2012 African-American Film Critics Association Awards

The African-American Film Critics' Association is an interesting group on the precursor circuit -- while not explicitly dedicated to promoting black cinema and artists in the manner of, say, the Image Awards, their selections invariably reflect their identity to some extent. This year, for example, four of their five acting winners -- Denzel Washington, Emayatzy Corinealdi, Nate Parker and Quvenzhané Wallis -- are African-American.

Meanwhile, though Kathryn Bigelow's "Zero Dark Thirty" scooped yet another Best Picture gong, the group's biggest winner was African-American writer-director Ava DuVernay's "Middle of Nowhere." The indie drama landed four awards for Best Actress, Screenplay, Independent Film and Music, as well as placing at #4 on their 10 Best list. Nice to see this strong film having a day in the sun, even if its dynamite pair of supporting actresses, Lorraine Toussaint and Edwina Findley, couldn't defeat the redoubtable Sally Field. Full list of winners after the jump, and keep up with the trophy trail so far at The Circuit.

Best Picture: "Zero Dark Thirty"

Best Director: Ben Affleck, "Argo"

Best Actress: Emayatzy Corinealdi, "Middle of Nowhere"

Best Actor: Denzel Washington, "Flight"

Best Supporting Actress: Sally Field, "Lincoln"

Best Supporting Actor: Nate Parker, "Arbitrage"

Best Screenplay: Ava DuVernay, "Middle of Nowhere"

Best Foreign Language Film: "The Intouchables"

Best Documentary: (tie) "The House I Live In" and "Versailles '73: American Runway Revolution"

Best Animated Feature: "Rise of the Guardians"

Best Independent Film: "Middle of Nowhere"

Best Breakthrough Performer: Quvenzhané Wallis, "Beasts of the Southern Wild"

Best Music: Kathryn Bostic and Morgan Rhodes, "Middle of Nowhere"

Special Achievement Awards: Cicely Tyson and Billy Dee Williams

TOP 10 FILMS OF 2012

1. "Zero Dark Thirty"
2. "Argo"
3. "Lincoln"
4. "Middle of Nowhere"
5. "Life of Pi"
6. "Les Misérables"
7. "Django Unchained"
8. "Beasts of the Southern Wild"
9. "Moonrise Kingdom"
10. "Think Like a Man"

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Guy Lodge
Critic

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Guy Lodge is a South African-born critic and sometime screenwriter. In addition to his work at In Contention, he is a freelance contributor to Variety, Time Out, Empire and The Guardian. He lives well beyond his means in London.