Anora is the Critics' Choice

Critics Choice winner Anora

The first big winner of the season, but a film which looked for a while as if voters had forgotten it, Sean baker's Anora was back on top at the Critics Choice Awards, much to the delight of fans present at the ceremony.

At a critical stage in this year's awards race, with just over three weeks to go until the Oscars, the winners here present a wide open field, with no single film taking more than three prizes. It's an interesting turnabout for a year initially dominated by Emilia Pérez, which has latterly begun to struggle, with racist tweets by star Karla Sofía Gascón coming to light as the voices of Mexicans complaining about stereotyping have started to attract more notice and trans people have pointed out that it's not the great representation it might have been perceived of. With several other strong films in contention, it's now hard to predict who will go home with the biggest prize of all.

There were other surprises here, with The Wild Robot beating Flow, which has dominated the animated category this year, and Demi Moore winning Best Actress for The Substance - a difficult feat when a comedy or genre film is up against drama.

The Critics Choice Awards ceremony was delayed this year because the the wildfires which devastated parts of Los Angeles, and the thoughts of winners were very much with those who have lost their homes to the blaze.

Those award winners in full:

Best Picture

• Anora

Best Actor

• Adrien Brody – The Brutalist

Best Actress

• Demi Moore – The Substance

Best Supporting Actor

• Kieran Culkin – A Real Pain

Best Supporting Actress

• Zoe Saldaña – Emilia Pérez

Best Young Actor / Actress

• Maisy Stella – My Old Ass

Best Acting Ensemble

• Conclave

Best Director

• Jon M Chu – Wicked

Best Original Screenplay

• Coralie Fargeat – The Substance

Best Adapted Screenplay

• Peter Straughan – Conclave

Best Cinematography

• Jarin Blaschke – Nosferatu

Best Production Design

• Nathan Crowley, Lee Sandales – Wicked

Best Editing

• Marco Costa – Challengers

Best Costume Design

• Paul Tazewell – Wicked

Best Hair And Makeup

• Hair & Makeup Team – The Substance

Best Visual Effects

• Paul Lambert, Stephen James, Rhys Salcombe, Gerd Nefzer – Dune: Part Two

Best Animated Feature

• The Wild Robot

Best Comedy

• A Real Pain - tied
• Deadpool & Wolverine - tied

Best Foreign Language Film

• Emilia Pérez

Best Song

• El Mal – Emilia Pérez – Zoe Saldaña, Karla Sofía Gascón, Camille

Best Score

• Trent Reznor & Atticus Ross – Challengers