Pittsburgh Film Critics Association Announce Inaugural Winners

The Pittsburgh Film Critics Association has revealed their winners for organization’s the inaugural awards season. Launched in 2024 with the help of Film Obsessive News Editor Tina Kakadelis and Staff Writer Natalie D. C., the PFCA arose from a shared vision among the region’s critics to carve out a distinct space within the industry.

“Western Pennsylvania is a thriving hotbed for both film production and film criticism,” says the PFCA Board. “It’s our immense honor to be celebrating 2024’s finest films as a united collective of Pittsburgh-based film critics.”

The Substance, director Coralie Fargeat’s bold twist on the body-horror genre, was named Best Picture by the PFCA’s 15-member voting bloc. Challengers, director Luca Guadagnino’s steamy romantic drama set in the tennis world, finished in second place.

The complete list of the 1st Annual Pittsburgh Film Critics Association Award Winners & Runners-Up:

BEST PICTURE

Winner: The Substance
Runner-Up: Challengers

BEST LEAD ACTOR

Winner: Colman Domingo — Sing Sing
Runner-Up: Cynthia Erivo — Wicked

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR

Winner: Ariana Grande — Wicked
Runner-Up: Clarence Maclin — Sing Sing

BEST FEATURED ACTOR

Winner: Jesse Plemmons — Civil War
Runners-Up (Tie): Lamorne Morris — Saturday Night; Isabella Rossellini — Conclave

BREAKTHROUGH PERFORMANCE

Winner: Clarence Maclin — Sing Sing
Runner-Up: Katy O’Brian — Love Lies Bleeding

BEST ANIMATED VOICE PERFORMANCE

Winner: Lupita Nyong’o — The Wild Robot
Runner-Up: Maya Hawke — Inside Out 2

BEST DIRECTOR

Winner: Robert Eggers — Nosferatu
Runner-Up: Coralie Fargeat — The Substance

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY

Winner: Justin Kuritzkes — Challengers
Runner-Up: Sean Baker — Anora

BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY

Winner: Clint Bentley, Greg Kwedar, Clarence Maclin, John “Divine G” Whitfield — Sing Sing
Runner-Up: Robert Eggers — Nosferatu

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY

Winner: Jomo Fray — Nickel Boys
Runner-Up: Jarin Blaschke — Nosferatu

BEST EDITING

Winner: Marco Costa — Challengers
Runner-Up: Jerome Eltabet, Coralie Fargeat, Valentin Feron — The Substance

BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN

Winner: Craig Lathrop — Nosferatu
Runner-Up: Stanislas Reydellet, Cécilia Blom — The Substance

BEST SCORE

Winner: Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross — Challengers
Runner-Up: Cristobal Tapia de Veer — Babygirl

BEST SONG

Winner: “Compress/Repress” — Challengers
Runners-Up (Tie): “Starburned and Unkissed” — I Saw the TV Glow; “Harper and Will Go West” — Will & Harper

BEST SOUND DESIGN

Winner: Emmanuelle Villard, Valerie Deloof, Victor Fleurant, Stéphane Thiébaut, Victor Praud — The Substance
Runner-Up: Lisa Pinero, Craig Berkey, Paul Carter — Challengers

BEST HAIR, MAKEUP, & COSTUMES

Winner: Emmanuelle Youchnovski (Costume); Pierre-Olivier Persin (Makeup/Hairstyle) — The Substance
Runner-Up: Linda Muir (Costume); Traci Loader, Suzanne Stokes-Munton, David White (Makeup/Hairstyle) — Nosferatu

BEST ANIMATED FEATURE

Winner: The Wild Robot
Runner-Up: Inside Out 2

BEST FILM NOT IN THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE

Winners (Tie): The Seed of the Sacred Fig; Flow

BEST STUNT PERFORMANCE & CHOREOGRAPHY

Winner: Keir Beck, Chris O’Hara — The Fall Guy
Runner-Up: Udeh Nans, Brahim Chab — Monkey Man

MISTER ROGERS KINDNESS AWARD – Awarded to someone who best exemplifies this quote from Mister Rogers: “I am always comforted by realizing that there are still so many helpers—so many caring people in this world.”

Winner: The entire cast and crew of The Seed of the Sacred Fig

Due to the nature of the film’s subject matter, filmmaker Mohammad Rasoulof fled Iran due to persecution, actors Misagh Zare and Soheila Golestani are unable to leave the country, unnamed person/persons smuggled the film out of Iran, and the entire cast and crew who made this film in secret to ensure this necessary story was told.