DIRECTING …the nominations go to:
Michel Hazanavicius for “The Artist”
Alexander Payne for “The Descendants”
Martin Scorsese for “Hugo”
Woody Allen for “Midnight in Paris”
Terrence Malick for “The Tree of Life”

Alex: I’m going to say that Woody Allen gets the win for his twist on time travel with Midnight in Paris.

Denise:  I think Michel Hazanavicius should get it for showing everyone how a silent movie gets done.  Plus, I think it’d be a hoot to watch the presenter try to pronounce his name.  Otherwise, I can’t seem to choose between Payne and Allen.  And I never thought I’d be rooting for Woody Allen to win.  Guess I’m getting more artsy in my dotage.

Rock: Descendants!  Hands down the best film i’ve seen this year, and I hope it sweeps across every category, although I KNOW Clooney will win for acting.  Payne did for this film, what he did for Sideways.  He humanized the locale.  Just as ‘Sideways’ wasn’t just the lush greenery of wine country, Descendants was more than just hula gals and your stereotypical visuals of the Hawaiian Islands.  If you remove the horizon and sky setting shots from Descendants, you may have thought they were in a suburb of D.C.

Tatiana: Terrence Malick for The Tree of Life!