Dear Colleagues,

"This is to be a family affair, free from prejudice and unhampered by outside influence. You yourselves are qualified to be the judges and the jury because no person is better qualified to pass on the creative ability of the director than the directors themselves." So said Screen Directors Guild president George Marshall when he announced that the Guild would hold the first DGA Awards in August 1948, 60 years ago.

In January 2008, the Guild will be celebrating the 60th Anniversary of the DGA Awards and I would like to invite all members of the Guild to take Marshall’s advice and actively participate in the nominations and voting for excellence in our craft. The DGA Awards provide represent our highest honors and one of the industry’s most coveted recognitions. Therefore, I’d like to encourage every member to make an effort to vote.

We recognize that it may be difficult for members to find ample time to view all the feature films to be considered and want to remind members about the opportunity to attend studio and distributor pre-nomination Academy consideration screenings in both private and commercial venues. This is how a great number of films for DGA Award consideration are viewed prior to their public release, and I encourage members to take advantage of these screenings.

It is up to us, as members of the DGA, to ensure that the nominees and recipients of each award represent the outstanding directorial achievements in that category. Members should never cast votes in categories where they do not feel knowledgeable and/or informed enough to make a responsible selection.

Lastly, I’d like to recognize and thank all of the director members who will donate their time and expertise to serve on the 60th Anniversary DGA Awards Nomination and Blue Ribbon Panels. Their work in evaluating entries and selecting nominees represents extremely generous service to the Guild.

I look forward to sharing with you more information about the 60th Anniversary of the DGA Awards in the months ahead.

Best,
Michael