspiring images, providing a proper panorama for Rooster Cogburn, who is brought to life for a new generation by America’s favorite son, Jeff Bridges. Standing toe to toe with him is Hailee Steinfeld, who proves her mettle as one of the bright new faces of American film. Read the AFI Catalog entry
WINTER'S BONE
is a chilling portrayal of the search for truth buried deep beneath the bitter reality of rural poverty in America. Haunting in its authenticity, director and co-writer Debra Granik’s film is part Ozarks gothic, part Shakespearean tragedy, and all American independent filmmaking. Jennifer Lawrence creates one of America’s strongest female protagonists of the year with a wondrous debut performance as a woman on a relentless quest to provide a future for her family. Read the AFI Catalog entry
AFI TELEVISION PROGRAMS OF THE YEAR
30 ROCK
still rocks. Creator Tina Fey rewards the TV addict in all of us by doling out what we crave most — laughter. With writing that’s consistently sharp and endlessly inventive, 30 ROCK is rapid-fire entertainment led by an acting ensemble both familiar and fantastic. Alec Baldwin, with each passing year, etches the name “Jack Donaghy” more indelibly into the pantheon of classic American sitcoms.
THE BIG C
dares to say “cancer” out loud, treating terminal illness as one of life’s revelations. Creator Darlene Hunt brings light and laughter to the darkest of subjects, and Laura Linney inspires as a woman both anguished and liberated by life’s cruel turn, insisting on living — and dying — on her own terms.
BOARDWALK EMPIRE
is a sweeping, cinematic recreation of Prohibition-era Atlantic City that harnesses the power of profanity and poetry to retell the tale of America’s past. Creator Terence Winter’s lush mob drama is inhabited by ghosts both historical and fictional, led by Steve Buscemi’s cock-of-the-boardwalk Nucky Thompson, who adds a decidedly eccentric signature to the year’s most dazzling production.
BREAKING BAD
continues to raise hell in its deadly third year. Bryan Cranston and Aaron Paul are television’s dynamic duo of dysfunction, driven to the edge in a world contaminated in all corners. Creator Vince Gilligan continues to mix a combustible moral cocktail that ignites the characters’ struggles each week, and demands us to embrace who they really are, even if that’s less than good.
GLEE
is a musical miracle — singing loud and proud that it’s cool to be a “glee.” Creators Ryan Murphy, Brad Falchuk and Ian Brennan choreograph the most structurally ambitious show on television, and the extraordinary cast never misses a step. This star-packed year mashed appearances by Britney Spears, Gwyneth Paltrow and Carol Burnett with musical classics like SINGIN’ IN THE RAIN, uniting viewers across generations in the shared experience of what it is to struggle, embrace and thrive in the daily challenge of being ourselves.
MAD MEN
fourth and finest year saw the wheels come off Don Draper’s formerly golden life, and Jon Hamm rose to new heights in depicting Don’s depths. Creator Matt Weiner is a master of the medium, and our empathy for his characters in a world mad with change is a tribute to the rich, emotional detail of each word, each glance — beautifully realized in the performances of a stellar ensemble cast.
MODERN FAMILY
reframes the portrait of America with so much love and laughter that it hangs in our home with familial pride. Week after week, creators Steven Levitan and Christopher Lloyd light the fuse for this dynamite acting ensemble, and their stories intersect in such a sophisticated manner that each episode is fresh, funny and filled with love only a family could forgive.
THE PACIFIC
is storytelling on a scale worthy of “The Greatest Generation.” Epic in size and intimately personal, this grueling ten-part mini-series from executive producers Tom Hanks, Steven Spielberg and Gary Goetzman recreates the history and the horror of World War II’s Pacific theatre through the eyes of three United States Marines. With America fighting two wars in 2010, THE PACIFIC landed on airwaves with a powerful question, “What are you willing to sacrifice for your country?”
TEMPLE GRANDIN
opens a door into the mind of an autistic visionary. Director Mick Jackson encourages a story to emerge that is at once unsentimental and emotionally resonant, and Claire Danes’s triumphant performance speaks to the great American story that is Temple Grandin — from “challenged” to “champion.”
THE WALKING DEAD
feeds our hunger for a new take on a classic genre. Zombies have long breathed life into the horror of human nature in an extreme state, but here writer/director/executive producer Frank Darabont smashes the boundaries of terror on television. THE WALKING DEAD also understands the power of silence, as a slowly turning doorknob may reveal our deepest fear — the loss of our own humanity.
SPECIAL AWARDS*
THE KING'S SPEECH
proudly pronounces itself a classic with an eloquence worthy of Great Britain’s royal family. Director Tom Hooper and writer David Seidler tell a deeply emotional tale that achieves the uncommon — empathy for a king. Colin Firth’s brilliant turn as King George VI, whose heavy head wears the crown, is matched in heart by the performances of Geoffrey Rush and Helena Bonham Carter. Rich in detail and regal in manner, THE KING’S SPEECH is a triumph — both for a king whose personal fears must play on a global stage and for all to embrace that our greatest test is yet to come.
WAITING FOR "SUPERMAN"
is a call-to-arms for all who believe in a greater America. Director Davis Guggenheim voices the conscience of a country, using the documentary form to shine a bright light on the dark realities of the American public school system. To see the challenge ahead in young faces — the boys and girls who are often lost in statistics — is heartbreaking, anger-inducing, and yet inspires as to the possibilities. In the end, the simple truth is that when America looks for a solution, the answer will not come from the sky, but from you and me.
*AFI SPECIAL AWARDS are given to outstanding achievements in the moving image that do not fit into AFI’s criteria for the other honorees.
MOMENTS OF SIGNIFICANCE
LOST AMERICAN FILMS COME HOME
The ongoing heroic work in film preservation took on a renewed air of international cooperation in 2010 with the repatriation of 75 American silent films from the New Zealand Film Archive through the efforts of the National Film Preservation Foundation and an additional gift of 10 films from Gosfilmofond, the Russian state film archive, to the Library of Congress. These films were previously feared to be among the nearly 80% of American movies from the silent era that were deliberately discarded or lost due to decomposition and neglect.
This moment is significant not only for the global generosity shown by countries who have properly cared for these films, but it also reminds us of the power and reach of American film, even in its earliest days. These movies traveled the world to find an audience in theatres, and now return home to be preserved and distributed digitally through the five major American film archives: the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, George Eastman House, the Library of Congress, the Museum of Modern Art and the UCLA Film & Television Archive.
CONAN O'BRIEN TAKES THE HIGH ROAD
The prime-time/late night world righted itself in 2010 when THE TONIGHT SHOW WITH JAY LENO returned to late night and Conan O’Brien took his talents to TBS, where he launched a new show, CONAN.
The journey to this happy ending was far from happy, and in fact, has left the patina of THE TONIGHT SHOW with a tarnish in 2010. O’Brien, on the other hand, appears to have escaped what had become a public relations circus by touring the country in a sold-out comedy/music extravaganza and then returning to late night as a basic-cable maverick — looking to the future with his head (and hair) held high.
TELEVISION IN A POST "FAIRNESS DOCTRINE" SOCIETY
“News” and “entertainment” have long seen a blurring of the lines since the “Fairness Doctrine” was established in 1949, but in 2010, the two were often presented and seemingly accepted by the greater public as one.
Underscored in a year of American midterm elections, the year’s “anything goes” attitude took a match to the paper-thin wall between politics and popular culture, best illustrated by the following events:
August 28 – Fox News commentator Glenn Beck held a rally in Washington, DC under the banner “Restoring Honor,” and in response, Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert held a rally on October 30 called “The Rally to Restore Sanity and/or Fear.” Though more theatre than television, the medium inspired hundreds of thousands of people to march on the nation’s capitol.
September 24 – Stephen Colbert testified before a House Judiciary subcommittee in character on the topic of immigration.
November 14 – Sarah Palin’s ALASKA premiered on cable television. Packaged as a show that will bring “the wonder and majesty of Alaska to all Americans,” it has also created an entirely new template for political campaigning.
November 23 – After nine weeks of consistently scoring poorly among the judges, Bristol Palin performed in the finals of DANCING WITH THE STARS. Week after week, the public vote launched Palin into the next round.
A GLOBAL EMBRACE – THE RESCUE OF THE CHILEAN MINERS
After holding its breath for 69 days, the world let out a collective cheer as the last of 33 trapped Chilean miners came above ground. A cave-in on August 5th left the men 2,300 feet below ground with dim hope for survival. During their ordeal, cameras went underground to show what life was like for these trapped folk heroes, and the wall-to-wall coverage of their final rescue illustrated the power of television to bring the world together as one — reality television for all the right reasons.
AFI AWARDS was created in 2000 to recognize the films and television programs which contribute to our collective cultural legacy. When placed in an historical context, these stories provide a complex, rich, visual record of our modern world. Since then, AFI AWARDS has honored 10 outstanding films and 10 outstanding TV programs deemed culturally and artistically representative of the year’s most significant achievements in the art of the moving image.
Collectively celebrating the most outstanding film and television programs of the year, AFI AWARDS 2020 honorees will be announced in January 2021, with an event to follow on Friday, February 26, 2021.
Unique in its celebration of the art form’s collaborative nature, AFI AWARDS is the only national program that honors creative teams as a whole – recognizing those in front of and behind the camera.
SELECTION CRITERIA
Honorees are selected based on works which:
- Advance the art of the moving image
- Inspire audiences and artists alike
- Enhance the rich cultural heritage of America’s art form
A UNIQUE JURY PROCESS
AFI AWARDS selections are made through AFI’s unique jury process – in which scholars, artists, critics and AFI Trustees determine the most outstanding achievements of the year.
For additional information about AFI AWARDS, contact Josh Kushins at [email protected]
AFI is a 501c3 non-profit advancing the art of the moving image by empowering storytellers and inspiring audiences
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