Dorian Award nominations are in, and “The Power of the Dog” is as strong as ever. Jane Campion’s queer Western set in 1920s Montana leads with nine nominations from The Society of LGBTQ Entertainment Critics. The Oscar favorite is up for honors such as best film, LGBTQ film, director, and screenplay.
While “The Power of the Dog” is the sole woman-helmed title up for Best Film, it’s joined by Emma Seligman’s “Shiva Baby,” a comedy about a college student and sex worker who crosses paths with her sugar daddy and high school girlfriend at a Jewish wake she’s attending with her parents, in the Best LGBTQ Film category.
Besides Campion, the Best Director race also includes Julia Ducournau for “Titane,” a revenge thriller about a a dancer, model, and serial killer with a sexual attraction to cars. With “Titane,” Ducournau became the first woman director to take home Cannes’ most prestigious prize, the Palme d’Or, since Campion’s 1993 win for “The Piano.”
Campion is one of three women up for Best Screenplay. She’s nominated alongside Maggie Gyllenhaal for Olivia Colman-starrer “The Lost Daughter,” a portrait of motherhood based on Elena Ferrante’s novel of the same name, and Rebecca Hall for “Passing,” the story of two Black women living on opposite sides of the color line in 1920s New York City.
Two titles nominated for Best Documentary hail from women filmmakers, Mariem Pérez Riera’s “Rita Moreno: Just a Girl Who Decided to Go For It,” a tribute to the “West Side Story” actress and trailblazer, and Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi and Jimmy Chin’s “The Rescue,” a harrowing look inside the 2018 Thai cave rescue.
The Best LGBTQ Documentary category features three films directed by women. Jamila Wignot’s “Ailey,” a portrait of dance pioneer Alvin Ailey, and Julie Cohen and Betsy West’s “My Name Is Pauli Murray,” an ode to the non-binary Black lawyer, activist, poet, and priest, are joined by Kristine Stolakis’s “Pray Away,” an exploration of the “pray the gay away” movement.
“You could say the movies and performances chosen by our Society’s members are a reflection of what appeals to the entire trendsetting Queer and Trans community,” said GALECA President Monika Estrella Negra. “As our representation grows in the industry and beyond, expect the Dorian Awards to continue to shine light on the importance, and excitement, of having diverse critical eyes on cinema. There is much work to be done in advancing a variety of voices and images that often go unheard and unseen.”
Winners will be announced March 17. Head over to The Hollywood Reporter to check out all of the nominees, which include Tessa Thompson (“Passing”) and Ariana DeBose (“West Side Story”).
