Never as prolific in features as some of his contemporaries who started in the 1990s and viewed for some time perhaps as something of facilitator for writer Charlie Kaufman, Spike Jonze finally came fully into his own with Her, a touching, insightful, altogether captivating speculative look at love in the very near future. Working for the first time from his own original screenplay, Jonze charts the landscape of urban loneliness and the need to connect with a cool elegance given warmth and depth by the superb Joaquin Phoenix and the unseen but eloquent Scarlett Johannson.
Warner Bros.The Writers Guild of America on Friday unveiled the film nominees for its 2014 awards.
The WGA Awards honor outstanding writing in film, television, new media, video games, news, radio and promotional writing and graphic animation. As previously announced, Breaking Bad and Orange Is the New Black are among the TV nominees. Nominees in the new-media, news and radio categories also were unveiled last month, while the video game writing nominees will be announced Thursday.
PHOTOS: George Clooney and 6 Top Writers on Toughest Career Moments, Worst Advice
The awards will be handed out Saturday, Feb. 1, at simultaneous ceremonies in Los Angeles and New York. The WGAW ceremony will once again be held at the JW Marriott Los Angeles L.A. Live, and the WGAE ceremony will be held at the Edison Ballroom.
As previously announced, special honorees in New York include The Wire creator David Simon, who will receive the Ian McLellan Hunter Award for Career Achievement; Focus Features co-founder James Schamus, who will be honored with the Evelyn F. Burkey Award; and 1010 WINS’ Philip V. Pilato was selected as the recipient of the Richard B. Jablow Award. The Simpsons executive producer Sam Simon has been tapped to receive the Valentine Davies Award in Los Angeles.
A complete list of theatrical and documentary screenplay nominees follows.
ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
American Hustle, Written by Eric Warren Singer and David O. Russell; Columbia Pictures
Blue Jasmine, Written by Woody Allen; Sony Classics
Dallas Buyers Club, Written by Craig Borten & Melisa Wallack; Focus Features
Her, Written by Spike Jonze; Warner Bros.
Nebraska, Written by Bob Nelson; Paramount Pictures
ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
August: Osage County, Screenplay by Tracy Letts; Based on his play; The Weinstein Company
Before Midnight, Written by Richard Linklater & Julie Delpy & Ethan Hawke; Based on characters created by Richard Linklater & Kim Krizan; Sony Classics
Captain Phillips, Screenplay by Billy Ray; Based on the book A Captain’s Duty: Somali Pirates, Navy SEALS, and Dangerous Days at Sea by Richard Phillips with Stephan Talty; Columbia Pictures
Lone Survivor, Written by Peter Berg; Based on the book by Marcus Lutrell with Patrick Robinson; Universal Pictures
The Wolf of Wall Street, Screenplay by Terence Winter; Based on the book by Jordan Belfort; Paramount Pictures
DOCUMENTARY SCREENPLAY
Dirty Wars, Written by Jeremy Scahill & David Riker; Sundance Selects
Herblock – The Black & The White, Written by Sara Lukinson & Michael Stevens;The Stevens Company
No Place on Earth, Written by Janet Tobias & Paul Laikin; Magnolia Pictures
Stories We Tell, Written by Sarah Polley; Roadside Attractions
We Steal Secrets: The Story of WikiLeaks; Written by Alex Gibney; Focus Features
