Dec 19, 2016

Cartoon Brew 2016-17 Animation Award Winner Tracker

With feature animation having its best-year ever at the global box office, it's only fitting that there is more critical attention being paid to the form than ever before. And to help you navigate through all the awards, Cartoon Brew has created the following guide and spreadsheet to track end-of-year feature animation (and vfx) honors.

If anything stands out about the winners so far, it's the tendency of film critics organizations to recognize American animation (Kubo and the Two Strings, Zootopia) over equally worthy foreign counterparts. It's rather bizarre to see all of this year's remarkable foreign features (My Life as a Zucchini, The Little Prince, The Red Turtle, Your Name) locked out of the awards game. The two notable critics groups that have defied convention so far are those based in Los Angeles and San Francisco; those groups each recognized a foreign animated feature as their top pick.

Another notable award this year comes from the Washington D.C. Area Film Critics, who recognized a motion capture performance. There is still much controversy about how motion capture should be recognized critically: should the performances be recognized alongside traditional acting or separated into a unique category as the D.C. critics have done- And when recognizing a mo-cap performance, should the actor receive sole credit or should the animators who helped craft the performance also receive recognition- Such questions will have to be answered as mo-cap animation performances become part of the annual awards cycle.

Below you'll find a spreadsheet of all the winners, followed by a film-by-film breakdown.

Arrival Best VFX – Florida Film Critics Circle Best VFX (tie) – Hawaii Film Critics Society Best VFX (tie) – Seattle Film Critics Society

Doctor Strange Best VFX – Chicago Independent Film Critics Circle Best VFX – Phoenix Film Critics Society Best VFX – North Carolina Film Critics Association Best VFX (tie) – Seattle Film Critics Society Best VFX (tie) – Hawaii Film Critics Society Best VFX (runner-up) – St. Louis Film Critics Best VFX (runner-up) – Florida Film Critics Circle

Kubo and the Two Strings Best Animated Feature – National Board of Review Best Animated Feature – Atlanta Film Critics Society Best Animated Feature – Washington D.C. Area Film Critics Best Animated Feature – Boston Online Film Critics Best Animated Feature – New York Film Critics Online Best Animated Feature – San Diego Film Critics Society Best Animated Feature – Las Vegas Film Critics Society Best Animated Feature – Chicago Film Critics Best Animated Feature – Phoenix Critics Circle Best Animated Feature – Utah Film Critics Best Animated Feature – Houston Film Critics Society Best Animated Feature – Indiana Film Journalists Association Best Animated Feature – Florida Film Critics Circle Best Animated Feature – Online Film Critics Society Best Animated Feature – Central Ohio Film Critics Association Best Animated Feature – Iowa Film Critics Awards Best Animated Feature – Chicago Independent Film Critics Circle Best Animated Feature (tie) – Hawaii Film Critics Society Best Animated Feature (runner-up) – Dallas-Fort Worth Film Critics Best Animated Feature (runner-up) – Seattle Film Critics Society Best Animated Feature (runner-up) – Oklahoma Film Critics Circle

Moana Best Animated Feature (runner-up) – Dallas-Fort Worth Film Critics Best Animated Feature (runner-up) – Utah Film Critics Best Hawaii Film – Hawaii Film Critics Society

My Life as a Zucchini Best Animated Feature – European Film Awards

Sausage Party Best Animated Feature (runner-up) – Indiana Film Journalists Association Original Vision Award (runner-up) – Indiana Film Journalists Association

The Angry Birds Movie Worst Movie of the Year (runner-up) – St. Louis Film Critics

The Jungle Book Best Visual Effects – Critics' Choice Awards Best Visual Effects – San Diego Film Critics Society Best Visual Effects – Las Vegas Film Critics Society Best Visual Effects – St. Louis Film Critics

The Red Turtle Best Animated Feature – San Francisco Critics Circle Best Animated Feature (runner-up) – Los Angeles Film Critics

Tower Best Animated Feature – Boston Society of Film Critics Best Documentary – Dallas-Fort Worth Film Critics Texas Independent Film Award – Houston Film Critics Society

Your Name Best Animated Feature – Los Angeles Film Critics

Zootopia Best Animated Feature – New York Film Critics Circle Best Animated Feature – Critics' Choice Awards Best Animated Feature – Toronto Film Critics Association Best Animated Feature – Dallas-Fort Worth Film Critics Best Animated Feature – African American Film Critics Association Best Animated Feature – St. Louis Film Critics Best Animated Feature – Kansas City Film Critics Circle Best Animated Feature – Alliance of Women Film Journalists EDA Awards Best Animated Feature – Golden Globes Best Animated Feature – Seattle Film Critics Society Best Animated Feature – Oklahoma Film Critics Circle Best Animated Feature – Black Film Critics Circle Best Animated Feature – Phoenix Film Critics Society Best Animated Feature – Georgia Film Critics Association Best Animated Feature – North Carolina Film Critics Association Best Animated Feature (tie) – Hawaii Film Critics Society Best Animated Feature (runner-up) – Utah Film Critics Best Animated Feature (runner-up) – Florida Film Critics Circle Best Animated Feature (runner-up) – Central Ohio Film Critics Association Top 10 Movie of the Year – AFI Awards

(Illustration in header: Chris McDonnell)