Celebration of Black Cinema was a vibe

On December 6th, The Critics Choice Association presented the annual Celebration of Black Cinema & Television at the Fairmont Century Plaza Hotel. Since 2014, the Celebration of Black Cinema has honored outstanding achievements in Black filmmaking. For the first time this year, the awards ceremony also celebrated achievements in television. The event was hosted by Niecy Nash.

Honorees included Anthony Anderson (Producer Award for Television), Zazie Beetz (Ensemble Award), Halle Berry (Career Achievement Award), Danielle Brooks (Actress Award for Television), Deon Cole (Ensemble Award), R.J. Cyler (Ensemble Award), Danielle Deadwyler (Ensemble Award), Ava DuVernay (Melvin Van Peebles Trailblazer Award), Idris Elba (Ensemble Award), Antoine Fuqua (Director Award for Film), Edi Gathegi (Ensemble Award), Jennifer Hudson (Actress Award for Film), Barry Jenkins (Director Award for Television), Toheeb Jimoh (Breakthrough Award), Regina King (Ensemble Award), Delroy Lindo (Ensemble Award), and Jonathan Majors (Ensemble Award).

Patina Miller, Ruth Negga, and Natasha Rothwell received Special Honoree Awards. Will Smith got an Actor Award for Film, and LaKeith Stanfield got an Ensemble Award. Omar Sy won the Actor Award for Television, Robin Thede (Showrunner Award), and Kenan Thompson (Special Honoree Award).

The likes of Cheryl Boone Isaacs, Chaz Ebert, Tracee Ellis Ross, Brett Goldstein, Rebecca Hall, Taraji P. Henson, Dani Lane, Dannah Lane, James Lassiter, Kenny Leon, Joi McMillon, Prentice Penny, Saniyya Sidney, Demi Singleton, Cliff “Method Man” Smith, Liesl Tommy, Mario Van Peebles, and Larry Wilmore were presenters. Shamier Anderson, Jessica Betts, Tina Lifford, Sydney Mitchell, Janine Sherman Barrois, Tessa Thompson, and more were in attendance as additional guests.

A portion of the proceeds were designated to provide scholarships to students from underrepresented communities participating in the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences’ Gold Rising Program. The show will air on KTLA and Nexstar stations in January and February 2022.