Los Angeles, CA – February 17, 2024 – Sing Sing has won Best Picture at 7th Annual Latino Entertainment Journalists Association (LEJA) Film Awards. The film also picked up the Best Actor award for Colman Domingo, who won the same award last year for Rustin.
In the other top categories, filmmaker Brady Corbet won Best Director for The Brutalist; Brazilian actress Fernanda Torres won Best Actress for I’m Still Here; Kieran Culkin won Best Supporting Actor for A Real Pain; and Dominican-Puerto Rican actress Zoe Saldaña won Best Supporting Actress for Emilia Pérez, which led all nominations with 17 nods.
The winners of this year’s LEJA Film Awards were balanced across the board. No nominated film won more than two awards. For comparison, Barbie won five awards last year.
The films that earned two awards this year were Sing Sing; I’m Still Here, which also won Best Non-English Film; Emilia Pérez, which also won Best Song for “El Mal;” Conclave, which won Best Adapted Screenplay and Best Ensemble Cast; The Substance, which won Best Original Screenplay and Best Hair and Makeup; Challengers, which won Best Editing and Best Score; Wicked, which won Best Production Design and Best Costumes; and Dune: Part Two, which won Best Visual Effects and Best Sound.
“LEJA has much to be proud of,” said Toni Gonzales, LEJA President. “Winners in the four of top five categories are Latinos. In a year when Hollywood faced strikes and decreased production and our journalists faced downsizing, Latinos continue to lead the way.”
She continued: “Our community has long been marginalized and devalued. Despite this, we continue to shine through engaging, entertaining and thoughtful work on both sides of the screen. Though our work continues to be an uphill battle at times, our gente will continue grow, educate and inspire others. Viva la cultura!”
Late last month, LEJA also announced that its Rita Moreno Lifetime Achievement Award went to veteran actor Edward James Olmos. LEJA also awarded the Breakout Award to Adria Arjona for her roles in Los Frikis, Hit Man and Blink Twice; and the Activism Award to John Leguizamo for highlighting the contributions of Latinos in history and entertainment.
The full list of winners is below:
BEST PICTURE
Sing Sing, Greg Kwedar, Clint Bentley, Monique Walton
BEST DIRECTOR
Brady Corbet, The Brutalist
BEST ACTOR
Colman Domingo, Sing Sing
BEST ACTRESS
Fernanda Torres, I’m Still Here
BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
Kieran Culkin, A Real Pain
BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Zoe Saldaña, Emilia Pérez
ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
The Substance, Coralie Fargeat
ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
Conclave, Peter Straughan
BEST VOICE PERFORMANCE
Lupita Nyong’o, The Wild Robot
BEST ANIMATED FEATURE
Flow, Gints Zilbalodis, Matīss Kaža, Ron Dyens and Gregory Zalcman
BEST NON-ENGLISH FILM
I’m Still Here (Brazil)
BEST DOCUMENTARY
Frida, Carla Gutierrez
BEST ENSEMBLE CASTING
Conclave
BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN
Wicked, production design: Nathan Crowley; set decoration: Lee Sandales
BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
(TIE) Nickel Boys, Jomo Fray
(TIE) Nosferatu, Jarin Blaschke
BEST COSTUME DESIGN
Wicked, Paul Tazewell
BEST EDITING
Challengers, Marco Costa
BEST HAIR & MAKEUP
The Substance, Pierre-Olivier Persin, Stéphanie Guillon and Marilyne Scarselli
BEST SOUND
Dune: Part Two, Gareth John, Richard King, Ron Bartlett and Doug Hemphill
BEST VISUAL EFFECTS
Dune: Part Two, Paul Lambert, Stephen James, Rhys Salcombe and Gerd Nefzer
BEST STUNTS
The Fall Guy
BEST SCORE
Challengers, Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross
BEST SONG
“El Mal” from Emilia Pérez; music by Clément Ducol and Camille; lyrics by Clément Ducol, Camille and Jacques Audiard
About the Latino Entertainment Journalists Association
The Latino Entertainment Journalists Association (LEJA) is committed to developing and celebrating Latino voices in all areas and backgrounds of the entertainment industry. Founded in 2018, LEJA provides a much-needed opportunity for writers from the United States to have their works amplified and heard in film, television, music, theatre, and the arts. LEJA accepts all backgrounds and identities and embraces anyone who identifies as Latino, Latina, Latinx, Latine, Hispanic, Afro-Latino, Afro-Latina, or any inclusive and progressive description that champions and accelerates the voices of our culture from around the world.