PEN Festival Reading List

The 9th Annual PEN World Voices Festival wrapped last week and left me longing to learn more about many of its featured writers. The festival's focus was on works that possessed bravery--either in form or content. Some of the writers in attendance displayed a valiant political spirit while others showed boldness in their writing style. All the writers I was lucky enough to see proved to be courageous in their ability to openly share their thoughts and communicate their creativity to an audience.

There were so many wonderful speakers at this year's PEN festival and I'm excited to learn more about them and their literary works. Here's a short but punchy list of recommended readings from writers who attended the festival:

-Adania Shibli's Touch

-Joy Harjo's Crazy Brave

-Shahrnush Parsipur's Kissing the Sword

-Shane Bauer's Mother Jones article "Solitary in Iran Nearly Broke Me. Then I Went Inside America's Prisons."

-Earl Lovelace's Is Just a Movie

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This Week in NYC: Brave Lit presented by PEN America!

A fiery exchange between Salman Rushdie and a political heckler, a former Onion writer filling in for a former U.S. Military Commissions prosecutor, live drum music, and some stellar readings were all part of a compelling opening night event of the 9th Annual PEN World Voices Festival of International Literature.

The theme of this year's festival is bravery and tonight's opening night readings at Cooper Union set forth a rather spirited tenor. A man who was protesting PEN America's recent appointment of Suzanne Nossel as their new Executive Director disrupted the start of the event by heckling the introductory speakers. Instead of forcing him to leave, the PEN staff showed their respect for debate and free speech by asking the man to remain quiet for the readings after he had been allowed to say his piece (and distribute flyers explaining his dissent). While Salman Rushdie and he exchanged some heated words, the activists/heckler did stay to watch the rest of the show silently. With that intro, the PEN Festival showed that it's an open forum for political discourse. The remainder of the event showed that the Festival means to celebrate both political and creative bravery in literature. Hosted by former Onion writer and current best-selling author, Baratunde Thurston (who stepped in for the absent speaker Lt. Col. in the Army Reserve Darrel Vandeveld to do a dialogue with Lt. Col. in the U.S. Air Force David Frakt about the trial of Guantanamo detainee Mohammed Jawad), tonight's readings were performed by a group of writers diverse in national background and literary style. From Native American writer Joy Harjo's tuneful poetry to Caribbean writer Earl Lovelace's humorous prose, the evening's literary performers all confidently voiced the passion, resilience, and defiant power that literature is capable of in all its engaging forms.

This year's festival is off to a bold start and I'm looking forward to a week of fantastic literary events. I've highlighted several upcoming happenings below but make sure to visit PEN's website for the Festival's full schedule and ticket info.

Kissing the Sword: A Prison Memoir by Shahrnush Parsipur
Friday, May 3rd at Asian/Pacific/American Institute at NYU.

Obsession: Joy Harjo on Time
Friday, May 3rd at The Standard, East Village Hotel.

Watching the Meter: Poetry from the Taxi Drivers Workshop
Saturday, May 4th at Joe's Pub.

All That’s Left to You: Palestinian Writers in Conversation
Saturday, May 4th at The New School. Moderated by Judith Butler.

Literature: The Lock and Key
Saturday, May 4th at The Public Theater. With Shane Bauer and Laura Secor.

Obsession: Naomi Wolf on Truth
Saturday, May 4th at The Standard, East Village Hotel. See full post

Putting the performance back in Performance Art

This is what an awesome live musical performance looks like:



People Get Ready is a Brooklyn-based group that's fusing mediums and bending genres with their musical movements. While their songs rock on their own, watching a clip of their live performance is what immediately turned me on to them.

If you live in New York, you can catch People Get Ready--along with the super awesome Solange--at the CBF festival this month! See full post

Roomsies, a wonderfully ridiculous webseries staring real-life roommates Jenny Donheiser and Meagan Kensil, just released the first episode of its second season today! It's hilariously kooky and has me pumped for future episodes. Check it out below!

Sadface because you're not caught up with Roomsies? Well put yourself in a barrel of laughs by watching all the short & sweet episodes here.

And make sure to follow the ladies on twitter for updates and extra giggles.

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9th Annual PEN World Voices Festival

This year, for their 9th annual PEN World Voices Festival of International Literature, PEN America will celebrate writers who have shown bravery in their work and personal lives. The festival will host a slew of lectures, workshops, and performances that will feature numerous political and talented writers such as Judith Butler, Joy Harjo, Naomi Wolf, Yusef Komunyakaa, Salman Rushdie, and this year's festival honoree US Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor.

The festival will take place throughout New York City from April 29th-May 5th. To all my fellow lit and politics nerds: I can't recommend hitting up this festival enough! A full schedule of events can be accessed here: http://worldvoices.pen.org/festival-event-calendar-page. While a few events are free, most require individual tickets so I recommend taking a look at the lineup now and purchasing tickets in advance.

If you sadly can't make this year's festival, make sure to check back here at ATFG for festival updates and coverage!


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Admission Giveaway!! WIN BOSSYPANTS?! OKAY!

It's been way too long since we've had a giveaway, right? Probably? I love giving shit away. Especially when said shit includes Tina Fey's book because even if you own it already, it's pretty much the best gift ever for anyone awesome....who doesn't own it already.

Anyway, in celebration of the release of a movie with Tina Fey AND Paul Rudd in it, we are giving away TWO prize packages featuring:

·         Folder, Notepad, Pen, Drawstring Bag, Toothbrush

·         Admission (movie tie-in book)

·         Bossypants by Tina Fey

To enter, just fill out the rafflecopter!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Link Up!

Visit the official website

Like Admission on Facebook                   

Watch the trailer on YouTube                   

Tweet using #Admission

ABOUT THE FILM

Tina Fey (Date Night, 30 Rock) and Paul Rudd (I Love You Man, Knocked Up) star in Admission, the new film directed by Academy Award nominee Paul Weitz (About a Boy), about the surprising detours we encounter on the road to happiness. Straight-laced Princeton University admissions officer Portia Nathan (Fey) is caught off-guard when she makes a recruiting visit to an alternative high school overseen by her former college classmate, the free-wheeling John Pressman (Rudd). Pressman has surmised that Jeremiah (Nat Wolff), his gifted yet very unconventional student, might well be the son that Portia secretly gave up for adoption many years ago. Soon, Portia finds herself bending the rules for Jeremiah, putting at risk the life she thought she always wanted -- but in the process finding her way to a surprising and exhilarating life and romance she never dreamed of having.

Release Date: March 22

Genre: Comedy

Starring: Tina Fey, Paul Rudd, Michael Sheen, Wallace Shawn, Gloria Reuben, Nat Wolff,Traveris Spears, Lily Tomlin

Directed By: Paul Weitz (“About a Boy,” “Being Flynn,” “In Good Company”)

Written By: Karen Croner (“One True Thing”); Based on the novel by Jean Hanff Korelitz

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SXSW: Even Moar Best of the Fest!

Over on Film.com, Will Goss and I made up our own SXSW awards and in the process got to honor everything that we thought was awesome about the films at the fest. But I actually had a few more random superlatives that I thought I'd post here!

Best Use Of James Franco
Pre-"Spring Breakers" Alamo Drafthouse Don't Talk PSA 

Although Franco had memorable performances in both "Maladies" and "Spring Breakers", perhaps his most fun contribution to SXSW was his recorded intro to Spring Breakers for the Alamo Ritz that had the audience in stitches. Not only did he quote Spring Breakers repeatedly ("Look at my shit!") but he quoted himself from Spiderman, prompting a warning to pop up on the screen saying everytime we talked or texted during the movie, Spiderman would kill James Franco's dad. And we don't want that. Well done, sir.

DON'T TALK - JAMES FRANCO from Alamo Drafthouse on Vimeo.

Best Appearance By One Of Our Own

Although Aint it Cool News' Eric Vespe's cameo in "Grow Up Tony Phillips" alongside his brother, lead Tony Vespe, is pretty damn adorbz, we can't help but award this honor to Hit Fix's Drew McWeeny, who makes us all look good with his intelligent, head above the rest commentary on the history and impact of the VHS in Josh Johnson's documentary "Rewind This"

Best Movie Swag

"Zero Charisma" & "Short Term 12"

One of these is obvious, one of these doesn't make sense without seeing the movie, both of these were given to me personally by the films directors and I will cherish them forever

Check out all the rest of the awards that DID make the cut at Film.com!

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Diary of a Noob: SXSW Edition

For the full article, head to Film.com

It began with getting lost six times in 10 minutes and ended with my wallet getting stolen on Rainey Street (I blame this, and everything else that goes wrong in the world, on the Music festival) but in between I experienced the most fun film festival I’ve ever attended, a week in the magical land of destination BBQ, breakfast tacos, legendary milkshakes, great movies and even better people. As this was my first time not only to SXSW and Austin, but also to an out of state festival, I was three times a noob, and t to document the first 90 of my 168 hours in attendance, if only so others might learn from my mistakes. Drunk bonding with filmmakers, strange “only at SXSW” sightings and the 18 movies I caught, it’s all here.

FRIDAY

5:00 P.M. After settling into the Hyatt Regency, where I will be rooming with Erin McCarthy of Mental Floss and Eugene Novikov of Film Blather, I decide to begin my journey into downtown. The Regency is over the bridge, which is about a 15-minute walk to the convention center, or if you can get a cab, a three-minute drive. I am armed with multiple electronics and a detailed binder. I feel prepared for whatever comes my way!

5:31 P.M. It quickly becomes apparent that I am not at all prepared for whatever comes my way. Or even the things that are vaguely near my way. Outside of the labyrinthine Convention Center I make not one, not two, not three, not even four or five, but six wrong turns before figuring out where I’m supposed to go. Neither my phone nor iPad seems to understand the geography of Austin (seriously, you’d need one of those tracker orbs from “Prometheus” to find your way around the Convention Center) and this binder is way too heavy. I think I’m doing it wrong.

6:04 P.M. I stumble into the Target Lounge to catch my breath, where I find Glenn Tilbrook from Squeeze about to perform. This would probably be more exciting if it weren’t the first time that I’m learning of either Glenn Tilbrook or Squeeze..

6:05 P.M. Just as I leave the Target party, Tilbrook starts singing “Tempted” and I realize I totally know who Squeeze is! Victory! Also, I’m drunk. Was I even drinking!? Austin is very sneaky …

6:15 P.M. In line for my first movie, the documentary about Improv Everywhere, “We Cause Scenes”, at the Vimeo Theater, which is located on the first floor of the Austin Convention Center. I’m about 10th in line.

6:17 P.M. The line behind me is suddenly enormous. Noted.

8:50 P.M. I am thrilled with my first choice of movie. “We Cause Scenes” is a joyous detailing of Improv Everywhere’s history that touches on the impact of technology, the nature of art and the definition of success.  During the Q&A, the director invites the entire audience to come drink with him. I have a feeling I’m going to like this festival.

9:10 P.M. I notice that the throne from “Game of Thrones” is stationed beside the Vimeo Theater, and unlike at Comic-Con or Wondercon, no one seems to care. I make a mental note to make sure I come back and pose in it before the week is up. Like all of my mental notes, it will soon be completely obliterated by alcohol.

9:15 P.M. I run off to meet up with one of my SXSW partners in crime, Coco Quinn, and run into the entirety of the “Much Ado About Nothing” crew fresh off their Arty Bus. Joss Whedon and his cast are perfectly happy to chat with me like we go way back, because they are the nicest.

9:35 P.M. A random guy on the street offers me pot brownies. I reluctantly decline.

9:50 P.M. We arrive to the premiere party of “A Teacher”, held at an actual public school in East Austin. There’s a ton of food, free drinks, and ruler giveaways that say “Hot For Teacher” on them.

10:50 P.M. Head out of the party, figuring I can easily catch a cab and make it over to the Topfer theater for “V/H/S/2″ by 11pm. I am sorely mistaken.

11:23 P.M. A nice girl agrees to pedicab me over there for a discount. I’m not sure if she realizes how far away the Topfer theater is. I start to worry this pedicab ride will kill her.

11:48 P.M. Pedicab girl lives! (for now). She drops me at the theater, a performance space rocking a temporary screen for the duration of the fest. I grab a queue card, and eventually Erin and I are settled in for “V/H/S/2.”

1:25 A.M. The audience bursts into applause after Gareth Evan’s “V/H/S/2″ sequence. Holy crap.

1:50 A.M. During the Q&A, the filmmakers and Scott Weinberg start having a fun back and forth. I decide to introduce myself to Twitter friend Weinberg after the Q&A but then chicken out for no discernible reason. This will prove to be a SXSW trend. Next year, Weinberg. Next year.

2:15 A.M. Due to lack of a car and a 90-minute wait for a cab, Erin and I decide to walk back to Hyatt. On the long walk, which involves  going under a terrifying bridge, I comment to Erin that it’s like we’re starring in our own “V/H/S” right now! Erin does not like this.

2:26 A.M. A pedicab driver appears out of nowhere and insists that I high five him. I oblige. He murders neither Erin nor myself. This is good.

2:45 A.M. We make it back safe and sound, our faces eaten by zero drugged up mutants, and meet our roommate Eugene. At 2:45 in the morning. What up, SXSW!

Saturday after the jump!

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10 Things I Learned at SXSW About Joss Whedon's Much Ado About Nothing

 For the full recap, head to Film.com

One of the most anticipated events of all of SXSW was undoubtedly the US premiere of Joss Whedon’s “Much Ado About Nothing”, the screening of which was immediately followed by an hour-long Q&A with the entire cast save for Sean Maher, Riki Lindhome, and Reed Diamond. The line for the screening was the festival’s longest (at least until “Spring Breakers” blew the roof off of the Paramount Theatre last night), and chairs had to be brought in to line the sides of the auditorium, accommodating as many audience members as possible. And it was all worth it: The movie is fantastic, perhaps the most accessible Shakespeare I’ve ever seen – and this ain’t my first Shakesprodeo (see what I did there?). The panel that followed was lively and filled with little nuggets of wit and wisdom. Below, we’ve shared our 10 favorite things that we learned from Whedon and his friends.

1. You Don’t Say No To Joss Whedon

Both Alexis Denisof and Nathan Fillion were nervous about tackling Shakespeare, but they both subscribe to the belief that if Joss Whedon asks you do something, you do it. Fillion even came close to dropping out completely until Whedon’s wise words kept him attached. When Whedon reached out to Nick Kocher and Brian McElhaney to inquire as to whether they would fly themselves out to work on his movie for very little pay, they didn’t even hesitate. As Kocher put it, “Of course we came out – what do you think we do all day?!”

2. Wanna Work With Joss Whedon? It Could Happen

Over and over, situations came up where Joss discovered someone and incorporated them into the Whedonverse. Danny Kaminsky was hired as Joss’ assistant for “The Avengers”, and they worked so well together that Danny ended up becoming the editor and co-producer of “Much Ado”, thus “winning the best lottery of all time” (Kaminsky’s words, though I share the sentiment). Similarly, Jillian Morgese, who makes her feature debut in the film, was discovered by Joss after working on “The Avengers” in a minor PA/Extra role. He was taken by her as she “ran around looking scared”, and found her particular brand of ingenue to be exactly right for Hero, so he asked her to audition. Kocher and McElhaney were cast because Whedon is a huge fan of their sketch comedy group BriTanicK. Now, with their foot in the door, all of these people are here to stay. Moregese even went so far as to say that they had all become like family, something none of them would have thought possible just a couple years ago. The cherry on top? Rather than have any old extras, Whedon specifically brought in film students to fill out the main party scene.

3. Skype Auditions Are Really A Thing!

Whedon’s hunch about Morgese was proved correct when she auditioned for him over Skype and immediately got the role, no in-person callback required.

Way way way more on Film.com! You should go there! 

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An Immodest Proposal

As franchises traditionally dismissed for their lack of meaningful content, such as comic books and video games, become more prevalent in modern entertainment and gain more respect as revenue generating properties in major media arenas, the involvement of women has become increasingly fraught with bold and rampant misogyny. The relentless and pervasive sexism leveled at actresses cast to portray these super heroes, these goddesses, has exacerbated already heated arguments about the place of women in fandom, in genre creation, and in media, and has taken a toll on everyone's ability to enjoy these fun, silly movies that are actually quite important to us all.

It seems that the one thing all the points of contention have in common, of course, are women themselves, and so, though we cannot do so in real life or daily interactions, insofar as the screen goes, I feel we are left with only one solution to please all parties, as well as perhaps save the VFX community in a single stroke.

Cast only dead actresses.

Or at the very least, actresses whose careers have passed into their twilights and ended and who won't be needing them anymore. It's clear from endeavors such as the recent Galaxy chocolate commercial starring Audrey Hepburn, looking particularly idealized and even shapely, to Marilyn Monroe's speaking, cameo appearance in this past holiday season's J'adore Diore campaign, that this is economically feasible, a sure way to generate buzz if not acclaim and, of course, a decision of the highest artistic merit. Why cast a mere human person in the role of Spider-Man's Mary Jane Watson, a rebel teen turned super model who so fully and perfectly embodies the sex object promised all young men in classic Western narratives, when one could cast instead Ann-Margret at the height of her vibrancy, youth and sex appeal?

Poor Shailene Woodley, with her pretty but not perfectly rendered face and modern-Hollywood-acceptable proportions, can never truly fill out the role of Mary Jane Watson- but then, what living soul could? Megan Fox would be a contender, although she is clearly far too old to tackle the role, and though our Mary Jane did have some wild years in her youth, there would doubtless be some questions raised as to Fox's suitability to portray such a championed, cherished character as Mary Jane, what with Fox's history as a notorious harlot. While Shailene brings a fresh-facedness to the role, young Ann-Margret looks much more like the John Romita illustration Spider-Man purists deserve to see on screen, and what's truly compelling about the idea of casting an actress who exists and yet is not real is that the parts of her that are inaccurate- eye color, hair color, measurements- can be changed by clever artists at a computer and don't have to be left up to anything as messy and faulty as chemistry or contact lenses.

Surely, this is the best course. None would dare speak ill of the charms or talents of such names as Lauren Bacall, Rita Hayworth or Natalie Wood! Their eternal, preserved luster and Hollywood legend would enrich the flashy and colorful superhero movies that critics seem so hellbent on dismissing; the characters we love so much would be represented by the greatest, most incontrovertible beauties of the age, none of whom would desire input on their performances or costuming; indeed, all misogyny and sexism would most probably come to a full stop, as no one would be taking cheap shots at what any actress did or didn't look like in comparison to how they ought to, if they thought they had any business playing the role. By removing anything but the most idealized, easily controlled residue of women from the process, all controversy is smoothed away and problems solved!

Now, some might hold up Scarlett Johansson's recent turn as the Black Widow and Anne Hathaway's performance as Selina Kyle as examples of why active or living starlets should continue to be cast in these very important, visible roles, and in all fairness they are examples of success. However, they also have the ability to derail press conferences and interviews, to demand more money for subsequent films, to age- the list of detriments to using living, working actresses in real time are just about innumerable. It is true that in this day and age they could mo-cap (motion capture performance, for those of you not versed in modern filmmaking parlance) their performances as themselves, but this would become potentially confusing during awards season, a headache nobody needs.

To truly have the heroines of our youth in film in a manner the audience deserves, nay, demands, there can be no better method than this. Now that we have finally found the great film heroes we deserve in Robert Downey Jr., Chris Evans, Mark Ruffalo, Christian Bale and, of course, Ryan Reynolds, it's time we generated the leading ladies to match.

Elizabeth Taylor as Wonder Woman, or no Wonder Woman at all.

 utter perfection

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Fourth Annual Fangirl Award WINNERS!

Voted on and nominated by the Fangirl Academy, a diverse group of 130 women from across the world. Below, you'll find all the winners typed out, once again, following Nathaniel R's method of highlighting first place in gold, 2nd in silver and in some cases, 3rd place in bronze. Thanks to the fangirls who participated in voting! Sign up to be a voting member for next year's awards, by clicking here.

Best Picture

Argo

The Avengers

Beasts of the Southern Wild

Cabin in the Woods

Django Unchained

Life of Pi

Looper

Moonrise Kingdom

Silver Linings Playbook

Zero Dark Thirty

Best Actor

Joaquin Phoenix, The Master

Daniel Day Lewis, Lincoln

Hugh Jackman, Les Mis

Bradley Cooper, Silver Lining Playbook

Joseph Gordon Levitt, Looper

Frank Langella, Robot & Frank (LM)

Honorable Mention: Jamie Foxx - Django Unchained, Martin Freeman -The Hobbit, Denzel Washington - Flight, Daniel Craig - Skyfall

Best Actress

Jessica Chastin, Zero Dark Thirty

Jennifer Lawrence, Silver Linings Playbook

Emanuelle Riva, Amour

Quevenzhane Wallis, Beasts of the Southern Wild

Naomi Watts, The Impossible

Honorable Mention: Marion Cotillard, Rust & Bone, Helen Mirren - Hitchcock

Best Supporting Actor

Alan Arkin, Argo

Philip Seymour Hoffman, The Master

Christoph Waltz, Django

Leonardo DiCaprio, Django

Ezra Miller, Perks of Being a Wallflower

Michael Fassbender, Prometheus (LM)

Honorable Mention: Javier Bardem - Skyfall, Matthew McConaghey - Magic Mike, Sam Jackson, Django Unchained

Best Supporting Actress

Anne Hathaway, Les Mis

Sally Field, Lincoln

Amy Adams, The Master

Judi Dench, Skyfall

Kerry Washington, Django Unchained

Rosemarie Dewitt, Your Sister's Sister (LM)

Brit Marling, Sound of my Voice (EC)

Honorable Mention: Emily Blunt - Looper, Helen Hunt - The Sessions

Best Director

Ben Affleck, Argo

Joss Whedon, the Avengers

Kathryn Bigelow, Zero Dark Thirty

Quentin Tarantino, Django Unchained

Drew Goddard, Cabin in the Woods

Honorable Mention: Steven Spielberg - Lincoln

Best Adapted Screenplay

Perks of Being a Wallflower

Silver Linings Playbook

Argo

Avengers

Hunger Games

Honorable Mention: Lincoln, Beasts of the Southern Wild

Best Original Screenplay

Moonrise Kingdom

Looper

Cabin in the Woods

Django Unchained

Zero Dark Thirty

Honorable Mention: Ruby Sparks, Robot & Frank

Best Score

Life of Pi

Skyfall

Anna Karenina

Cloud Atlas

Beasts of the Southern Wild

Honorable Mention: The Master, Argo

Best Romantic Chemistry - Film

Bradley Cooper/Jennifer Lawrence - Silver Linings Playbook

Emma Stone/Andrew Garfield - The Amazing Spiderman

Jennifer Lawrence/Josh Hutcherson - The Hunger Games

Anne Hathaway/Christian Bale - The Dark Knight Rises

Robert Downey Jr/Gwenyth Paltrow - The Avengers

Jennifer Westfield/Adam Scott - Friends with Kids

Steve Carell/Kiera Knightly/Seeking a Friend for the end of the World

Ben Wishaw/James D'Arcy- Cloud Atlas

Tom Hardy/Jessica Chastain - Lawless

Emma Watson/Logan Lerman - Perks of Being a Wallflower

Best Platonic Chemistry - Film

Joaquin Phoenix/Philip Seymour Hoffman - The Master

Judi Dench/Daniel Craig - Skyfall

The Avengers - The Avengers

The Barden Bellas - Pitch Perfect

Christoph Waltz/Jamie Foxx - Django Unchained

Martin Freeman/Andy Serkis - The Hobbit

Richard Jenkins/Bradley Whitford - Cabin in the Woods

Jonah Hill/Channing Tatum - 21 Jump Street

Alan Arkin/John Goodman - Argo

Jennifer Lawrence/Amanda Stenberg - The Hunger Games

World I'd Most Want to Visit

Middle Earth - The Hobbit

SHIELD HQ - The Avengers

Highland Kingdom - Brave

New Penzance - Moonrise Kingdom

Game Central Station - Wreck it Ralph

Best On Screen Animal

Fritz - Django Unchained

Sparky - Frankenweenie

Richard Parker - Life of Pi

Mother Bear - Brave

Woola - John Carter

Best Voiceover

Kelly McDonald - Brave

Billy Connolly - Brave

Seth McFarlane - Ted

Martin Landau - Frankenweenie

Sarah Silverman - Wreck it Ralph

Epic Fail Movie

What to Expect When You're Expecting

One for the Money

Battleship

Breaking Dawn Part 2

Paranormal Activity 4

Best Characterization of an Established Figure

Abraham Lincoln - Lincoln

Katniss Everdeen - The Hunger Games

Peter Parker - The Amazing Spiderman

Selina Kyle - The Dark Knight Rises

Bruce Banner - The Avengers

Best Fight/Battle Sequence

Motorcycle Chase - The Bourne Legacy

Raid on the House - Skyfall

Final Battle - The Avengers

All Hell Breaks Loose - Cabin in the Woods

Bane Breaks The Bat - The Dark Knight Rises

Honorable Mention: Cornucopia, Hunger Games

Best Guilty Pleasure

Pitch Perfect

Smash

True Blood

Magic Mike

Pretty Little Liars

Most Anticipated Movie of 2013

Catching Fire

Enders Game

Fast Six

The Great Gatsby

The Hobbit 2: The Desolation of Smaug

Iron Man 3

Man of Steel

Pacific Rim

Star Trek: Into Darkness

Thor: The Dark World

Biggest Crush 2013 (Male)

Benedict Cumberbatch

Nathan Fillion

Jeremy Renner

Eddie Redmayne

Chris Evans

Joseph Gordon Levitt

Andrew Garfield

Tom Hiddleston

Ben Wishaw

Mark Ruffalo

Honorable Mention: Josh Hutcherson, Tom Hardy, Matt Smith, Ryan Gosling

Biggest Crush 2013 (Female)

Emma Stone

Jennifer Lawrence

Jessica Brown Findlay

Kerry Washington

Lena Dunham

Scarlett Johansson

Christina Hendricks

Amy Poehler

Tina Fey

Lucy Liu

Photo: Cinema Blend

Most Underrated

Cloud Atlas

John Carter

Robot & Frank

Green Lantern Animated Series

The Hour

Favorite Graphic Novel of the Year

Wrinkle in Time

Batman: Court of the Owls

Womanthology

League of Extraordinary Gentlemen: 1910

Building Stories

Favorite Comic Series

Batgirl

Captain Marvel

Fables

Hawkeye

Saga

Honorable Mention: American Vampire, Avengers vs X-Men

Favorite Video Game of the Year

Assassin's Creed 3

Dishonored

Journey

Mass Effect 3

The Walking Dead

Favorite Drama TV Show

Dr Who

Downton Abbey

Game of Thrones

Homeland

Mad Men

Honorable Mention: Breaking Bad, Walking Dead, Elementary, Fringe

Best Comedy TV Show

Community

Girls

Modern Family

New Girl

Parks & Recreation

Honorable Mention: The Mindy Project, 30 Rock, Children's Hospital, Archer

Best Actor in a Drama

Bryan Cranston, Breaking Bad

John Noble, Fringe

Peter Dinklage, Game of Thrones

Damien Lewis Homeland

Jon Hamm, Mad Men

Jared Harris, Mad Men (LM)

Best Actress in a Drama

Christina Hendricks, Mad Men

Claire Danes, Homeland

Anna Torv, Fringe

Emilia Clarke, Game of Thrones

Jessica Lange, American Horror Story

Honorable Mention: Maggie Smith, Maisie Williams, Michelle Dockery, Kerry Washington

Best Actor in a Comedy

Max Greenfield, New Girl

Ty Burrell, Modern Family

Adam Pally, Happy Endings

Nick Offerman, Parks & Recreation

Louis CK, Louis

Honorable Mention: Jake Johnson, Don Glover, Joel McHalde, Alec Baldwin

Best Actress in a Comedy

Tina Fey, 30 Rock

Lena Dunham, Girls

Amy Poehler, Parks & Recreation

Mindy Kaling, The Mindy Project

Zooey Deschanel, New Girl

Honorable Mention: Eliza Coupe, Martha Plimpton, Alison Brie

Best Romantic Chemistry (TV)

Sybil/Tom - Downton Abbey

Matthew/Mary - Downton Abbey

Owen/Margaret - Boardwalk Empire

Brody/Carrie - Homeland

Elena/Damon - Vampire Diaries

Hannah/Adam - Girls

Peter/Olivia - Fringe

Ben/Leslie - Parks & Recreation

Castle/Beckett - Castle

Best Platonic Chemistry (TV)

Jesse/Walt - Breaking Bad

Jess/The Boys - New Girl

Sherlock/Watson - Elementary 

Emily/Nolan - Revenge

Liz/Jack - 30 Rock

Sherlock/Watson - Sherlock

Happy Endings Gang - Happy Endings

Leslie/Ann - Perks & Recreation 

Troy/Abed - Community

Carrie/Saul - Homeland

Favorite Musician/Band

Fiona Apple

Fun

The Lumineers

Mumford & Sons

Muse

Jack White

Favorite Book of the Year

NW - Zadie Smith

City of Lost Souls - Cassandra Clare

Quiet: Power of Introverts in a World That Can't Stop Talking - Susan Cain

Gone Girl - Gillian Flynn

Pandemonium - Lauren Oliver

Best Animated Film

Brave

Frankenweenie

Paranorman

Pirates: Band of Misfits

Wreck it Ralph

Best Villain

Calvin Candie, Django Unchained

Cersei Lannister, Game of Thrones

Loki, The Avengers

President Snow, The Hunger Games

Bane, The Dark Knight Rises

Silvia, Skyfall

Moriarty, Sherlock

Klaus, Vampire Diaries

The Governor, The Walking Dead

The Director, Technicians and White Board, Cabin in the Woods

Most Romantic Line Evar 2013

"It's okay to be a human woman! - Criss, 30 Rock

"You will always find me and I will always find you." - Charming, Once Upon a Time

"She came to me wholly herself, I was just lucky enough to be there to catch her." - Calvin, Ruby Sparks

“But it isn't enough time—”  “It never would have been.”  - Penny and Dodge, Seeking A Friend For The End Of The World.

 "I don't think we can figure out all of our problems before we get married, but I promise you that I will just love you every step of the way." - Violet, Five Year Engagement

"I mean that I will always be." (Responding to Archivist, "Do you mean that you are still in love with him?) Sonmi-451, Cloud Atlas

"You're not small, you're beautiful." Charlie, Perks of Being a Wallflower

 "She has no idea. The effect she can have." Peeta, The Hunger Games

Best Fan Outreach

Pottermore

Firefly Reunion at SDCC

Fringe Observer hats at SDCC

Django Unchained Scavenger Hunt at SDCC

Avenger's Fangirl Shirts

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