A column chronicling conversations and events on the awards circuit For some, this weekend is the craziest of awards season, as the travel crunch is on from events in L.A. to NYC to London, as nominees have to figure out where to be from the ASC and USC awards to the Grammys to the BAFTAs. The latter two are on…

The Directors Guild said Ang Lee, Fox Searchlight chairman Nancy Utley, Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), SAG-AFTRA senior advisor John McGuire and costume designer Ann Roth will be the recipients of this year’s DGA Honors. The ceremony is set for October 18 at the DGA Theater in New York City. The awards recognize…

Following a strong year that culminated in a Best Picture Oscar win for The Shape of Water, Fox Searchlight heads Steve Gilula and Nancy Utley have each been upped to the role of chairman of the specialty unit. The promotions are accompanied by multi-year extensions of the pair’s contracts, according to an…

Capitalizing on its staggering Oscar season success, Fox Searchlight Pictures Presidents Nancy Utley and Steve Gilula are branching into the television business. They’ve launched Searchlight Television, making the company a 360-degree hub for creative talent and broadening the variety of projects produced under the…

EXCLUSIVE: Every distributor arriving in Park City today faces challenges, but none comes here with a more intriguing narrative than Fox Searchlight and its long time leaders and stalwart Sundance buyers Stephen Gilula and Nancy Utley. Just as Disney ended 2017 by leaving Hollywood gobsmacked with the announcement it…

Telluride has been buzzing since last night’s first screening of Steve McQueen‘s excellent slavery drama, 12 Years A Slave. One site which shall remain nameless was so overcome that the writer already just about declared the Oscar race over and done. “Guess we don’t have to go to Toronto now,” said a publicist here…

Today’s announcement revealing the results of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences‘ annual Board Of Governors election was a historic one, at least as far as women and their power position in the organization is concerned. That is something that makes outgoing President Hawk Koch very happy. He…

Even though Fox Searchlight co-presidents Steve Gilula and Nancy Utley have turned “challenging films” like Slumdog Millionaire, Black Swan, Crazy Heart, Once, Juno, and 127 Hours into awards-season successes, they are the lowest-profile indie moguls you will find. At a time when they are steering two Best Picture…

EXCLUSIVE: After opening Terrence Malick’s The Tree of Life in the U.S., Fox Searchlight presidents Nancy Utley and Stephen Gilula have acquired the U.K. rights to the film from Bill Pohlad’s River Road Entertainment, which financed the film. They’ve dated the film for July 8 opening in the U.K. The film, which stars B…

When I met with Fox Searchlight presidents Stephen Gilula and Nancy Utley at the Cannes Film Festival, it seemed clear that they were not going to take part in one of the most aggressive acquisitions market that Cannes has seen in years. But not only did they walk away with the Palme d’Or prestige badge that will help…

LOS ANGELES, CA April 20, 2011 – Fox Searchlight Pictures Presidents Stephen Gilula and Nancy Utley announced today that the company has acquired rights to English speaking territories, including North America, United Kingdom and Australia, for the suspenseful drama SOUND OF MY VOICE theatrical release. Directed by…

London-based Ingenious Media, the private equity fund which backed Twentieth Century Fox’s Avatar, has struck a deal with Fox Searchlight to make between 2 to 3 movies in the $10M-15M range. Ingenious could inject up to $14 million annually into the deal, providing 20%-30% equity per movie. Fox Searchlight will…