The Satellite Award for Best Motion Picture is one of the annual awards given to motion pictures by the International Press Academy. The category was gone through several changes since its inception, specially related to the genre of the film awarded.
History From 1996 to 2010, two categories based on genre were presented, Best Drama Film and Best Comedy or Musical Film In 2011, the IPA pared down its Satellite Award nominations in the motion picture categories from 22 to 19 classifications; the change reflects the merger of drama and comedy under a general Best Picture heading, including the Best Actor/Actress headings and the Supporting headings.2011 Satellite Winners, December 2011. In 2016 and 2017, two winners were announced within the Best Motion Picture category, one for a major studio film and other for an independent film. In 2018, a stand-alone category for independent film was presented.
Since 2018, the two categories based on genre are presented replacing the Best Motion Picture category for the Best Drama Film and Best Comedy or Musical Film categories previously presented.
Winners and nominees
Comedy or Musical (1996–2010, 2018–present) YearFilmDirector(s) 1996 Evita Alan Parker Cold Comfort Farm John Schlesinger Everyone Says I Love You Woody Allen Flirting with Disaster David O. Russell Swingers Doug Liman 1997 As Good as It Gets James L. Brooks Deconstructing Harry Woody Allen The Full Monty Peter Cattaneo In & Out Frank Oz My Best Friend's Wedding P. J. Hogan 1998 Shakespeare in Love John Madden Little Voice Mark Herman Pleasantville Gary Ross Waking Ned Kirk Jones You've Got Mail Nora Ephron 1999 Being John Malkovich Spike Jonze Bowfinger Mark Herman Dick Andrew Fleming Election Alexander Payne An Ideal Husband Oliver Parker Notting Hill Roger Michell 2000 Nurse Betty Neil LaBute Almost Famous Cameron Crowe Best in Show Christopher Guest O Brother, Where Art Thou? Joel Coen State and Main David Mamet Wonder Boys Curtis Hanson 2001 Moulin Rouge! Baz Luhrmann Bridget Jones's Diary Sharon Maguire Gosford Park Robert Altman Hedwig and the Angry Inch John Cameron Mitchell The Royal Tenenbaums Wes Anderson 2002 My Big Fat Greek Wedding Joel Zwick About a Boy Paul Weitz and Chris Weitz Adaptation. Spike Jonze Igby Goes Down Burr Steers Punch-Drunk Love Paul Thomas Anderson 2003 Lost in Translation Sofia Coppola American Splendor Shari Springer Berman and Robert Pulcini Bad Santa Terry Zwigoff Bend It Like Beckham Gurinder Chadha A Mighty Wind Christopher Guest Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl Gore Verbinski 2004 Sideways Alexander Payne The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou Wes Anderson The Merchant of Venice Michael Radford Napoleon Dynamite Jared Hess The Phantom of the Opera Joel Schumacher Ray Taylor Hackford 2005 Walk the Line James Mangold Happy Endings Don Roos Hustle & Flow Craig Brewer Kung Fu Hustle Stephen Chow Rent Chris Columbus Shopgirl Anand Tucker 2006 Dreamgirls Bill Condon The Devil Wears Prada David Frankel Little Miss Sunshine Jonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris Stranger than Fiction Marc Forster Thank You for Smoking Jason Reitman Venus Roger Michell 2007 Juno Jason Reitman Hairspray Adam Shankman Knocked Up Judd Apatow Lars and the Real Girl Craig Gillespie Margot at the Wedding Noah Baumbach Shoot 'Em Up Michael Davis 2008 Happy-Go-Lucky Mike Leigh Choke Clark Gregg In Bruges Martin McDonagh Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist Peter Sollett Tropic Thunder Ben Stiller Vicky Cristina Barcelona Woody Allen 2009 Nine Rob Marshall The Informant! Steven Soderbergh It's Complicated Nancy Meyers Julie & Julia Nora Ephron A Serious Man Joel and Ethan Coen Up in the Air Jason Reitman 2010 Scott Pilgrim vs. the World Edgar Wright Cyrus Jay Duplass and Mark Duplass The Kids Are All Right Lisa Cholodenko Made in Dagenham Nigel Cole The Other Guys Adam McKay Please Give Nicole Holofcener Red Robert Schwentke 2018 A Star Is Born Bradley Cooper Crazy Rich Asians Jon M. Chu The Favourite Yorgos Lanthimos Green Book Peter Farrelly Mary Poppins Returns Rob Marshall Nico, 1988 Susanna Nicchiarelli 2019 Once Upon a Time in Hollywood Quentin Tarantino The Farewell Lulu Wang Hustlers Lorene Scafaria Knives Out Rian Johnson Rocketman Dexter Fletcher Uncut Gems Josh Safdie and Benny Safdie 2020 The Forty-Year-Old Version Radha Blank Borat Subsequent Moviefilm Jason Woliner Hamilton Thomas Kail On the Rocks Sofia Coppola Palm Springs Max Barbakow The Personal History of David Copperfield Armando Iannucci 2021 tick, tick... BOOM! Lin-Manuel Miranda Cyrano Joe Wright The French Dispatch Wes Anderson In the Heights Jon M. Chu Licorice Pizza Paul Thomas Anderson Respect Liesl Tommy 2022 Everything Everywhere All at Once Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert The Banshees of Inisherin Martin McDonagh Elvis Baz Luhrmann Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery Rian Johnson RRR S. S. Rajamouli Triangle of Sadness Ruben Östlund 2023 The Holdovers Alexander Payne American Fiction Cord Jefferson Barbie Greta Gerwig Dream Scenario Kristoffer Borgli Poor Things Yorgos Lanthimos Scrapper Charlotte Regan 2024 Anora Sean Baker Ghostlight Kelly O'Sullivan and Alex Thompson Hit Man Richard Linklater LaRoy, Texas Shane Atkinson A Real Pain Jesse Eisenberg The Substance Coralie Fargeat Thelma Josh Margolin Wicked Jon M. Chu
Drama (1996–2010, 2018–present) YearFilmDirector(s) 1996 Fargo Joel Coen The English Patient Anthony Minghella Lone Star John Sayles Secrets & Lies Mike Leigh Shine Scott Hicks Trainspotting Danny Boyle 1997 Titanic James Cameron Amistad Steven Spielberg Boogie Nights Paul Thomas Anderson Good Will Hunting Gus Van Sant L.A. Confidential Curtis Hanson 1998 The Thin Red Line Terrence Malick Elizabeth Shekhar Kapur The General John Boorman Gods and Monsters Bill Condon Saving Private Ryan Steven Spielberg 1999 The Insider Michael Mann American Beauty Sam Mendes Boys Don't Cry Kimberly Peirce Magnolia Paul Thomas Anderson Snow Falling on Cedars Scott Hicks The Talented Mr. Ripley Anthony Minghella 2000 Traffic Steven Soderbergh Billy Elliot Stephen Daldry Dancer in the Dark Lars von Trier Erin Brockovich Steven Soderbergh Gladiator Ridley Scott Quills Philip Kaufman 2001 In the Bedroom Todd Field The Deep End Scott McGehee and David Siegel Memento Christopher Nolan The Others Alejandro Amenábar Sexy Beast Jonathan Glazer 2002 Far from Heaven Todd Haynes Antwone Fisher Denzel Washington The Hours Stephen Daldry The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers Peter Jackson The Quiet American Phillip Noyce Road to Perdition Sam Mendes 2003 In America Jim Sheridan The Last Samurai Edward Zwick The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King Peter Jackson Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World Peter Weir Mystic River Clint Eastwood Thirteen Catherine Hardwicke Whale Rider Niki Caro 2004 Hotel Rwanda Terry George The Aviator Martin Scorsese Kill Bill: Volume 2 Quentin Tarantino Kinsey Bill Condon Maria Full of Grace Joshua Marston Vera Drake Mike Leigh 2005 Brokeback Mountain Ang Lee A History of Violence David Cronenberg Capote Bennett Miller Cinderella Man Ron Howard Memoirs of a Geisha Rob Marshall The War Within Joseph Castelo 2006 The Departed Martin Scorsese Babel Alejandro González Iñárritu Flags of Our Fathers Clint Eastwood Half Nelson Ryan Fleck The Last King of Scotland Kevin Macdonald Little Children Todd Field The Queen Stephen Frears 2007 No Country for Old Men Joel and Ethan Coen 3:10 to Yuma James Mangold Away from Her Sarah Polley Before the Devil Knows You're Dead Sidney Lumet Eastern Promises David Cronenberg The Lookout Scott Frank 2008 Slumdog Millionaire Danny Boyle Frost/Nixon Ron Howard Frozen River Courtney Hunt Milk Gus Van Sant The Reader Stephen Daldry Revolutionary Road Sam Mendes 2009 The Hurt Locker Kathryn Bigelow Bright Star Jane Campion An Education Lone Scherfig The Messenger Oren Moverman Precious Lee Daniels The Stoning of Soraya M. Cyrus Nowrasteh 2010 The Social Network David Fincher 127 Hours Danny Boyle Animal Kingdom David Michôd Blue Valentine Derek Cianfrance Get Low Aaron Schneider The Ghost Writer Roman Polanski Inception Christopher Nolan The King's Speech Tom Hooper The Town Ben Affleck Winter's Bone Debra Granik 2018 If Beale Street Could Talk Barry Jenkins Black Panther Ryan Coogler First Man Damien Chazelle Hereditary Ari Aster Mary Queen of Scots Josie Rourke Widows Steve McQueen 2019 Ford v Ferrari James Mangold 1917 Sam Mendes Bombshell Jay Roach Burning Cane Phillip Youmans Joker Todd Phillips The Lighthouse Robert Eggers Marriage Story Noah Baumbach The Two Popes Fernando Meirelles 2020 Nomadland Chloé Zhao The Father Florian Zeller Ma Rainey's Black Bottom George C. Wolfe Minari Lee Isaac Chung Miss Juneteenth Channing Godfrey Peoples One Night in Miami... Regina King Promising Young Woman Emerald Fennell Sound of Metal Darius Marder Tenet Christopher Nolan The Trial of the Chicago 7 Aaron Sorkin 2021 Belfast Kenneth Branagh CODA Sian Heder Dune Denis Villeneuve East of the Mountains SJ Chiro King Richard Reinaldo Marcus Green The Lost Daughter Maggie Gyllenhaal The Power of the Dog Jane Campion Spencer Pablo Larraín 2022 Top Gun: Maverick Joseph Kosinski Avatar: The Way of Water James Cameron Black Panther: Wakanda Forever Ryan Coogler The Fabelmans Steven Spielberg Living Oliver Hermanus Tár Todd Field Till Chinonye Chukwu Women Talking Sarah Polley 2023 Oppenheimer Christopher Nolan Ferrari Michael Mann Killers of the Flower Moon Martin Scorsese Maestro Bradley Cooper May December Todd Haynes Past Lives Celine Song 2024 The Brutalist Brady Corbet Cabrini Alejandro Gómez Monteverde Conclave Edward Berger Dune: Part Two Denis Villeneuve Nickel Boys RaMell Ross The Order Justin Kurzel Sing Sing Greg Kwedar Young Woman and the Sea Joachim Rønning
Motion Picture (2011–2015) YearFilmDirector(s) 2011 The Descendants Alexander Payne The Artist Michel Hazanavicius Drive Nicolas Winding Refn The Help Tate Taylor Hugo Martin Scorsese Midnight in Paris Woody Allen Moneyball Bennett Miller Shame Steve McQueen Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy Tomas Alfredson War Horse Steven Spielberg 2012 Silver Linings Playbook David O. Russell Argo Ben Affleck Beasts of the Southern Wild Benh Zeitlin Les Misérables Tom Hooper Life of Pi Ang Lee Lincoln Steven Spielberg Moonrise Kingdom Wes Anderson Skyfall Sam Mendes Zero Dark Thirty Kathryn Bigelow 2013 12 Years a Slave Steve McQueen All Is Lost J. C. Chandor American Hustle David O. Russell Blue Jasmine Woody Allen Captain Phillips Paul Greengrass Gravity Alfonso Cuarón Inside Llewyn Davis Joel and Ethan Coen Philomena Stephen Frears Saving Mr. Banks John Lee Hancock The Wolf of Wall Street Martin Scorsese 2014 Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance) Alejandro G. Iñárritu Boyhood Richard Linklater Gone Girl David Fincher The Grand Budapest Hotel Wes Anderson The Imitation Game Morten Tyldum Love Is Strange Ira Sachs Mr. Turner Mike Leigh Selma Ava DuVernay The Theory of Everything James Marsh Whiplash Damien Chazelle 2015 Spotlight Tom McCarthy The Big Short Adam McKay Black Mass Scott Cooper Bridge of Spies Steven Spielberg Brooklyn John Crowley Carol Todd Haynes The Martian Ridley Scott The Revenant Alejandro G. Iñárritu Room Lenny Abrahamson Sicario Denis Villeneuve
Motion Picture (Major / Independent) (2016–2017)