Another season of award shows has come and gone, and in the past this would mean a few mediocre ceremonies, where award choices missed rather than hit. But in recent years award shows have been making a genuine effort to honor the art of entertainment. After controversies like the hashtag “oscarssowhite” in 2016 and the abysmal 2021 ceremony, the Oscars, along with other awards, have been attempting to improve their voting process, the ceremony’s presentation, and broadening what kind of movies and television shows they consider for awards. As a result, viewership for these awards shows have been growing since 2021.

This past year we have seen plenty of great and impactful movies and television shows. Big budget films like “Wicked, Dune: Part Two” and “Inside Out 2” as well as mid/low budget films like “A Quiet Place: Day One,” “MaXXXine,” and “Anora,” did amazing at the box office. This year was also big for indie studios, such as NEON, and A24 releasing multiple films that pleased audiences and critics. In animation there were such films as the Latvian animated feature, “Flow,” and the surprise animated hits, “Transformers One” and “The Wild Robot,” all receiving the praise that they deserved. As for television, dramas like “The Penguin,” “Fallout,” and “Shōgun,” were applauded for showcasing the nuanced performances of actors and actresses and for their cinematic production quality. Audiences were excited to see comedies like “Only Murders in the Building,” “Hacks,” and “Abbott Elementary” being recognized not only for their comedic value, but their storytelling.

The 76th annual Primetime Emmy Awards aired September 14, 2024, on ABC and was viewed by 6.9 million people. Hosted by actors Eugene and Dan Levy, the ceremony ran for three hours and gave out awards in 26 categories. FX’s drama series “Shōgun” dominated the nominations with a total of twenty-five across all categories, making it the most nominated since the Emmy Awards began. Among its record 18 awards, the show won Outstanding Drama Series, Outstanding Directing for a Drama Series, and Outstanding Lead Actor and Actress in a Drama Series (Hiroyuki Sanada and Anna Sawai respectively).

FX’s “The Bear” also performed very strongly with nine primetime nominations taking home Outstanding Directing for a Comedy Series, Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series to Jeremy Allen White for the role of Carmen Berzatto, and Ebon Moss-Bachrach and Liza Colón-Zayas respectively took Outstanding Supporting Actor and Actress in a Comedy Series.

Outstanding Comedy Series went to “Hacks.”

Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie went to Jessica Gunning for Netflix's “Baby Reindeer” which won three other awards that night.

Despite being beloved and praised by critics, Hulu’s “Only Murders in the Building” and ABC’s “Abbott Elementary,” which were nominated for six and seven awards respectively, received none.

Airing on Jan. 5 on CBS and Paramount Plus, the 82nd Golden Globes were hosted by comedian Nikki Glaser and presented awards across 27 television and movie categories.

“The Bear” had the most nominations, being considered in five categories, with “Shōgun” and “Only Murders in the Building” not far behind with four nominations each. Other shows such as the HBO Original “The Penguin,” Prime Video's “Mr. and Mrs. Smith,” and Max’s “Hacks” held three nominations respectively.

“Shōgun” won in every category it was nominated for, winning Best Television Series - Drama, and Hiroyuki Sanada and Anna Sawai winning Best Actor and Actress in a Television series - Drama, and Best Supporting Actor on Television going to Tadanobu Asano.

Jeremy Allen White also won Best Actor in a Television Series - Musical or Comedy for his performance in “The Bear.”

Best Television Series - Musical or Comedy went to “Hacks.” Jean Smart received Best Actress in a Television Series - Musical or Comedy for “Hacks.”

Colin Farrell won Best Actor in a Limited Series, Anthology Series, or Motion Picture Made for Television for his remarkable role as Oswald “Oz” Cobb in “The Penguin.”

Best Actress in a Limited Series, Anthology Series, or Motion Picture Made for Television went to the deserving Jodie Foster, who played Chief Liz Danvers in “True Detective: Night Country.”

Best Supporting Actress on Television was won by Jessica Gunning for “Baby Reindeer.”

In terms of films, the Netflix original “Emilia Pérez,” had the most nominations with ten total, of which it won four: Best Supporting Actress in a Motion Picture (Zoe Saldaña), Best Original Song, Best Motion Picture - Non-English Language and Best Motion Picture - Musical or Comedy.

Best Motion Picture - Drama went to “The Brutalist.” Adrien Brody was given best Best Actor in a Motion Picture - Drama for his role as fictional Holocaust survivor László Tóth.

Fernanda Torres won Best Actress in a Motion Picture - Drama for the Brazilian film “I’m Still Here.”

Best Actor in a Motion Picture - Musical or Comedy went to Sebastian Stan for the film “A Different Man.”

Demi Moore won Best Actress in a Motion Picture - Musical or Comedy for the horror movie, “The Substance.”

Best Supporting Actor in a Motion Picture went to Kieran Culkin for “A Real Pain.”

In an amazing surprise, the independently produced film “Flow” was awarded Best Motion Picture - Animated, beating out Disney’s “Inside Out 2” and “Moana 2,” as well as DreamWork’s “The Wild Robot.”

“Wicked” won the Cinematic and Box Office Achievement award.

The Screen Actors Guild (SAG) held its annual awards ceremony on Feb. 23. Streamed live on Netflix, the ceremony was hosted by actress Kristen Bell and recognizes achievements in 13 categories.

Kieran Culkin won Male Actor in a Supporting Role for his role in “A Real Pain.”

Female Actor in a Supporting Role went to Zoe Saldaña for “Emilia Pérez.”

Timothée Chalamet and Demi Moore both gave beautiful speeches when accepting their awards for Male Actor in a Leading Role and Female Actor in a Leading Role respectively.

Best Picture was awarded to “Conclave.”

And as for television, “Only Murders in the Building” won Ensemble in a Comedy Series over “Hacks” and “The Bear,” and actor Martin Short won Male Actor in a Comedy Series. “Hacks” actress Jean Short received Female Actor in a Comedy Series. “Shōgun” continued its winning streak, with Ensemble in a Drama Series, and Female Actor in a Drama Series and Male Actor in a Drama Series once again going to the two leads. And finally, Female Actor in a Television Movie or Limited Series and Male Actor in a Television Movie or Limited Series went to Jessica Gunning for “Baby Reindeer” and Colin Farrell for “The Penguin,” both giving heartwarming speeches about their careers and the union.

Hosted by television host and comedian Conan O'Brien, and airing on ABC and Hulu, The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences or The Oscars were viewed by 19.7 million people, which nearly doubled the viewership since the 2021 ceremony.

Whether you watch for the red carpet outfits or to see if your favorite movie wins, there is no denying the Oscars’ influence and presence in the film industry.

The ceremony ran for three hours and fifty minutes, and gave awards in 23 categories. Netflix’s “Emilia Pérez” was nominated for 13 awards, the most nominations given to a film that night. “Wicked” and “The Brutalist” had ten each, and “A Complete Unknown” and “Conclave” were given eight. And lower budget films like “Anora” and “Flow” were represented with six and two nominations respectively.

The first award handed out was Best Actor in a Supporting Role which was given to Kieran Culkin for “A Real Pain,” which makes it the first time he has been nominated and received an Oscar.

Also getting her first Oscar was Zoe Saldaña who won Best Actress in a Supporting Role for “Emilia Pérez.”

Music (Original Song) was also given to Emilia Pérez for the song “El Mal.”

Costume designer, Paul Tazewell, won Costume Design for his astonishing work on “Wicked,” which also won Production Design. “Wicked” was also nominated for Makeup and Hairstyling but lost to “The Substance.”

Adrien Brody won his second Oscar with his role as László Tóth in “The Brutalist,” which had also received Best Cinematography, and Best Music (Original Score) Oscars.

The Documentary Feature Film award was given to “No Other Land,” a documentary about the Israeli occupation of the West Bank. The creators of the documentary, Israeli journalist Yuval Abraham and Palestinian activist Basel Adra, gave a beautifully delivered acceptance speech about the war and what the documentary represents.

Documentary Short Film was awarded to “The Only Girl in the Orchestra.”

The Brazilian film “I'm Still Here” was given the Oscar for Best International Feature Film.

“I'm Not a Robot” won Best Live Action Short Film. And Best Animated Short Film was awarded to “In the Shadow of the Cypress.”

The Oscar for Best Animated Feature Film was given to “Flow,” a beautiful heartwarming film with no dialogue about a cat and her animal friends negotiating their survival during a flood. The Latvian film was created with the open-source software Blender and was independently made with a relatively low budget, which only makes its win encouraging for other independent filmmakers.

“Dune: Part Two” won some technical awards receiving Best Sound and Visual Effects.

“Conclave” won Best Writing (Adapted Screenplay).

The true underdog of the evening was “Anora,” which took home the most awards with a total of five. In addition to winning the coveted Best Picture Oscar, Mikey Madison, who played the title character, won Best Actress in a Leading Role. Director Sean Baker won Oscars for Directing and for Film Editing and Writing (Original Screenplay).

The Oscars have been making an effort to improve their ceremonies and what films they nominate, and this year’s ceremony proves it. The more relaxed and comedic segments from the show's host, Conan O'Brien, made the ceremony a lot of fun to watch. While there were one or two films that were under-represented, overall the ceremony was fantastic and one of the best in terms of celebrating films and the people that make them.