All posts tagged: Directors Guild of America

Directors Guild Renews Russell Hollander’s Contract Through 2029

Directors Guild Renews Russell Hollander’s Contract Through 2029

Published by Daniella Wilson

The Directors Guild of America has issued a vote of confidence in chief negotiator Russell Hollander ahead of the union’s upcoming negotiations with studios and streamers. Union president Christopher Nolan announced on Monday that the DGA had renewed its national executive director and chief negotiator’s contract through 2029. If the union agrees to a typical three-year labor deal with the Alliance of Motion Pictures and Television Producers this year, the renewed contract ensures that Hollander will be at the helm of the more than 19,500-member organization for the entirety of the deal’s term. “For nearly a decade as our National Executive Director, Russ has been a steward for the Guild and its members, seeing us through a period of tremendous upheaval in our industry,” Nolan said in a statement. “From the pandemic to the strikes and the global contraction in production, Russ has always prioritized and protected the interests of our members, working closely with me, past guild presidents, and our national board. We are grateful for his continued service to our community.”  Hollander has …

Seth Rogen, Evan Goldberg Thank Catherine O’Hara While Accepting DGA Award

Seth Rogen, Evan Goldberg Thank Catherine O’Hara While Accepting DGA Award

Published by Daniella Wilson

The Studio directors Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg honored Catherine O’Hara during their acceptance speech for outstanding directorial achievement for a comedy series at the 2026 DGA Awards. “Honestly, there’s no one we wish we could thank in person at this moment more than we would love to thank Catherine O’Hara,” Rogen said, which led the audience to erupt in applause, as Goldberg added, “We grew up in Canada, and she is and was quite literally our idol since we were children.” O’Hara portrayed movie executive Patty Leigh in Rogen and Goldberg’s Apple TV comedy. She appeared in all 10 episodes of The Studio‘s hit first season, and notably earned herself a 2025 Emmy nomination for best supporting actress in a comedy series. The Beetlejuice actress died Jan. 30 at her home in Los Angeles after a brief illness. She was 71. Rogen cited the two-time Emmy winner’s iconic role in the Home Alone franchise as a moment that made him want to make his own films. “Home Alone honestly is the movie that made me …

Our Members Are Having Hard Times

Our Members Are Having Hard Times

Published by Daniella Wilson

Christopher Nolan, the newly elected president of the Directors Guild of America, presided over his first DGA Awards on Saturday night, as he kicked off the ceremony with a passionate speech. Nolan was elected in September to serve as president of the Hollywood directors union, and returned to its annual awards show in very different fashion than two years ago, when he won the top prize for Oppenheimer. This time around, he began by showing appreciation to the guild’s board members and telling those in the room, “If you like the way the organization is running and you see things you like, or more importantly if you don’t like the way we’re doing things, please come and get involved… we need as many voices as possible.” Nolan noted how being a director can be “a lonely profession, and having us all come together on occasions like this is what helps us have strengths together in our conversations and our dealings with the studios. A lot of heavy hitters here tonight.” He joked he wasn’t “supposed …

2026 Directors Guild Awards Winners List

2026 Directors Guild Awards Winners List

Published by Daniella Wilson

The Directors Guild of America is recognizing the best film, TV and commercial directors of the past year at the 2026 DGA Awards. Heading into Saturday night’s ceremony — hosted this year by Kumail Nanjiani from the Beverly Hilton — Paul Thomas Anderson (One Battle After Another), Ryan Coogler (Sinners), Guillermo Del Toro (Frankenstein), Josh Safdie (Marty Supreme) and Chloé Zhao (Hamnet) are up for the top prize of outstanding directorial achievement in theatrical feature film, in what tends to be a major predictor for the best director category at the Oscars. (At the Oscars though, Sentimental Value‘s Joachim Trier is nominated in Del Toro’s place). The evening will see additional honors handed out for first-time feature filmmakers, as well as in a number of TV categories and special honors for associate director/stage manager David Charles and assistant director Gregory McCollum. It’s also the first show to be presided over by new DGA president Christopher Nolan, who was elected to helm the Hollywood union in September. A complete list of this year’s DGA nominees follows. Winners will be updated as they’re revealed …

New DGA President Talks AI and Jobs

New DGA President Talks AI and Jobs

Published by Daniella Wilson

Christopher Nolan is no stranger to tough jobs. This is the film director who crashed a real Boeing 747 into a set for Tenet and flipped an 18-wheeler in the middle of Chicago for The Dark Knight. But even by his standards, the leadership role he recently assumed in Hollywood is daunting. In September Nolan was elected to serve as president of the Hollywood directors’ union. He took the helm of the 19,500-member Directors Guild of America at an increasingly fraught time for Hollywood and its workers. Production in the U.S. has slowed considerably. Generative AI, and/or the hype around it, is threatening jobs. One Hollywood giant (Netflix) is attempting to swallow another (Warner Bros.). Nolan, one of Hollywood’s most powerful directors after churning out mind-bending hits like Oppenheimer and Inception, could have left the headaches of worker advocacy during a period of painful transformation to others. But instead he felt it was time to step up. “All of these changes over the last 10-15 years particularly, and the last five years in particular, they …