LOS ANGELES, United States — Jane Campion hailed
the shattering of
Hollywood’s glass ceiling as her movie “The Power of the Dog”
was named the year’s best film by her fellow directors Saturday — a major
accolade which historically leads to Oscars glory.
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Campion won the Directors
Guild of America’s top
prize for her Netflix adaptation of a Western novel about the toxic masculinity
of sexually repressed cowboys, fending off illustrious rivals at the Los
Angeles gala including Steven Spielberg.
Campion is the third woman to ever win the top
Directors Guild of America prize, after Kathryn Bigelow for 2008’s “The Hurt
Locker,” and Chloe Zhao last year for “Nomadland.”
The New Zealand auteur said it was increasingly
common to hear about glass ceilings being shattered during Hollywood’s award
season, and that “perhaps it’s time to claim a sense of victory on that front.”
“We’ve come so far and what’s more, we’re never
going backwards,” she said, before capping the night by taking the top prize,
presented by last year’s winner Zhao.
“I’m so proud of you... I’m here because I care
about women having voices as well,” said
Campion.
Campion, who was first nominated in 1994 for “The
Piano,” earlier in the night reflected on a time when she was frequently “the
only woman in the room.”
“I remember that outsider feeling as I fought to get
my stories told, to bring dynamic stories from underserved perspectives to
light in a male-dominated field.”
Maggie Gyllenhaal won best first-time director for
“The Lost Daughter,” a drama about the challenges and taboos surrounding motherhood.
New Zealand director Jane Campion poses with the award for Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Theatrical Feature Film “The Power of the Dog” in the press room of the 74th annual Directors Guild of America awards at the Beverly Hilton hotel in Beverly Hills, California, March 12, 2022. (Photo: AFP)
Gyllenhaal — until now primarily known as an actress
in films such as “
The Dark Knight” and “Secretary” — said watching Campion’s
“The Piano” as a teen had “changed my life” and sparked a desire to one day
direct.
“I think it is one of the real reasons that I am
standing here and that ultimately, I got brave enough to say what I wanted,”
said Gyllenhaal.
‘Dangerous’
In the last nine years, only
one director — Sam Mendes — has won the top DGA award and failed to then win
best director at the Oscars, a fact that propels Campion to firm favorite
status for the Academy Awards on March 27.
While Campion won on Saturday, many stars and
nominees also devoted their speeches to fellow nominee Spielberg, with
Rita Moreno hailing a “wizard,” Denis Villeneuve a “giant” and Spike Lee “the
godfather of cinema.”
Spielberg, on his 12th DGA nomination, admitted that
remaking the beloved musical “West Side Story” had been “really scary.”
“It was terrifying, and I gave up a whole bunch of
times. And every single time I said ‘this is just too dangerous,’” the
legendary director of “Jaws,” “
Schindler’s List” and “Jurassic Park” said.
Lee received the DGA’s lifetime achievement award —
the 35th person in Hollywood history to be granted the honor, and the first
Black man.
“Attica,” by Stanley Nelson, which recounts the
deadliest prison riot in the US, won best documentary, beating musician
Questlove’s strongly favored “
Summer of Soul.”
The protest at Attica prison in 1971 New York state
— by mainly Black and Latino inmates — ended in 43 deaths as law enforcement
stormed the prison.
‘Picking a successor’
Although not broadcast on
television and more low-key than some other
Hollywood awards, the DGAs are
longer-running, and its 18,000 voters including the industry’s top directors
offer prestigious recognition.
They also honor the year’s best TV episodes, with an
installment of “Hacks” taking best comedy and “The Underground Railroad”
winning best limited series.
Best drama prize was a foregone conclusion — all
five nominated episodes were from the same show, HBO’s “Succession.”
“We’re so glad that we don’t have to choose the
winners,” said Brian Cox, who plays the patriarch of a squabbling media dynasty
on “Succession.”
“Because picking any of these incredible directors is as
difficult as a parent picking a successor for his business — and that is
something I would never ever do.”
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