LOS ANGELES, CA – The Directors Guild of America (DGA) has announced the five nominees for the DGA Award for Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Feature Film for 2012.

“DGA members have chosen an incredibly rich and varied group of filmmakers to nominate for this year's Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Feature Film Award. These directors represent the highest standard of filmmaking, and their films are a testament to artistic achievement, innovative storytelling and the passion that filmmakers share with their audiences,” said DGA President Taylor Hackford, who made the announcement. “Being nominated by their peers is what makes this award particularly meaningful for directors, and I congratulate all of the nominees for their outstanding work.”

The winner will be named at the 65th Annual DGA Awards Dinner on Saturday, Febnuary 2, 2013, at the Ray Dolby Ballroom at Hollywood & Highland.

The nominees are (in alphabetical order):

BEN AFFLECK
Argo (Warner Bros. Pictures)
Directorial Team:
Unit Production Manager:  Amy Herman
First Assistant Director:  David Webb
Second Assistant Director:  Ian Calip
Second Second Assistant Directors:  Clark Credle, Gavin Kleintop
First Assistant Director (Turkey Unit):  Belkis Turan

This is Affleck’s first DGA Feature Film Award nomination. 

KATHRYN BIGELOW
Zero Dark Thirty (Columbia Pictures) 
Directorial Team:

Unit Production Manager:  Colin Wilson
First Assistant Director:  David A. Ticotin
Second Assistant Directors: Ben Lanning, Sarah Hood
First Assistant Director (Jordan Unit): Scott Robertson
Second Assistant Directors (Jordan Unit):  Jonas Spaccarotelli, Yanal Kassay
Second Second Assistant Director (Jordan Unit):  Tarek Afifi
Unit Production Manager (India Unit): Rajeev Mehra

This is Bigelow’s second DGA Feature Film Award nomination. She won the DGA Award for Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Feature Film for The Hurt Locker in 2009. 

TOM HOOPER 
Les Misérables (Universal Pictures)
Directorial Team:
Unit Production Manager:  Patrick Schweitzer
First Assistant Director: Ben Howarth
Second Assistant Director:  Harriet Worth
Second Second Assistant Director: Dan Channing Williams  

This is Hooper's second DGA Feature Film Award nomination. He won the DGA Award for Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Feature Film for The King's Speech (2010) and was previously nominated for the DGA Award for Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Movies for Television/Mini-Series for John Adams in 2008.

ANG LEE 
Life of Pi (Twentieth Century Fox)
Directorial Team:
Unit Production Manager:  Michael J. Malone
Unit Production Manager (Taiwan):  Leo Chen
First Assistant Directors:  William M. Connor, Cliff Lanning
Second Assistant Directors:  Robert Burgess, Ben Lanning
Unit Production Manager (India Unit):  Sanjay Kumar
First Assistant Director (India Unit):  Nitya Mehra
Second Assistant Director (India Unit):  Ananya Rane
Second Second Assistant Directors (India Unit):  Namra Parikh, Freya Parekh
Second Assistant Directors (Montreal Unit): Derek Wimble, Renato De Cotiis

This is Lee’s fourth DGA Feature Film Award nomination. He won the DGA Award for Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Feature Film for Brokeback Mountain (2005) and Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (2000) and was nominated for Sense and Sensibility in 1995.