The 73rd Annual Directors Guild of America Awards ceremony will take place Saturday, April 10th, 2021.

As I have been doing for a few years, as we get into the awards season, I’ll post the fictional ballots for some of the guild awards, showing what my vote would be if I had one. I will, as a rule, abstain from my fictional vote if I haven’t seen at least half of the nominees. And to be perfectly clear, I’m not a member of any of these guilds and organizations.

The list of nominees can be seen here.

Here it goes:

Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Documentary: Benjamin Ree, for The Painter and the Thief

Benjamin Ree, with his choices on how to tell the story, gives the emotions present in this documentary more depth and impact. (Not seen: The Truffle Hunters, Welcome to Chechnya.)

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Outstanding Directorial Achievement of a First-Time Feature Film Director: Regina King, for One Night in Miami…

Regina King extracts a number of wonderful performances from her cast. On top of that, her choices give the film a dynamism that is surprising given its origin as a stage play. (Not seen: The Father.)

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Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Feature Film: David Fincher, for Mank

It’s no surprise that a Fincher film would be this visually precise and well-manufactured. The performances are generally great, reading beautifully the entertaining dialogue. The film’s aesthetics, its looks and music, are a great fit for the story as well. (Not seen: Minari, Nomadland.)