So It’s Your First Awards Season
A check in with this year’s Golden Globe stars.
This year, it’s very likely that the songwriter Diane Warren (known for her work as the Woman Mariah Carey Pushed Out of the Way) will attend the Oscar ceremony as a 17-time nominee for Best Original Song. She’s made the longlist for “Dear Me”—from a documentary about her own life.
No wins so far. She’ll almost certainly be beaten again—this time by K-Pop Demon Hunters.
And yet, she perseveres. So why bother with the obligatory, show-face-and-smile ceremony when you’re almost certainly going to leave empty handed? Because, I imagine, there’s an inimitable magic to these things. What a weird feeling it must be to experience that world for the first time, as a nominee or someone attached to a film that everyone’s talking about.
Ahead of this weekend’s Golden Globes ceremony, I reached out to a bunch of this year’s nominees who meet that criteria, including a breakout star of Sentimental Value, the director of this year’s wildest, loudest movie (not Avatar—the Spanish banger Sirat), and a French young master of animation going toe-to-toe with Zootopia. They talked to me about the food they’re eating, how to handle walking into rooms with hundreds of people, and who they’re leaning on through the madness of this experience.
Best Supporting Actress nominee for Sentimental Value
Who’s been your rock?
Stellan Skarsgård.
Have you made friends with other people on the circuit?
I keep meeting a lot of the same people, and it is really nice to see familiar faces and share some laughs about the chaos and the absurdity of the whole situation.
What surprised you about this whole thing
The food (or lack thereof) at awards ceremonies is very odd. But I’m thankful to be fed at all, so I won’t complain.
Best Motion Picture—Foreign Language nominee for Sirat
What’s been your favourite meal served at a ceremony so far?
At the end of the Governor’s Awards dinner, there was a table filled with cups of tea, coffee, and lots of cookies. A lot of different types of cookies.
Are you good at tying ties now?
I haven’t yet worn a tie, and I am not interested in learning. I may bring one for luck. It depends on if we are nominated [for the Oscars]!
Who’s been your rock?
At the beginning, I was quite alone. Then Xavi Font, my longtime producer and friend came, and now all my producers and my department heads are with me. But in general I’m enjoying working with [film’s US distributor] Neon. The team and I are becoming friends. This is the key: I feel good because I am working with people I love.
star of Best Motion Picture—Foreign Language nominee, The Voice of Hind Rajab
Who’s been your rock?
My sisters. They support everything I do on a level that’s beyond words, and I’m endlessly grateful to have them by my side.
Have you been running into someone you get along with at different stops along the way?
The film team. We all live in different parts of the world, so every time we come together it feels incredibly grounding.
How do you mentally prepare for a room full of people?
I remind myself that at the end of the day, we’re all the same and we’re all human. The room doesn’t need anything from me except honesty, so I rely on the self-trust I’ve built over the years and choose to lead with intention.
Best Motion Picture—Animated nominee for Arco
Who’s been your rock?
My wife. And my producing partner and co-writer Felix de Givry.
Would an awards ceremony make a good backdrop for an animated movie?
Great idea! It would cost a lot because of the huge crowd. I hand-draw all of my animation so putting that much detail into the artwork would take hours. I can imagine the production nightmare in terms of rights for using every person’s image, but I’m up for the challenge!
What phrase have you heard too often on the circuit?
“Welcome Mr. Bienvenu!”—which is strange, because “bienvenu” also means welcome in French.
Last weekend’s Critics Choice Awards were eventful because of the spanner they threw into the works, awarding Timothée Chalamet *and* Jacob Elordi on the same night when young men typically don’t get awards love over the industry’s old hat daddies. But some trends are unbreakable, like the fact that the Critics Choice Awards serve A-list talent zhuzzhed up Fyre Fest catering.
I present you with the evidence in three parts:
Abbott Elementary’s Janelle James mentioning the “grapes and ice cream” in her acceptance speech.
The New York Times reporter Kyle Buchanan’s tweet.
The below image of Ayo Edebiri at the 2024 ceremony:
Good luck to our fave nominees at this weekend’s Golden Globes! I hope they feed you well. See you next time xo
Won’t somebody please feed the actors!!