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Here is your awards season wrap-up, Columbia-style! As you know, year after year, Columbia College Chicago Alumni are in the habit of racking up award nominations, and this year is no different. We are very proud to acknowledge the alumni who have achieved so much.

First off, we'd like to congratulate Janusz Kaminiski (BA ’87) for his Best Achievement in Cinematography Oscar nomination for Lincoln! He has also been nominated in the Best Cinematography category for Lincoln by the Critics Choice Awards and the BAFTAs.

This year's Golden Globe alumni nominations are:

  • Lincoln, Best Motion Picture. Janusz Kaminiski (BA ’87) was the Cinematographer
  • Hatfields & McCoys, Best Mini-Series or Motion Picture Made for Television. Aaron Semmel ('01) served as co-producer on the project
  • Game Change, Best Mini-Series or Motion Picture Made for Television. Len Amato (BA ‘75) President of HBO Films, oversaw this film
  • Hotel Transylvania, Best Animated Feature Film. Directed by Genndy Tartakovsky (BA ’90)
  • Scott Adsit (’87) is part of the ensemble cast in the NBC series 30 Rock, which is nominated for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series, in the SAG Awards.


Alumni Annie Award nominations, honoring their achievement in animation:
  • Best Animated Special Production, Beforel Orel, Writer/Creator/Producer, Dino Stamatopoulos (’86) Executive Producer/Actor, Scott Adsit (’87)
  • Outstanding Achievement, Music in an Animated Television or other Broadcast Venue Production, Michael Rubin ('84) Bubble Guppies ("Bubble Puppy’s Fin-tastic Fairytale")
  • Best Animated Feature, Brave. Everett Downing, Jr. ('00) and Aaron J. Hartline ('98) were both animators on the film. (Brave has been nominated for a Golden Globe, Oscar, and BAFTRA in the same category.)
  • Genndy Tartakovsky (BA ’90) is nominated for three Annie Awards:
    • Best Animated Short Subject, Goodnight Mr. Foot
    • Outstanding Achievement, Directing in an Animated Feature Production, Hotel Transylvania
    • Best Animated Feature, Hotel Transylvania

Paul Garnes’ (BA '96) Middle of Nowhere received four Independent Spirit Award Nominations: Best Supporting Female, Best Female Lead, Best Supporting Male, and the esteemed John Cassavetes Award (given to the best feature made for under $500,000,) for which Paul is specifically nominated as Producer.


Cinematography is where many of our alumni shine and this year is no exception. For the ASC Awards, our nominees are:
  • Michael Goi, ASC (BA ’80) for FX’s American Horror Story: Asylum (“I am Anne Frank: Part 2”) Television Movie/Miniseries
  • Michael Goi, ASC for NBC’s The New Normal (Pilot) half-hour Episodic Series (These are Michael’s third and fourth nominations. He was previously nominated for The Fixer (1999) and Judas (2005).)
  • Janusz Kaminski (BA ’87) picked up his fifth nomination for his work on Steven Spielberg's historical epic Lincoln. This is Kaminski’s fifth ASC nomination after Spielberg's Schindler’s List, Amistad, and Saving Private Ryan, as well as Julian Schnabel's The Diving Bell and the Butterfly. He won Oscars for Schindler’s List and Saving Private Ryan.
       *The ASC Awards take place on February 10 at the Ray Dolby Ballroom at Hollywood & Highland.


Cloud Atlas was nominated for a Critics Choice Award in the Best Visual Effects category. Pamela Austria (BA '10) was the Visual Effects Production Assistant on the project. Additionally, Andy Richter ('90) is part of the writing team for Conan, which was nominated for a WGA in the Comedy/Variety Series category.
 

The following alumni are strongly affiliated with projects that are nominated for NAACP Image Awards:
  • Nadine Velazquez (BA ‘01) starred opposite Denzel in Flight, which is nominated for Best Motion Picture. Nadine recently starred in The League and Hart of Dixie. She is also known for her starring role in My Name is Earl.
  • Jacqueline Fleming (BA ’96) stars in Woman Thou Art Loosed: On the 7th Day, which is nominated for Best Independent Motion Picture. Thanh Phan (‘02) also stars in Woman Thou Art Loosed: On the 7th Day.
  • Paul Garnes (BA ’96) is the Line Producer on The Game, which is nominated for an Image Award for Outstanding Comedy Series.

Audio Arts & Acoustics Alumni recently received national recognition for their Live & Installed Sound skills at the 12th Annual Parnelli Awards gala in Las Vegas. Kevin Glendinnin (’00) and Vic Wagner (BA ’07) were honored at what is considered “the Oscars of the Live Event Industry.”

In other Hollywood news...
Michelle Alegria (BA ’97) has a part in Sofia Coppola’s latest film, The Bling Ring, as well as another film in post-production. You’ve seen The Hobbit, right? Paul Broucek (BA ’74) is the President of Music for Warner Bros. and oversaw all aspects of the music for this hit film.

2003 Honorary Degree Recipient, Tony Kushner is the screenwriter for Lincoln and is nominated for Best Screenplay for these awards entities:
  • Golden Globes
  • Critics Choice Awards
  • BAFTAs
  • WGA (Best Adapted Screenplay)

Sundance & Slamdance update:
Michael David Lynch’s (BA ’05) film Between Us, starring Julia Stiles and Taye Diggs will be in Slamdance this year. Lynch serves as the co-producer and line producer on the feature.

It was recently announced that Diane Weyermann (’92) will be on the Sundance 2013 U.S. Documentary Jury for the festival. In addition to one of our alumni being on the Jury, we have TEN alumni with films in the 2013 festival.