The Austin Film Critics Association (AFCA) is an organization of professional film critics from Austin, Texas, United States.
Each year, the AFCA votes on their end-of-year awards for films released in the same calendar year. A special award, the Austin Film Award, is given each year to the best film made in Austin or by an Austin-area director.
History The Austin Film Critics Association was founded in 2005 by local film critics Cole Dabney and Robert McCurdy while attending Bowie High School in Austin. The organization grew in its first eight years, expanding from three members in 2005 to 25 members in 2013.
On January 12, 2007, after only one year in existence, Entertainment Weekly called the AFCA "wildly contrarian" for naming Elliot Page Best Actress for his role in Hard Candy over Helen Mirren for her performance in The Queen, as Mirren had swept the category so far during the award season.
The association chose to name the group's Breakthrough Artist Award to honor Robert "Bobby" McCurdy starting in 2010. McCurdy died on December 19, 2010, while training to become a Naval Aviator.
Categories Best Film Best Director Best Actor Best Actress Best Supporting Actor Best Supporting Actress Best Original Screenplay Best Adapted Screenplay Best Film Editing Best Ensemble Best Animated Film Best Foreign Language Film Best First Film Best Documentary Best Cinematography Best Score Best Stunts Best Motion Capture/Special Effects Performance The Robert R. "Bobby" McCurdy Memorial Breakthrough Artist Award Austin Film Award Special Honorary Award
Ceremonies 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025
Winners † = Winner of the Academy Award
Best Picture YearWinnerDirector(s)2005 Crash † Paul Haggis2006 United 93 Paul Greengrass2007 There Will Be Blood Paul Thomas Anderson2008 The Dark Knight Christopher Nolan2009 The Hurt Locker † Kathryn Bigelow2010 Black Swan Darren Aronofsky2011 Hugo Martin Scorsese2012 Zero Dark Thirty Kathryn Bigelow2013 Her Spike Jonze2014 Boyhood Richard Linklater2015 Mad Max: Fury Road George Miller2016 Moonlight † Barry Jenkins2017 Get Out Jordan Peele2018 If Beale Street Could Talk Barry Jenkins2019 Parasite † Bong Joon-ho2020 Minari Lee Isaac Chung2021The Power of the DogJane Campion2022Everything Everywhere All At Once †Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert2023 Oppenheimer † Christopher Nolan2024 Anora †Sean Baker
Best Director YearWinnerFilm 2005Paul HaggisCrash 2006Alfonso CuarónChildren of Men 2007Paul Thomas AndersonThere Will Be Blood 2008Christopher NolanThe Dark Knight 2009Kathryn Bigelow †The Hurt Locker 2010Darren AronofskyBlack Swan 2011Nicolas Winding RefnDrive 2012Paul Thomas AndersonThe Master 2013Alfonso Cuarón †Gravity 2014Richard LinklaterBoyhood 2015George MillerMad Max: Fury Road 2016Barry JenkinsMoonlight 2017Guillermo del Toro †The Shape of Water 2018Barry JenkinsIf Beale Street Could Talk 2019Bong Joon-ho †Parasite 2020 Lee Isaac Chung Minari2021Jane Campion †The Power of the Dog2022Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert †Everything Everywhere All At Once2023 Christopher Nolan † Oppenheimer2024Sean Baker †Anora
Best Actor YearNomineeFilmRole 2005 Philip Seymour Hoffman † Capote Truman Capote 2006 Leonardo DiCaprio The Departed Billy 2007 Daniel Day-Lewis † There Will Be Blood Daniel Plainview 2008 Sean Penn † Milk Harvey Milk 2009 Colin Firth A Single Man George Falconer 2010 Colin Firth † The King's Speech King George VI 2011 Michael Shannon Take Shelter Curtis LaForche 2012 Joaquin Phoenix The Master Freddie Quell 2013 Chiwetel Ejiofor 12 Years a Slave Solomon Northup 2014 Jake Gyllenhaal Nightcrawler Louis "Lou" Bloom 2015 Michael Fassbender Steve Jobs Steve Jobs 2016 Casey Affleck † Manchester by the Sea Lee Chandler 2017 Timothée Chalamet Call Me by Your Name Elio Perlman 2018 Ethan Hawke First Reformed Pastor Ernst Toller 2019 Adam Sandler Uncut Gems Howard Ratner 2020 Riz Ahmed Sound of Metal Ruben Stone2021Nicolas CagePigRobin "Rob" Feld2022Colin FarrellThe Banshees of InisherinPádraic Súilleabháin 2023 Cillian Murphy † Oppenheimer J. Robert Oppenheimer2024Colman DomingoSing SingJohn "Divine G" Whitfield
Best Actress
YearNomineeFilmRole 2005 Reese Witherspoon † Walk the Line June Carter Cash 2006 Elliot Page Hard Candy Hayley Stark 2007 Juno Juno MacGuff 2008 Anne Hathaway Rachel Getting Married Kym 2009 Mélanie Laurent Inglourious Basterds Shosanna Dreyfus / Emmanuelle Mimieux 2010 Natalie Portman † Black Swan Nina Sayers 2011 Tilda Swinton We Need to Talk About Kevin Eva Khatchadourian 2012 Jennifer Lawrence † Silver Linings Playbook Tiffany Maxwell 2013 Brie Larson Short Term 12 Grace Howard 2014 Rosamund Pike Gone Girl Amy Elliott Dunne 2015 Brie Larson † Room Joy "Ma" Newsome 2016 Isabelle Huppert Elle Michèle Leblanc 2017 Frances McDormand † Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri Mildred Hayes 2018 Olivia Colman † The Favourite Anne, Queen of Great Britain 2019 Lupita Nyong'o Us Adelaide Wilson / Red 2020 Carey Mulligan Promising Young Woman Cassandra "Cassie" Thomas2021Agathe RousselleTitaneAlexia / Adrien2022Michelle Yeoh †Everything Everywhere All At OnceEvelyn Quan Wang 2023 Lily Gladstone Killers of the Flower Moon Mollie Kyle2024Mikey Madison †AnoraAnora "Ani" Mikheeva
Best Supporting Actor YearWinnerFilmRole 2005William HurtA History of Violence Richie Cusack 2006Jack NicholsonThe Departed Francis "Frank" Costello 2007Javier Bardem †No Country for Old Men Anton Chigurh 2008Heath Ledger (posthumous) †The Dark Knight The Joker 2009Christoph Waltz †Inglourious Basterds Hans Landa 2010 Christian Bale † The Fighter Dicky Eklund 2011 Albert Brooks Drive Bernie Rose 2012 Christoph Waltz † Django Unchained Lancaster Dodd 2013 Jared Leto † Dallas Buyers Club Rayon 2014 J. K. Simmons † Whiplash Terence Fletcher 2015 Sylvester Stallone Creed Rocky Balboa 2016 Mahershala Ali † Moonlight Juan 2017 Willem Dafoe The Florida Project Bobby Hicks 2018 Richard E Grant Can You Ever Forgive Me? Jack Hock 2019 Brad Pitt † Once Upon a Time in...Hollywood Cliff Booth 2020 Daniel Kaluuya † Judas and the Black Messiah Fred Hampton2021Kodi-Smit McPheeThe Power of the DogPeter Gordon2022Ke Huy Quan †Everything Everywhere All At OnceWaymond Wang 2023 Robert Downey Jr. † Oppenheimer Lewis Strauss2024Yura BorisovAnoraIgor
Best Supporting Actress
YearWinnerFilmRole 2005 Laura LinneyThe Squid and the WhaleJoan Berkman 2006 Rinko KikuchiBabelChieko Wataya 2007 Allison JanneyJunoBren MacGuff 2008 Taraji P. HensonThe Curious Case of Benjamin ButtonQueenie 2009 Anna KendrickUp in the AirNatalie Keener 2010 Hailee Steinfeld True Grit Mattie Ross 2011 Jessica Chastain Take Shelter Samantha LaForche 2012 Anne Hathaway † Les Misérables Fantine 2013 Lupita Nyong'o † 12 Years a Slave Patsey 2014 Patricia Arquette † Boyhood Olivia Evans 2015 Alicia Vikander Ex Machina Ava 2016 Viola Davis † Fences Rose Maxson 2017 Allison Janney † I, Tonya LaVona Golden 2018 Regina King † If Beale Street Could Talk Sharon Rivers 2019 Jennifer Lopez Hustlers Ramona Vega 2020 Youn Yuh-jung † Minari Soonja2021Kirsten DunstThe Power of the DogRose Gordon2022Stephanie HsuEverything Everywhere All At OnceJoy Wang/Jobu Tupaki 2023 Da'Vine Joy Randolph † The Holdovers Mary Lamb2024Margaret QualleyThe SubstanceSue
Multiple award winners Films 9 awards: Everything Everywhere All At Once (2022): Best Film, Best Director, Best Actress, Best Supporting Actor, Best Supporting Actress, Best Original Screenplay, Best Cinematography, Best Editing, Best Ensemble 8 Awards: Oppenheimer (2023): 6 Awards: Anora (2024): Best Film, Best Director, Best Actress, Best Supporting Actor, Best Original Screenplay, Robert R. "Buddy" McCurdy Memorial Breakthrough Artist Award (Mikey Madison) 5 awards: There Will Be Blood (2007): Best Film, Best Director, Best Actor, Best Cinematography, Best Original Score The Dark Knight (2008): Best Film, Best Director, Best Supporting Actor, Best Original Score, Best Adapted Screenplay Black Swan (2010): Best Film, Best Director, Best Actress, Best Original Screenplay, Best Cinematography If Beale Street Could Talk (2018): Best Film, Best Director, Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Supporting Actor, Breakthrough Artist Award The Power of the Dog (2021): Best Film, Best Director, Best Supporting Actor, Best Supporting Actress, Best Original Score 4 awards: Juno (2007): Best Actress, Best Supporting Actress, Best Original Screenplay, Breakthrough Artist Award Take Shelter (2011): Best Actor, Best Supporting Actress, Austin Film Award, Breakthrough Artist Award* Boyhood (2014): Best Film, Best Director, Best Supporting Actress, Austin Film Award Moonlight (2016): Best Film, Best Director, Best Supporting Actor, Best Original Screenplay Parasite (2019): Best Film, Best Director, Best Original Screenplay, Best Foreign Language Film Sing Sing (2024): Best Actor, Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Ensemble, Best Austin Film 3 awards The Hurt Locker (2009): Best Film, Best Director, Best Cinematography Inglourious Basterds (2009): Best Actress, Best Supporting Actor, Best Original Screenplay The Master (2012): Best Director, Best Actor, Best Cinematography 12 Years a Slave (2013): Best Actor, Best Supporting Actress, Best Adapted Screenplay Her (2013): Best Film, Best Original Screenplay, Best Original Score Nightcrawler (2014): Best Actor, Best Original Screenplay, Best First Film Room (2015): Best Actress, Best Adapted Screenplay, Breakthrough Artist Award Tower (2016): Best Documentary, Austin Film Award, Breakthrough Artist Award Get Out (2017): Best Film, Best Original Screenplay, Best First Film Call Me by Your Name (2017): Best Actor, Best Adapted Screenplay, Breakthrough Artist Award Pig (2021): Best Actor, Best Original Screenplay, Best First Film Killers of the Flower Moon (2023): Best Film, Best Actress, Breakthrough Artist Award
Producers, directors, and cinematographers 6 awards
Barry Jenkins Best Film 2016 – Moonlight 2018 – If Beale Street Could Talk Best Director 2016 – Moonlight 2018 – If Beale Street Could Talk Best Adapted Screenplay 2018 – If Beale Street Could Talk Best Original Screenplay 2016 – Moonlight
Richard Linklater Best Film 2014 – Boyhood Best Director 2014 – Boyhood Best Austin Film 2006 – A Scanner Darkly 2009 – Me and Orson Welles 2012 – Bernie 2014 – Boyhood
4 awards
Alfonso Cuarón Best Director 2006 – Children of Men 2013 – Gravity Best Adapted Screenplay 2006 – Children of Men Best Cinematography 2018 – Roma
Bong Joon-ho Best Film 2019 - Parasite Best Director 2019 - Parasite Best Original Screenplay 2019 - Parasite Best Foreign Language Film 2019 - Parasite
Emmanuel Lubezki Best Cinematography 2006 – Babel 2011 – The Tree of Life 2013 – Gravity 2014 – Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance)
Keith Maitland Best Documentary 2016 – Tower Bobby McCurdy Memorial Breakthrough Artist Award 2016 – Tower Austin Film Award 2016 – Tower Special Honorary Award 2016 – Tower
3 awards
Paul Thomas Anderson Best Film 2007 – There Will Be Blood Best Director 2007 – There Will Be Blood 2012 – The Master
Kathryn Bigelow Best Film 2009 – The Hurt Locker 2012 – Zero Dark Thirty Best Director 2009 – The Hurt Locker
Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert Best Film 2022-Everything Everywhere All At Once Best Director 2022-Everything Everywhere All At Once Best Original Screenplay 2022-Everything Everywhere All At Once
Guillermo del Toro Best Director 2017 – The Shape of Water Best Original Screenplay 2006 – Pan's Labyrinth Best Foreign Film 2006 – Pan's Labyrinth
Jordan Peele Best Film 2017 – Get Out Best Original Screenplay 2017 – Get Out Best First Film 2017 – Get Out
Robert Rodriguez Best Austin Film 2005 – Sin City 2007 – Grindhouse (Shared with Quentin Tarantino) Best Animated Film 2005 – Sin City
2 awards
Mark Boal Best Film