Austin Film Critics Association Announces 2019 Award Finalists

The five films nominated for by the Austin Film Critics Association for the best film of 2019 (l to r: The Irishman, Marriage Story, Uncut Gems, Once Upon a Time ... in Hollywood, Parasite).

The Austin Film Critics Association has announced the finalists in all 20 categories for its 2019 film awards, and Once Upon a Time ... in Hollywood leads the pack with nominations in 10 categories, followed by Parasite with nine and The Irishman taking eight slots, and Little Women with six.

However, nominations don't guarantee wins, especially in some incredibly competitive categories. Aside from the regulars that most critical bodies award, there are also some adapted by the AFCA in recent years including Best Stunts and Best Motion Capture/Special Effects Performance, as well as the locally-based Austin Film.

Association members (a roster that includes several Chronicle critics) are voting on this second round ballot now, and final list of winners will be released on Monday, Jan. 6. We'll have all the victors here, and in next week's Austin Chronicle.

Best Film

Once Upon a Time ... in Hollywood

• The Irishman
• Marriage Story
• Once Upon a Time ... in Hollywood
• Parasite
• Uncut Gems

Best Director

Little Women

• Greta Gerwig, Little Women
• Bong Joon Ho, Parasite
• The Safdie Brothers, Uncut Gems
• Martin Scorsese, The Irishman
• Quentin Tarantino, Once Upon a Time ... in Hollywood

Best Actor

Dolemite is My Name

• Antonio Banderas, Pain and Glory
• Leonardo DiCaprio, Once Upon a Time ... in Hollywood
• Adam Driver, Marriage Story
• Eddie Murphy, Dolemite is My Name
• Adam Sandler, Uncut Gems

Best Actress

Marriage Story

• Awkwafina, The Farewell
• Scarlett Johansson, Marriage Story
• Elisabeth Moss, Her Smell
• Lupita Nyong’o, Us
• Renee Zellweger, Judy

Best Supporting Actor

The Irishman

• Willem Dafoe, The Lighthouse
• Al Pacino, The Irishman
• Joe Pesci, The Irishman
• Brad Pitt, Once Upon a Time ... in Hollywood
• Song Kang-ho, Parasite

Best Supporting Actress

Hustlers

• Laura Dern, Marriage Story
• Adèle Haenel, Portrait of a Lady on Fire
• Scarlett Johansson, Jojo Rabbit
• Jennifer Lopez, Hustlers
• Florence Pugh, Little Women

Best Original Screenplay

Parasite

• Knives Out
• Marriage Story
• Once Upon a Time ... in Hollywood
• Parasite
• Us

Best Adapted Screenplay

Jojo Rabbit

• A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood
• Hustlers
• The Irishman
• Jojo Rabbit
• Little Women

Best Cinematography

1917

• 1917
• Ad Astra
• The Lighthouse
• Once Upon a Time ... in Hollywood
• Parasite

Best Original Score

Waves

• 1917
• Little Women
• Marriage Story
• Us
• Waves

Best Foreign Language Film

One Cut of the Dead

• Atlantics
• One Cut of the Dead
• Pain and Glory
• Parasite
• Portrait of a Lady on Fire

Best Documentary

Apollo 11

• Apollo 11
• The Biggest Little Farm
• For Sama
• Hail Satan?
• One Child Nation

Best Animated Film

Klaus

• Frozen II
• I Lost My Body
• Klaus
• Missing Link
• Toy Story 4

Best Ensemble

Uncut Gems

• The Irishman
• Knives Out
• Little Women
• Once Upon a Time ... in Hollywood
• Parasite

Best Editing

Knives Out

• 1917
• The Irishman
• Once Upon a Time ... in Hollywood
• Parasite
• Uncut Gems

Best Motion Capture/Special Effects Performance

Alita: Battle Angel

• Josh Brolin, Avengers: Endgame
• Mark Ruffalo, Avengers: Endgame
• Rosa Salazar, Alita: Battle Angel
• Will Smith, Aladdin
• Will Smith, Gemini Man

Best Stunts

Avengers: Endgame

• Avengers: Endgame
• Ford vs. Ferrari
• John Wick 3: Parabellum
• Once Upon a Time in Hollywood
• Shadow

Best First Film

The Peanut Butter Falcon

• Atlantics (D: Mati Diop)
• Booksmart (D: Olivia Wilde)
• The Last Black Man in San Francisco (D: Joe Talbot)
• The Peanut Butter Falcon (D: Tyler Nilson and Michael Schwartz)
• Queen and Slim (D: Melina Matsoukas)

Breakthrough Artist

The Farewell

• Awkwafina, The Farewell
• Noah Jupe, Honey Boy
• Florence Pugh, Midsommar/Little Women
• Da’vine Joy Randolph, Dolemite is My Name
• Lulu Wang, The Farewell

Austin Film Award

• Frances Ferguson (D: Bob Byington)
• A Hidden Life (D: Terrence Malick)
• The River and the Wall (D: Ben Masters)
• Running with Beto (D: David Modigliani)
• Where’d You Go, Bernadette (D: Richard Linklater)