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The 2021 Sketchy's: Day One

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I’m bringing back the Sketchy’s this year.

If you don’t know the Sketchy’s, these are my own best of film awards working within the same category as the Oscars. They’re a lot of work to put together, but feel really rewarding. I’m bringing them back because I want to. 2021 was a great year for film and I feel comfortable reflecting back and making this list.

Full disclosure: I have not watched enough documentaries, international films, shorts, or animated features this year to feel comfortable including those categories. I’m also including Choreography and Stunt Choreography as categories because they should exist.

The list is going to be released over two days. Today, you’ll get Director, Acting, Writing, and Choreography categories. Tomorrow, you’ll get Visual, Music, and Sound categories.

I’m also removing gendered categories and going 10-wide in every field. Categories like Leading Performance and Supporting Performance that were split into two categories will receive two winners each.

I changed my mind. Two winners in every category. Why? Because I can. Spread the wealth.

::Clears throat::

In a previous ceremony, The Night House was declared the best film of 2021. We neglected to share that honor with tick, tick…BOOM! under the updated two winners in every category rule. Congratulations to both winners in the category.

We would also like to announce a special commendation for AMC’s masterful pre-show advertisement starring Nicole Kidman. We do believe in the magic of movies on the big screen, and that magic is often associated with Nicole Kidman’s masterful acting in contemporary films. While we are not opposed to nominating short films in categories typically reserved for feature films (after the controversy over excluding The Devil’s Carnival from Best Picture on the short vs feature technicality), it is an extremely competitive year and we wanted to make sure this production received its proper recognition. Congratulations to everyone involved in the AMC pre-show ad.

Best Director:

Pedro Almodóvar, Parallel Mothers

David Bruckner, The Night House

Jane Campion, Power of the Dog

Nia DaCosta, Candyman

Julia Docournau, Titane

Corinna Faith, The Power

Ryusuke Hamguchi, Drive My Car

Elza Kephart, Slaxx

Lin-Manuel Miranda, tick, tick…BOOM!

Emma Seligman, Shiva Baby

Winners: Nia DaCosta, Candyman; Jane Campion, Power of the Dog

Nia DaCosta expertly shapes Candyman (2022) into a thrilling, thoughtful slasher film with tons of style and a strong perspective on society.

Jane Campion proves why she is one of the greatest directors of all time in Power of the Dog.

Best Leading Performance:

Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, Candyman

Stephanie Beatriz, Encanto

Nicolas Cage, Pig

Barbara Crampton, Jakob’s Wife

Penelope Cruz, Parallel Mothers

Andrew Garfield, tick, tick…BOOM!

Brea Grant, Lucky

Rebecca Hall, The Night House

Kristen Stewart, Spencer

Tessa Thompson, Passing

Winners: Rebecca Hall, The Night House; Nicolas Cage, Pig

Rebecca Hall is an incredible actor who makes the most out of the central role in a tragic haunted horror film.

Nicolas Cage gives arguably the best performance of his career in Pig as a truffle hunter trying to save his kidnapped pig.

Best Supporting Performance:

Bonnie Aarons, Jakob’s Wife

David Dastmalchian, The Suicide Squad

George Young, Malignant

Ann Dowd, Mass

Olga Merediz, In the Heights

Indya Moore, Escape Room: Tournament of Champions

Ruth Negga, Passing

Martha Plimpton, Mass

Kodi Smit McPhee, Power of the Dog

Vanessa Williams, Candyman

Winners: Martha Plimpton, Mass; Ann Dowd, Mass

Martha Plimpton and Ann Dowd provide a master class in building character arcs and working in an ensemble in Mass.

Best Original Screenplay:

Pedro Almodóvar, Parallel Mothers

Bryan Bertino, The Dark and the Wicked

Charise Castro Smith and Jared Bush, Encanto

Ben Collins and Luke Piotrwoski, The Night House

Rose Glass, Saint Maud

Patricia Gomez and Elza Kephart, Slaxx

Brea Grant, Lucky

Ruth Platt, Martyrs Lane

Mark Steensland, Kathy Charles, and Travis Stevens, Jakob’s Wife

Nora Unkel, A Nightmare Wakes

Winners: Charise Castro Smith and Jared Bush, Encanto; Brea Grant, Lucky

Charise Castro Smith and Jared Bush make a story of intergenerational trauma sing in a Disney film filled with magical realism.

Brea Grant produces one of the most focused critical takedowns of violence against women in cinema and society ever created.

Best Adapted Screenplay:

Jane Campion, Power of the Dog

James Gunn, The Suicide Squad

Rebecca Hall, Passing

Sian Heder, CODA

Steven Levenson, tick, tick…BOOM!

David Lowery, The Green Knight

Tom MacRae, Everybody’s Talking About Jamie

Jordan Peele, Win Rosenfeld, and Nia DaCosta, Candyman

Emma Seligman, Shiva Baby

Erica Schmidt, Cyrano

Winners: Jordan Peele, Win Rosenfeld, and Nia DaCosta, Candyman; Erica Schmidt, Cyrano

Jordan Peele, Win Rosenfeld, and Nia DaCosta prove that the reboot sequel trend in horror can be a rewarding artistic experience if the time is taken to support the world of the films that came before while embracing a brand new story idea.

The difference between “okay” and “great” in a musical can be the book. Erica Schmidt’s screen adaptation of the stage musical Cyrano helps a solid score find its voice.

Best Choreography:

Kelly Devine, Come From Away

Ryan Heffington, tick, tick…BOOM!

Adam Murray, Cruella

Justin Peck, West Side Story

Kate Prince, Everybody’s Talking About Jamie

Agathe Rousselle and Doris Arnold, Titane

Christopher Scott, In the Heights

Sherrie Silver, Sing 2

Jamal Sims, Encanto

Annette, choreographer uncredited

winners: Jamal Sims, Encanto; Kate Prince, Everybody’s Talking About Jamie

Encanto features some of my favorite choreography ever presented in a movie musical. The combination of traditional Columbian folk dance, musical theatre, and contemporary commercial dancing is explosive onscreen.

Everybody’s Talking About Jamie is the epitome of a crowd-pleasing musical. Kate Prince adapts her own choreography from the hit West End musical into something grand and cinematic in this fun movie musical. Fingers crossed we eventually get a Broadway run of this show.

Best Stunt Choreography:

Awarded to fight choreographers, stunt coordinators, and fight coordinators

Brad Allan, Andy Cheng, Christopher Clark Cowan, Mark Ginther, Isaac Hammon, Kyle Woods, Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings

Helena Barrett, Lucky

Lloyd Bateman, Glen Foster, Mark Norby, Malignant

Keir Beck, Volkhart Buff, Stephen Dunlevy, Jonathon Eusebio, Paul Leonard, and Scott Rogers, The Matrix Resurrections

Freddy Bouciegues, Free Guy

James Fierro and Mike Fierro, Candyman

Kerry Gregg, Anneli Muller, Bela Unger, Luca Unger, Escape Room: Tournament of Champions

Lee Morrison, Petr Rychly, Franco Maria Salamon, Olivier Schnieder, Patrick Vo, No Time to Die

Guy Norris, The Suicide Squad

Charlie Parrish, Willy’s Wonderland

Winners: Charlie Parrish, Willy’s Wonderland; Helena Barrett, Lucky

If you’re not down for Nicolas Cage bareknuckle boxing animatronics, what are you down for? Willy’s Wonderland is pure chaos, with each cursed robot fighting in an entirely different style in between Nicolas Cage’s breaks for pinball and energy drinks.

Lucky is filled with intense, realistic looking fight scenes between a masked intruder and May. These are important story beats that happen throughout the film, becoming longer, more involved, and more violent as May’s search for any help becomes more expansive and frustrating. The fights are another level of visual storytelling in a dense and bitter satire.


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