Seann William Scott delivers his best performance yet as Doug Glatt, a sweet, lovable Canadian bar bouncer who is troubled by the fact that he doesn’t have a “thing” that defines him. His father (Eugene Levy) and brother, Ira (David Paetkau), are both doctors, and his best friend, Pat (Jay Baruchel, who co-wrote the film with frequent Seth Rogen collaborator Evan Goldberg), has a public access show about hockey, but Doug feels aimless, searching for his life’s real purpose. That changes one night at a hockey game, when he knocks out a player who climbs into the stands to beat up Pat, who has instigated the fight by being his usual loudmouth self. The fight in the stands garners more attention and applause than the game itself, and Doug soon finds himself recruited as an enforcer for a local minor league hockey team.

As an enforcer, Doug’s job is to injure successful players from other teams, as well as to protect his own teammates by beating up the other teams’ enforcers. It is the sense of being a protector of his team that resonates with Doug and makes him feel like he’s found his calling. It also helps him to earn the love of Eva (Alison Pill), a woman he meets one night in a bar when he knocks out an obnoxious drunk who is hitting on her, and the friendship of his team’s star player, Xavier LaFlamme (Marc-Andre Grondin). Ultimately, though, what the film is building to is a showdown between Doug and his idol, Ross “The Boss” Rhea (Liev Schreiber), a brutal enforcer from the majors who has been demoted for his unsportsmanlike conduct. Though Goon follows the expected beats of a classic sports movie, its formulaic nature does not detract from its quality, and by the time Doug “The Thug” Glatt inevitably faces off against his rival, Scott’s charismatic performance and the film’s surprising likability should have even the most ambivalent viewer ready to cheer.

Hidden Netflix Gems is a new feature designed to help readers answer that burning question, “What should I watch tonight?” It will be updated every Saturday before the sun goes down.

The nominees are: Darren Aronofsky for “Black Swan,” David Fincher for “The Social Network,” Tom Hooper for “The King’s Speech,” Christopher Nolan for “Inception,” and David O. Russell for “The Fighter.” Among the directors excluded who made films a lot of people are pulling for are two women: Lisa Cholodenko of “The Kids Are All Right” and Debra Ganik of “Winter’s Bone.” As Anne Thompson points out, the Guild has been slightly more open to nominating women than the Academy in the past. On the other hand, after last year’s big win for Kathryn Bigelow, it’s possible some of the pressure is off, or not.

Though it’s not as earth shaking, we movie fans like our movie special effects and the Visual Effects Society has made their nominations. No big surprises here either as the nominees for the movie with best effects are “Inception,” “Iron Man 2 ,” “Tron: Legacy,” “Alice in Wonderland,” and “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 1.” I think it’s fair to say that visually stunning “Inception” should have the lead here, but we’ll see. In animation the nominees are: “How to Train Your Dragon,” “Toy Story 3,” “Tangled,” “Shrek Forever After,” and “Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga’Hoole.”

The complete lists of award nominations, including a huge list from the VSA, are after the jump.

Directors Guild Award Nominees

DARREN ARONOFSKY
Black Swan
(Fox Searchlight Pictures)
Mr. Aronofsky’s Directorial Team:
· Unit Production Manager: Jennifer Roth
· First Assistant Director: Joseph Reidy
· Second Assistant Director: Amy Lauritsen
· Second Second Assistant Director: Travis Rehwaldt
· Location Manager: Ronnie Kupferwasser
This is Mr. Aronofsky’s first DGA Feature Film Award Nomination.

DAVID FINCHER
The Social Network
(Columbia Pictures)
Mr. Fincher’s Directorial Team:
· Unit Production Manager: JoAnn Perritano
· First Assistant Director: Bob Wagner
· Second Assistant Director: Allen Kupetsky
· Second Second Assistant Director: Maileen Williams
This is Mr. Fincher’s second DGA Feature Film Award nomination. He was previously nominated for The Curious Case of Benjamin Button in 2008. He previously won the DGA Commercial Award for Speed Chain (Nike), Gamebreakers (Nikegridiron.com), and Beauty for Sale (Xelibri Phones) in 2003 and was nominated in that category again in 2008.

TOM HOOPER
The King’s Speech
(The Weinstein Co.)
Mr. Hooper’s Directorial Team:
· Production Manager: Erica Bensly
· First Assistant Director: Martin Harrison
· Second Assistant Director: Chris Stoaling
This is Mr. Hooper’s first DGA Feature Film Award Nomination. He was previously nominated for the DGA Award for Movies for Television/Miniseries for John Adams in 2008.

CHRISTOPHER NOLAN
Inception
(Warner Bros. Pictures)
Mr. Nolan’s Directorial Team:
· Unit Production Manager: Jan Foster
· First Assistant Director: Nilo Otero
· Second Assistant Director: Brandon Lambdin
· Second Second Assistant Director: Greg Pawlik
· Additional Second Assistant Director: Lauren Pasternack
This is Mr. Nolan’s third DGA Feature Film Award nomination. He was previously nominated for The Dark Knight in 2008 and for Memento in 2001.

DAVID O. RUSSELL
The Fighter
(Paramount Pictures and The Weinstein Co.)
Mr. Russell’s Directorial Team:
· Unit Production Manager: Mark Kamine
· First Assistant Director: Michele Ziegler
· Second Assistant Director: Xanthus Valan
· Second Second Assistant Director: Timothy Blockburger
This is Mr. Russell’s first DGA Feature Film Award nomination.

Visual Effects Society Award Nominations

Outstanding Visual Effects in a Visual-Effects Driven Feature Motion Picture

Inception
Paul Franklin
Visual Effects Supervisor
Chris Corbould
Special Effects Supervisor
Mike Chambers
Visual Effects Producer
Matthew Plummer
Visual Effects Producer

Iron Man 2
Ben Snow
VFX Supervisor
Ged Wright
VFX Supervisor
Janek Sirrs
VFX Supervisor
Susan Pickett
VFX Producer

TRON: Legacy
Eric Barba
Visual Effects Supervisor
Lisa Beroud
Visual Effects Producer
Steve Preeg
Animation Director
Karl Denham
Sequence Supervisor

Alice In Wonderland
Ken Ralston
Senior Visual Effects Supervisor
Tom Peitzman
Visual Effects Producer
David Schaub
Animation Supervisor
Carey Villegas
Visual Effects Supervisor

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1
Tim Burke
Overall VFX Supervisor
Emma Norton
Visual Effects Producer
John Richardson
Special Effects Supervisor

Outstanding Supporting Visual Effects in a Feature Motion Picture

Green Zone
Peter Chiang
Visual Effects Supervisor
Charlie Noble
Visual Effects Supervisor
Joss Williams
Special Effects Supervisor
Matthew Plummer
Visual Effects Producer

SALT
Robert Grasmere
Visual Effects Supervisor
Camille Cellucci
Visual Effects Producer
Mark Breakspear
Visual Effects Supervisor
Ivan Moran
Visual Effects Supervisor

Hereafter
Michael Owens
VFX Supervisor
Joel Mendias
Executive Producer
Bryan Grill
VFX Supervisor
Danielle Plantec
CG Supervisor

Black Swan
Dan Schrecker
Visual Effects Supervisor
Colleen Bachman
Visual Effects Producer
Michael Capton
3D Supervisor
Brad Kalinoski
Compositing Supervisor

Robin Hood
Richard Stammers
Overall VFX Supervisor
Allen Maris
VFX Producer
Jessica Norman
Digital Effects Supervisor
Max Wood
CG Supervisor

Outstanding Animation in an Animated Feature Motion Picture

Tangled
Clay Kaytis
Supervising Animator
John Kahrs
Supervising Animator
Glen Keane
Supervising Animator
Roy Conli
Producer

How to Train Your Dragon
Simon Otto
Head of Character Animation
Craig Ring
Visual Effects Supervisor
Bonnie Arnold
Produced By

Toy Story 3
Lee Unkrich
Director
Darla K. Anderson
Producer
Guido Quaroni
Supervising Technical Director
Michael Fong
Simulation & Effects Supervisor

Shrek Forever After
Jason Reisig
Head of Character Animation
Doug Cooper
VFX Supervisor
Gina Shay
Produced By
Teresa Cheng
Produced By

Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga’Hoole
Zareh Naibandian
Producer
Simon Whiteley
Production Designer
Eric Leighton
Animation Director
Alex Weight
Animation Supervisor

Outstanding Visual Effects in a Broadcast Miniseries, Movie or a Special

Last Day of the Dinosaurs
Arnaud Brisebois
Artistic Director
Louis Desrochers
VFX Artist
Alain Lachance
Visual Effects Producer
Marc-Antoine Rousseau
Visual Effects Supervisor

Inside The Perfect Predator
Philip Dobree
VFX Supervisor/VFX Producer
Richard Costin
Animation TD
Sam Meisels
Compositor

The Pacific
John Sullivan
Senior Visual Effects Supervisor
David Taritero
VFX Producer
William Mesa
Visual Effects Supervisor
Marco Requay
Digital Visual Effects Supervisor

Prep and Landing: Operation Secret Santa
Dorothy McKim
Producer
Kyle Odermatt
VFX Supervisor
Andy Harkness
Art Director
Adolph Lusinsky
Look and Lighting Director

America – Story of US
Philip Dobree
VFX Supervisor/VFX Producer
Emile Hardy
DMP
Sam Howell
Lead Animator

Outstanding Visual Effects in a Broadcast Series

Caprica
Michael Gibson
VFX Producer
Gary Hutzel
VFX Supervisor
Davey Morton
VFX Artist
Jesse Toves
CGI Artist

No Ordinary Family
Andrew Orloff
VFX Supervisor
Curt Miller
VFX Supervisor
Paul Linden
VFX Supervisor
Scott Tinter
VFX Producer

V
Andrew Orloff
VFX Supervisor
Nathan Overstrom
2D Supervisor
Karen Czukerberg
VFX Producer
Roberto Biagi
VFX Supervisor

The Event
Victor Scalise
Visual Effects Supervisor
Jason Spratt
Visual Effects Producer
Diego Galtieri
Compositor
Mike Enriquez
Lead 3D Artist

Stargate: Universe
Mark Savela
VFX Supervisor
James Rorick
VFX Producer
Craig Vanden Biggelaar
Digital Effects Supervisor
Adam de Bosch Kemper
Lead Animator

Outstanding Supporting Visual Effects in a Broadcast Program

The Walking Dead
Sam Nicholson
Visual Effects Supervisor
Jason Sperling
Visual Effects Supervisor
Kent Johnson
Visual Effects Producer
Chris Martin
Compositing Supervisor

Human Target
Andrew Orloff
VFX Supervisor
Raoul Bolognini
VFX Producer
Nathan Overstrom
2D Supervisor
Jason Monroe
Lead Modeler

Undercovers
Jay Worth
VFX Producer / Supervisor
Andrew Waisler
VFX Supervisor
Ron Thornton
VFX Supervisor
Andrew Kramer
Digital Artist

Boardwalk Empire
Robert Stromberg
VFX Supervisor
Dave Taritero
VFX Producer
Richard Friedlander
VFX Producer
Paul Graff
VFX Supervisor

Lost
Adam Avitabile
Visual Effects Supervisor
Melinka Thompson-Godoy
Visual Effects Producer
Michael Capton
3D Supervisor
Brad Kalinoski
Compositing Supervisor

Outstanding Achievement in an Animated Short

Looney Tunes – Coyote Falls
Bryan Engram
Animation Supervisor
Greg Lyons
Producer
Josh Carey
Rigging Supervisor
Harry Michalakeas
Technical Supervisor

Day & Night
Teddy Newton
Director
Kevin Reher
Producer
Michael Fu
Supervising Technical Director
Tom Gately
Supervising Animator

Paths of Hate
Tomasz Baginski
Animation Producer
Jaroslaw Sawko
Animation Producer
Damian Nenow
VFX Supervisor
Marta Staniszewska
Production Manager

Tick Tock Tale
Dorothy McKim
Producer
John Murrah
VFX Supervisor
Adolph Lusinsky
Look and Lighting Director
Wayne Unten
Animator

Cat Shit One – The Animated Series
Kazuya Sasahara
Director
Junya Okabe
Producer
Tomohisa Ishikawa
Art Director
Yoshiyuki Okada
Concept Artist

Outstanding Visual Effects in a Live Action Commercial

Wrigley’s 5 Gum – React
Robert Sethi
VFX Supervisor
Chris Knight
VFX Supervisor
Arielle Davis
VFX Producer
Gawain Liddiard
3D Lead Artist

DirecTV “Ice Cream”
Franck Lambertz
VFX Supervisor
Andrew Bell
VFX Producer/Head of Production
Mike Wynd
VFX Supervisor
Ross Denner
3 D Animator

Barclaycard Rollercoaster
Angus Kneale
Executive Creative Director/Shoot Supervisor
Ben Smith
Creative Director/Shoot Supervisor
Dan Williams
Lead Flame Artist
Ruben Vanderbroek
CG Artist

Halo: Reach
Dan Glass
Senior VFX Supervisor
Dan Seddon
CG Supervisor
Matt Dessero
DFX Supervisor
Stephanie Gilgar
VFX Producer

Verizon – Towers
Robert Sethi
VFX Supervisor
Arielle Davis
VFX Producer
Chris Knight
Shoot Supervisor/2D Lead Artist
Andre Desouza
3D Artist

Outstanding Animated Commercial

World of Warcraft
Marc Messenger
VFX Supervisor
Phillip Hillenbrand, Jr.
VFX Producer
Michael Kelleher
FX Supervisor
Brian LaFrance
Matte Painting Supervisor

Dante’s Inferno: Hell Awaits
Tim Miller
Director
Kevin Margo
CG Supervisor
Lindsey Zamplas
Producer
Kirby Miller
VFX Supervisor

Target “A Better Bullseye”
Chris Riehl
Animation Director
Javier Jimenez
Executive Producer
Daniel Zobrist
CG/Animation Supervisor
Charles Paek
CG/Lighting Supervisor

Andrex
Abby Orchard
VFX Producer
Antoine Moulineau
CGI Supervisor
Mike Mellor
Animation Supervisor
Russell Dodgson
VFX Supervisor

Cadbury’s Spots V Stripes
Jake Mengers
Creative VFX Director
Julie Evans
VFX Producer
Jorge Montiel Meurer
Lead Animator
Michael Gregory
2D Supervisor

Outstanding Visual Effects in a Special Venue Project

City of Ruins
Marcin Kobylecki
VFX Producer
Piotr Sliwowski
VFX Producer
Michal Gryn
VFX Supervisor
Damian Nenow
VFX Supervisor

King Kong 360 3D
Matt Aitken
VFX Supervisor
Kevin Sherwood
VFX Producer
Eric Reynolds
Animation Supervisor
R. Christopher White
CG Supervisor

Flight of the Dragon
Brent Young
Overall VFX Supervisor
Dina Benadon
Overall VFX Producer
Charlotte Huggins
Overall Project Producer
Michael “Oz” Smith
Technical Director

Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey
Richard Mann
VFX Producer
Adam Howard
Visual Effects Supervisor
Matt Hendershot
CG Supervisor
James Strauss
Animation Supervisor

Outstanding Real-Time Visual Effects in a Video Game

StarCraft II
Scott Goffman
VFX Supervisor
Phillip Hillenbrand, Jr.
VFX Producer
Nick Carpenter
Executive Art Director
James McCoy
Animation Director

Need for Speed
Henry LaBounta
Senior Art Director
Fiona Sperry
VP, GM
Johannes Soderqvist
Art Director
Alex Fry
Software Engineer

Halo: Reach
Marcus Lehto
Creative Director
Joseph Tung
Executive Producer
Stephen Scott
Senior FX Lead
CJ Cowan
Cinematics Director

Kinectimals
Jorg Neumann
Executive Producer
Brian Moore
Art Director
John Laws
Art Director
Jonny Watts
Game Design Director

Outstanding Visual Effects in a Video Game Trailer

World of Warcraft
Marc Messenger
VFX Supervisor
Phillip Hillenbrand, Jr.
VFX Producer

Star Wars: The Force Unleashed
Dave Wilson
Director
Corey Butler
CG Supervisor
Keith Luczywo
Producer
Seung Jae Lee
VFX Supervisor

Star Wars: The Old Republic 2
Tim Miller
Director
Dave Wilson
Director
Lindsey Zamplas
Producer
Brandon Riza
VFX Supervisor

Deus Ex: Human Revolution
Kazuyuki Ikumori
VFX Producer
Mitsuharu Fukai
VFX Supervisor
Kody Sabourin
VFX Director
Jonathan Jacques-Belletete
Art Director

Outstanding Animated Character in a Live Action Feature Motion Picture

Chronicles Of Narnia: Voyage Of The Dawn Treader – Reepicheep
Gabriele Zucchelli
Animation Supervisor
Catherine Mullan
Lead Animator
Benoit Dubuc
Lead Animator
Peta Bayley
Lead Animator

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1 – Dobby
Mathieu Vig
Animator
Ben Lambert
Modeller
Laurie Brugger
Character Supervisor
Marine Poirson
Look Development TD

Cats & Dogs: The Revenge of Kitty Galore – Kitty Galore
William Groebe
Animation Supervisor
Brian Mendenhall
Animation Lead
Aharon Bourland
Computer Graphics Supervisor
Steve Reding
Lighting Supervisor

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1 – Kreacher
Laurent Laban
Animator
Will Brand
Modeller
Matthieu Goutte
Rigger
Jason Baker
Look Development TD

Outstanding Animated Character in an Animated Feature Motion Picture

Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga’Hoole – Digger
Josh Murtack
Rigging Supervisor
James Cunliffe
Lead Animator
Jessica Groom
Character Surfacer
Andrew Hunt
Lead Animator

How to Train Your Dragon – Toothless
Gabe Hordos
Supervising Animator
Cassidy Curtis
Supervising Animator
Mariette Marinus
Character Technical Director
Brent Watkins
Character Technical Director

Tangled – Rapunzel
Tony Smeed
Supervising Animator
Amy Smeed
Animator
Becky Bresee
Animator
Kira Lehtomaki
Animator

Megamind – Minion
David Cross
Minion
Rani Naamani
Animator
Dick Walsh
Character Technical Director
Adrian Tsang
Character Technical Director

Outstanding Animated Character in a Broadcast Program or Commercial

Citron C3 The Spacebox – Citro
Michael Nauzin
CG Supervisor
Anne Chatelain
CG Animator
Gregory Mougne
CG Animator
Cedric Nicolas
CG Animator

Cadbury – Freida Steer
Raphael Pimentel
Animation Supervisor
Thana Siripopungul
Rigging Supervisor

Prep and Landing: Operation Secret Santa – Lanny
Tony Smeed
Supervising Animator
Chad Sellers
Animator
Patrick Osborne
Animator
John Wong
Animator

Logitech – Robot
Rob Ramsdell
Lead Artist/Puppeteer
Darnell Isom
Lead Art Designer/Puppeteer
James Springham
Lead Model Maker
Shelly Dutcher
Lead Flame Artist

Outstanding Animated Character in a Video Game

Halo: Reach – Kat
Lee R. Wilson
Story and Cinematic Lead
Jason Robertson
Senior Animator
David Hunt
Senior Technical Artist
Joe Spataro
Technical Designer in Animation

Kinectimals – Cub
Joel Mongeon
Senior Artist
Kenneth Lammers
Technical Art Director
Felix Ilsley
Lead Animator
Andrew Matthews
Lead Character Artist

StarCraft II – Sarah Kerrigan
Jeffrey W. Chamberlain
VFX Supervisor
Angela Blake
VFX Producer
Nick Carpenter
Executive Art Director

Outstanding Effects Animation in an Animated Feature Motion Picture

Shrek Forever After
Jeff Budsberg
Effects Lead
Andrew Kim
Effects Lead
Yancy Lindquist
Effects Animator
Can Yuksel
Effects Animator

How to Train Your Dragon
Andy Hayes
Effects Animator
Laurent Kermel
Effects Animator
Jason Mayer
Effects Animator
Brett Miller
Effects Animator

Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga’Hoole
Sebastien Quessy
FX Lead
Kevin Blom
FX Artist
Jerome Escobar
FX Artist

Toy Story 3
Jason Johnston
Effects Artist
Eric Froemling
Effects Artist
David Ryu
Effects Artist
JD Northrup
Effects Artist

Outstanding Created Environment in a Live Action Feature Motion Picture

Iron Man 2 – Stark Expo
Giles Hancock
Digimatte Supervisor
Richard Bluff
Digimatte Artist
Todd Vaziri
Digital Artist
Aaron McBride
VFX Art Director

TRON: Legacy – Disc Game
Jonathan Litt
Lighting Supervisor
Juan S. Gomez
Lighting Lead
Kevin Sears
Environment Lead
Sonja Burchard
Compositing Supervisor

Inception – Paris Dreamscape
Bruno Baron
Lighting Supervisor
Dan Neal
CG Supervisor
Graham Page
Compositing Sequence Supervisor
Per Mork-Jensen
Compositor

Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time – Sand Room
Alex Rothwell
Lead Effects Artist
Chris Zeh
Compositing Supervisor
Laurent Hugueniot
CG Supervisor
Kevin Jenkins
Visual Effects Art Director

Outstanding Created Environment in a Live Action Broadcast Program

Boardwalk Empire – Boardwalk
Robert Stromberg
CG Supervisor
Brian Sales
Lead Compositor
Paul Graff
VFX Supervisor
Brian Pace
Digital Modeler

The Event – To Keep Us Safe
Michael Cook
Lead 3D Artist
Jon Rosenthal
3D Artist
Ragui Hanna
2D Artist
Ryan Wieber
2D Artist

The Pacific – The Battle of Iwo Jima
Marco Recuay
VFX Supervisor/Lead Artist
Morgan McDermott
CG Supervisor
NIck Lund-Ulrich
Compositing Supervisor

Boardwalk Empire – Family Limitation
J. John Corbett
Compositing Supervisor
Matthew Conner
Digital Artist & Compositor
Brendan Fitzgerald
Senior 3D Artist
Jun Zhang
Lead Compositor
Outstanding Models & Miniatures in a Feature Motion Picture
Shutter Island – Ward-C Int./Ext. Lighthouse Int./Ext.
Matthew Gratzner
VFX Supervisor
Scott Schneider
Model Crew Chief
Adam Gelbart
Model Maker
Richard A.F. Ewan
Model Painter

Iron Man 2 – Hammer Military Drones
Bruce Holcomb
Digital Model Supervisor
Ron Woodall
View Paint Supervisor
John Goodson
Modeler
John Walker
CG Supervisor

The Expendables – The Palace Explodes
Gene Warren Jr.
Owner
Christopher Lee Warren
Director of Photography
Gene Warren III
Visual Effects Supervisor

Inception – Hospital Fortress Destruction
Ian Hunter
VFX Supervisor
Scott Beverly
Mechanical FX Supervisor
Forest Fischer
Model Crew Chief
Robert Spurlock
Special FX Supervisor

Outstanding Models & Miniatures in a Broadcast Program or Commercial

Family Guy – Brian Griffin’s House of Payne
Andrew Karr
3D Artist
Alec McClymont
CG Supervisor
Daniel Osaki
Lead 3D Modeler
Paul Hegg
CG Artist

Boardwalk Empire – The Ivory Tower
J. John Corbett
Compositing Supervisor
Matthew Conner
Digital Artist & Compositor
Brendan Fitzgerald
Senior 3D Artist

Outstanding Compositing in a Feature Motion Picture

TRON: Legacy
Kym Olsen
Look Development Compositing Lead
Paul Lambert
Compositing Supervisor
Sarahjane Javelo Chase
Rotoscope & Paint Lead
Sonja Burchard
Compositing Supervisor

Alice In Wonderland – Stolen Tarts
Lisa Deaner
Precomp
Orde Stevanoski
Compositor
Aaron Kupferman
Lighting/comp
Ruben Flores
Lighting/comp

Inception
Astrid Busser-Casas
Compositing Sequence Supervisor
Scott Pritchard
Compositing Sequence Supervisor
Jan Maroske
Compositing Sequence Supervisor
George Zwier
Compositing Sequence Supervisor

Hereafter – Tsunami Sequence
Joseph Farrell
Compositing Supervisor
Nick Crew
Lead Visual Effects Artist
Jamie Hallett
Compositor
Christine Lo
Compositor
Outstanding Compositing in a Broadcast Program or Commercial

Drench Cubehead
Matthew Unwin
VFX Supervisor
Lisa Ryan
Compositor
Michael Gregory
2D Supervisor

Boardwalk Empire – Episode 1
Paul Graff
VFX Supervisor
Brian Sales
Lead Compositor
Jesse Siglow
Compositor
Merysa Nichols
Compositor

Travelers “Watering Hole”
Franck Lambertz
VFX Supervisor/Compositing Lead
Ryan Knowles
2D Artist

The Pacific – Peleliu landing
Jeremy Nelson
Lead Compositor
John Mesa
Compositor/Supervisor
Dan Novy
Animator/Compositor
Tyler Cote
Compositor
Outstanding Visual Effects in a Student Project

LOOM
Regina Welker
Student

Time For Change
Rupert Ashton
3D Artist
Priyan Jayamaha
3D Artist
Junying Xu
3D Artist
Kirsten Dale Pretorious
Key Nuke Compositor

Das Tub
Rupert Ashton
3D Artist
Priyan Jayamaha
3D Artist
Junying Xu
3D Artist
Kirsten Dale Pretorious
Key Nuke Compositor

Nuisible(s)
Erick Hupin
Realisation
Baptiste Ode
Realisation
Philippe Puech
Realisation
Pierre Nahoum
Realisation

Showing the usual strength of well-received family-animated comedies, the film formerly known as “Rapunzel” earned an estimated $21.5 million over the weekend. The less than thrilling news here is that, as calculated by Box Office Mojo‘s indispensable weekend chart, it suffered a rather larger than usual second weekend drop for its genre of 55.9%. Still, I’m guessing we can attribute some of that to the post-holiday doldrums.

On the sunny side of the equation, the musical action comedy is already very close to the $100 million in its second weekend, and that’s never bad. On the other hand, the typically enormous CGI animation budget of $260 million makes that kind of number seem a hair less impressive. On the other other hand, when you consider not only the the worldwide box office, but the licensing, I think it’s fair to say that “Tangled” will be another profitable feather in the ever-more-humongous Disney cap.

Speaking of licensing, the runner-up was, of course, the once wizardly “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part One.” Warner Brother’s deposit to Gringott’s this weekend is a relatively modest estimated $16.7 million, but the film will be hitting $300 million in the domestic market alone within a few weeks, so there’s no worries about this franchise in any way stumbling in its penultimate outing.

The weekend’s one new major release with the quirky and limited marketing campaign, “The Warrior’s Way,” I suppose proved the wisdom of hired distributor Relativity Media’s fiscal caution. At least that’s kinda sorta how they framed it over at Nikki Finke‘s place. Finke and Anthony D’Alessandro also noted that the film earned a C- Cinemascore rating to go with the tepid reviews of the few critics who shelled out coin to see it. The take was, to be blunt, pretty dismal — just over $3 million, though I should note it was in only about half the number of theaters of a typical wide release, so it could have been worse. On the other hand, that figure puts it in 9th place on its opening weekend, just below another action film not pre-screened for critics, last weekend’s “Faster.” On the other other hand (again), it’s per-screen take of “Warrior” was a couple hundred higher than its modern day macho competition.

Arguably, the really major box office action as Oscar season nears a climax was on the limited release front. “Black Swan.” In 18 theaters, the Darren Aronofsky film that reportedly combines dance, melodrama and psychological/body horror in the traditions of both early Roman Polanski and, I’m guessing, middle-period David Cronenberg (Dario Argento is getting name-checked as well, but probably more for style than bloodletting), benefited from huge buzz, Oscar talk for and the star power of Natalie Portman. It might also have a significant boost, from costars Mila Kunis, Barbara Hershey, Winona Ryder, and perhaps especially villainous Vincent Cassel. The French actor is emerging as something of a true international superstar with movies like the two-part “Mesrine” gangster opus and is a hugely familiar face to art-house audiences here.

Released by Fox Searchlight, “Black Swan” is getting very good reviews though a backlash is already building up over a plot and atmosphere that fans and foes alike seem to agree goes way over the top. The question is, it over the top in a good way or a bad way? It’s certainly going over the top in a lucrative way; it earned a whopping per screen average of $77,444 in 18 theaters for an estimated total of roughly $1.39 million. That’s just about $10,000 shy of being half of what “The Warrior’s Way” made in 1,622 theaters. Think about that.

I could end it right there, but I like to send a shout out to the underdogs — even when they star, unbelievably enough, Jim Carrey. The quirky same-sex rom-com and true crime flick costarring Ewan McGregor, “I Love You Phillip Morris,” did manage to hold up against the gay-and-gal friendly onslaught of the “Black Swan” well in its 6 theater release. It earned a solid per-screen average in six theaters of $18,833 for an entirely decent estimated total of $113,000 for distributor Roadside Attractions.

And now a brief clip from what seems certain to be one of the year’s biggest sensations and a very likely major Oscar contender, Darren Aronofsky’s “The Black Swan.” I’m really hoping this will be 50% Powell and Pressburger’s “The Red Shoes,” 50% Roman Polanski’s “Repulsion” and 50% something entirely new and original.

H/t Movieline and the Playlist.

* James Cameron apparently won’t be directing the latest iteration of legend of Egyptian queen Cleopatra. Instead, he’ll spend the next few years doing the inevitable: “Avatar 2” and “Avatar 3.” Apparently, the commitment now is partially in return for Fox making a large donation to green causes Cameron supports.

* Christopher Nolan gave Geoff Boucher the title of the next Batman installment “The Dark Knight Rises” — not very inspiring. Having previously eliminated Mr. Freeze as the film’s big bad, he also eliminated the Riddler. That leaves Catwoman, the Penguin, and…Man-Bat?

* New Zealand Prime Minister John Keys announced today that the “The Hobbit” will, in fact, be staying in New Zealand. Yup, the leader of an entire nation announced a movie deal today. And you thought the cinema was a frivolous pastime. As expected, there were some legislative changes and remember those tax rebates that NZ Finance Minister Gerry Brownlee assured a reporter were not being negotiated? Well, some tax rebates were thrown in to sweeten the pot for Warners as well as some legislative changes. (H/t AICN)

* Schindler-esque humanitarian hero Paul Rusesabagina, who was portrayed by Don Cheadle in 2004’s Oscar-nominated “Hotel Rwanda,” is under legal threat in Rwanda on charges of “funding terrorism.” The allegation is because of his connection to opposition figure Victoire Ingabire, who is being held on suspicion of setting up some kind of armed resistance to the Rwandan government. Considering the crappy human rights record of the current Rwandan regime, I think it’s safe to say that Mr. Rusesabagina is once again facing off against the bad guys. Best of luck to him. (H/t The Wrap.)

* Matt Damon is doing a bit of damage control today for earlier remarks which made it sound as if he was none too happy not to be kept in the loop about the Jason Bourne-less “The Bourne Legacy.” I have absolutely no doubt that we bloggers did exaggerate the whole thing, but I’ve never seen a celebrity “badgered” at a roundtable yet. I have seen inane questions and some autograph requests, however.

Anyhow, it appears that Damon is really quite happy about the whole thing, as it leaves the door open for another Bourne film reteaming him and director Paul Greengrass. Also making progress: the Liberace film costarring Michael Douglas as the famed pianistic showman and directed by Steven Soderbergh, with Damon as Liberace’s long time lover. (Despite being one of the most flamboyantly flamboyant figures in the history of popular culture, Liberace remained in a sequin-encrusted closet his entire life.)

* More news from down-under. The critically acclaimed crime thriller “Animal Kingdom” has swept the nominations for the Australian equivalent of the Oscars. My colleague, Jason Zingale, found himself in the critical minority and wasn’t too pleased with the film. I personally thought that portions of it were overly somber, but on the whole I’m rooting for it anyway. Whatever it’s problems, it’s a very solid debut for writer-director David Michôd and I thought the last third was absolutely riveting. I certainly wouldn’t mind seeing an actual Oscar-nomination for Jacki Weaver as well for her role as a crime family matriarch who’s maternal instincts take some fascinating turns.

* And, speaking of Australia, an Aussie site ran an apparently false now-deleted story relating to a gay sex plotline in the planned “Alien” prequel. Cinematical’s Eric D. Snider mines the subject for some rather amusing homosexual panic driven humor. Also at Cinematical, behold the Batman-Cat.

* “Hereafter” writer Peter Morgan — who also penned “The Queen,” the outstanding “The Damned United,” and “Frost/Nixon” — gave an unusually compelling and candid flip-cam interview to Anne Thompson. Blogging about the interview, Movieline’s S.T. Vansairdale alleges Morgan is “ready to throw director Clint Eastwood under the bus,” which might excite readers with nastier dispositions but is not at all the impression I got. That’ll show Morgan for being honest with the press.

* Are we really supposed to care who will make a movie based on the Ouija board? How about “Cutting Board: The Movie”?

* Darren Aronofsky’s movie of Max Barry’s “Machine Men” will be a cyborg tale and is drawn from a novel that’s currently only available on the interwebs on a page-per-day basis.

* I hated almost all hair bands at the time, so — much as I love a good musical — I’m not exactly chomping at the bit for the film version of “Rock of Ages.” Somehow, possibly adding Tom Cruise to the mix as a bartender does nothing for me. He may pour again, but will he ever really reign?