2013 SAG Awards go to ‘Argo,’ Day-Lewis, Lawrence, Moore, Danes, Costner

One of the first Awards races to be announced is the Dorian Awards, and it seems that we got the mainstream honors right. Tonight, the Screen Actor’s Guild announced their honorees, and it pretty much paralleled what we, the Gay and Lesbian Entertainment Critics Association announced some time ago.

As with SAG, he group’s Dorian Award for Film of the Year went to director Ben Affleck’s fast-paced adventure, Argo (Warner Bros.). while both organizations loved Daniel Day-Lewis for his robust portrayal of Abraham Lincoln in Lincoln. Anne Hathaway was chosen for her singing turn as Fantine in the movie version of Les Miserables, though the much talked about film did not do well otherwise.

Ben Affleck’s Argo is looking like a very likely bet for the Oscars, as more and more groups vote for their favorites. Argo is about the Middle East and full of shaky-cam intrigue, and it’s a decidedly lighter film than Zero Dark Thirty, with long comedy sequences and genial performances by cozily likable actors. It’s serious, but Zero Dark Thirty is more intense, newsier, and undeniably grim. It’s grownup and respectable, in other words. But Argo is entertainment and suspense, a very good combination.

Why the SAG Awards are Unique

Lauded by critics for its style, simplicity and genuine warmth, the Screen Actors Guild Awards®, which made its debut in 1995, has become one of the industry’s most prized honors. The only televised awards shows to exclusively honor performers, it presents thirteen awards for acting in film and television in a fast moving two hour show which airs live on TNT and TBS. The awards focus on both individual performances as well as on the work of the entire ensemble of a drama series and comedy series, and the cast of a motion picture. These honors are fundamental to the spirit of the Screen Actors Guild Awards because they recognize what all actors know – that acting is a collaborative art.

In that same spirit, the SAG Awards® also commends the outstanding performances by film and television stunt ensembles. These accolades are announced from the SAG Awards red carpet during TNT and TBS’ pre-show webcasts.

Other highlights of the Screen Actors Guild Awards include the Life Achievement Award, presented to an established performer for fostering the highest ideals of the acting profession and tributes to the varied talents within the Guild’s membership. The 48th Life Achievement Award recipient was Mary Tyler Moore.

The Screen Actors Guild Awards are also unique in the size of its voting body. Two randomly selected panels of 2,100 members each from across the country choose the nominees for television and motion pictures. All active members of the SAG-AFTRA in the United States — more than 100,000 members — receive voting information to select the outstanding performances of the year.

The Screen Actors Guild Awards is the only national network television show to acknowledge the work of union members. SAG-AFTRA is affiliated with the AFL-CIO through the Associated Actors and Artistes of America (the Four A’s).

The Screen Actors Guild Awards also benefit the Screen Actors Guild Foundation, which provides opportunities for union members to contribute to the literacy of children through BookPALS (Performing Artists for Literacy in Schools), its online component, Storyline Online, and the We The Children family-heritage book-writing project. SAG Foundation programs provide emergency relief to union members in economic distress, emergency funds for members with catastrophic illnesses, video and audio preservation of the creative legacy of members, scholarships for performers and their children, valuable casting seminars and related professional workshops. The Foundation also operates The Actor’s Center and Don LaFontaine Voice-Over Lab. Details are available at http://www.sagfoundation.org, http://www.bookpals.net and http://www.storylineonline.net.

PEOPLE magazine and the Entertainment Industry Foundation (EIF) will host the Screen Actors Guild Post-Awards Gala for the 16th consecutive year. This exclusive event honors the philanthropic causes and good works of the members of SAG-AFTRA. The gala, benefiting the Screen Actors Guild Foundation, will immediately follow the SAG Awards on the backlot of the Shrine Exposition Center.

SAG Awards Facts

The 19th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards will be simulcast live on TNT and TBS Sunday, Jan. 27, 2013. Nominations will be announced Wednesday, Dec. 12, 2012. For our other key dates, please see our full calendar.

The 19th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards presented by SAG-AFTRA will be produced by Jeff Margolis Productions in association with Screen Actors Guild Awards®, LLC. Jeff Margolis is the executive producer and director. Kathy Connell is the producer. JoBeth Williams, Daryl Anderson, Scott Bakula, Shelley Fabares, Paul Napier, and Woody Schultz are producers for SAG-AFTRA. Gloria Fujita O’Brien and Mick McCullough are supervising producers. Benn Fleishman is executive in charge of production. Rosalind Jarrett Sepulveda is executive in charge of publicity. Jon Brockett is awards coordinating producer. Maggie Barrett Caulfield is the talent producer.

SAG-AFTRA represents more than 165,000 actors, announcers, broadcasters journalists, dancers, DJs, news writers, news editors, program hosts, puppeteers, recording artists, singers, stunt performers, voiceover artists and other media professionals. SAG-AFTRA members are the faces and voices that entertain and inform America and the world. With national offices in Los Angeles and New York, and local offices nationwide, SAG-AFTRA members work together to secure the strongest protections for media artists into the 21st century and beyond. Visit SAG-AFTRA online at SAGAFTRA.org.