The 64th Writers Guild of America Awards honored the best film,

television Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or the medium of television transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertisin ...

, and videogame writers of 2011. Winners were announced on February 19, 2012.

Nominees

Film

Original

Midnight in Paris ''Midnight in Paris'' is a 2011 fantasy comedy film written and directed by Woody Allen. Set in Paris, the film follows Gil Pender (Owen Wilson), a screenwriter, who is forced to confront the shortcomings of his relationship with his materialis ...

'' — Written by Woody Allen; Sony Pictures Classics *'' 50/50'' — Written by Will Reiser; Summit Entertainment *'' Bridesmaids'' — Written by Annie Mumolo & Kristen Wiig; Universal Pictures *'' Win Win'' — Screenplay by Tom McCarthy; Story by Tom McCarthy & Joe Tiboni; Fox Searchlight *''

Young Adult A young adult is generally a person in the years following adolescence. Definitions and opinions on what qualifies as a young adult vary, with works such as Erik Erikson's stages of human development significantly influencing the definition of ...

'' — Written by Diablo Cody; Paramount Pictures

Adapted

The Descendants ''The Descendants'' is a 2011 American comedy-drama film directed by Alexander Payne. The screenplay by Payne, Nat Faxon, and Jim Rash is based on the 2007 novel of the same name by Kaui Hart Hemmings. The film stars George Clooney in the mai ...

'' — Screenplay by Alexander Payne and

Nat Faxon Nathaniel Faxon (born October 11, 1975) is an American actor, comedian, director, and screenwriter. A frequent presence on comedic films and TV series, he won the Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay for co-writing '' The Descendants'' (2011) ...

Jim Rash James Rash (born July 15, 1971) is an American actor, comedian, and filmmaker. He portrayed the role of Dean Craig Pelton on the NBC sitcom ''Community'' (2009–2015), for which he was nominated for the Critics' Choice Television Award for Bes ...

; Based on the novel by Kaui Hart Hemmings; Fox Searchlight *''

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo ''The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo'' (original title in sv, Män som hatar kvinnor , lit=''Men Who Hate Women'') is a psychological thriller novel by Swedish author and journalist Stieg Larsson (1954–2004). It was published posthumously in 2 ...

'' — Screenplay by Steven Zaillian; Based on the novel by Stieg Larsson, originally published by Norstedts; Columbia Pictures *''

The Help ''The Help'' is a historical fiction novel by American author Kathryn Stockett and published by Penguin Books in 2009. The story is about African Americans working in white households in Jackson, Mississippi, during the early 1960s. A ''USA To ...

'' — Screenplay by Tate Taylor; Based on the novel by Kathryn Stockett; DreamWorks Pictures *'' Hugo'' — Screenplay by John Logan; Based on the book The Invention of Hugo Cabret by Brian Selznick; Paramount Pictures *'' Moneyball'' — Screenplay by Steven Zaillian and Aaron Sorkin; Story by Stan Chervin; Based on the book by Michael Lewis; Columbia Pictures

Documentary

'' Better This World'' — Written by Katie Galloway & Kelly Duane de la Vega; Loteria Films *'' If a Tree Falls: A Story of the Earth Liberation Front'' — Written by

Marshall Curry Marshall Curry (born ) is an Oscar-winning American documentary director, producer, cinematographer and editor. His films include '' Street Fight'', '' Racing Dreams'', '' If a Tree Falls: A Story of the Earth Liberation Front'', ''Point and ...

and Matthew Hamachek; Oscilloscope Pictures *''

Nostalgia for the Light ''Nostalgia for the Light'' ( es, Nostalgia de la luz) is a 2010 documentary film by Patricio Guzmán to address the lasting impacts of Augusto Pinochet's dictatorship. Guzmán focuses on the similarities between astronomers researching humanity's ...

'' — Written by

Patricio Guzmán Patricio Guzmán Lozanes (born August 11, 1941) is a Chilean documentary film director. He is most known for his films '' The Battle of Chile'' (1975-1979) and ''Salvador Allende'' (2004). Career Guzmán also teaches documentary film classes in ...

; Icarus Films *''

Pina Pina may refer to: People * Pina (name), a list of people with the given name, nickname, surname or stage name Places * Pina, Nepal, a village development committee * Pina, Mallorca, Spain, a town * Pina de Ebro, a municipality of the provin ...

'' — Screenplay by Wim Wenders; Sundance Selects *'' Position Among the Stars'' — Script by Hetty Naaijkens-Retel Helmrich and Leonard Retel Helmrich; HBO Documentary Films *'' Senna'' — Written by Manish Pandey; Producers Distribution Agency

Television

Drama series

'' Breaking Bad'' — Sam Catlin, Vince Gilligan, Peter Gould, Gennifer Hutchison, George Mastras, Thomas Schnauz, Moira Walley-Beckett;

AMC AMC may refer to: Film and television * AMC Theatres, an American movie theater chain * AMC Networks, an American entertainment company ** AMC (TV channel) ** AMC+, streaming service ** AMC Networks International, an entertainment company *** ...

*'' Boardwalk Empire'' — Bathsheba Doran, Dave Flebotte, Howard Korder, Steve Kornacki, Itamar Moses, Margaret Nagle, Terence Winter; HBO *'' Game of Thrones'' — David Benioff, Bryan Cogman, Jane Espenson, George R. R. Martin, D. B. Weiss; HBO *''

The Good Wife ''The Good Wife'' is an American legal and political drama television series that aired on CBS from September 22, 2009, to May 8, 2016. It focuses on Alicia Florrick, the wife of the Cook County State's Attorney, who returns to her career in l ...

'' — Courtney Kemp Agboh, Meredith Averill, Corinne Brinkerhoff, Leonard Dick, Keith Eisner, Karen Hall, Ted Humphrey, Michelle King, Robert King, Steve Lichtman, Matthew Montoya, Julia Wolfe;

CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainm ...

*''

Homeland A homeland is a place where a cultural, national, or racial identity has formed. The definition can also mean simply one's country of birth. When used as a proper noun, the Homeland, as well as its equivalents in other languages, often has ethn ...

'' — Henry Bromell, Alexander Cary, Alex Gansa, Howard Gordon, Chip Johannessen, Gideon Raff, Meredith Stiehm; Showtime

Comedy Series

Modern Family ''Modern Family'' is an American family sitcom television series created by Christopher Lloyd and Steven Levitan for the American Broadcasting Company. It ran for 11 seasons, from September 23, 2009, to April 8, 2020. It follows the lives of th ...

'' — Cindy Chupack, Paul Corrigan, Abraham Higginbotham, Ben Karlin, Elaine Ko, Carol Leifer, Steven Levitan, Christopher Lloyd, Dan O'Shannon, Jeffrey Richman, Brad Walsh, Ilana Wernick, Bill Wrubel, Danny Zuker; ABC *'' 30 Rock'' — Jack Burditt, Hannibal Buress, Kay Cannon, Robert Carlock, Tom Ceraulo, Vali Chandrasekaran, Tina Fey, Jon Haller, Matt Hubbard, Dylan Morgan, John Riggi, Josh Siegal, Ron Weiner, Tracey Wigfield;

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters are l ...

*'' Curb Your Enthusiasm'' — Alec Berg, Larry David, David Mandel, Jeff Schaffer; HBO *'' Louie'' — Pamela Adlon, Louis C.K.; FX *'' Parks and Recreation'' — Greg Daniels, Katie Dippold, Daniel J. Goor, Norm Hiscock, Emily Kapnek, Dave King, Greg Levine, Aisha Muharrar, Chelsea Peretti, Amy Poehler, Brian Rowe, Michael Schur, Mike Scully, Emily Spivey, Alan Yang, Harris Wittels;

New Series

'' — Henry Bromell, Alexander Cary, Alex Gansa, Howard Gordon, Chip Johannessen, Gideon Raff, Meredith Stiehm; Showtime *''

Episodes Episodes may refer to: * Episode An episode is a narrative unit within a larger dramatic work or documentary production, such as a series intended for radio, television or streaming consumption. The noun ''episode'' is derived from the Greek ...

'' — David Crane, Jeffrey Klarik; Showtime *'' Game of Thrones'' — David Benioff, Bryan Cogman, Jane Espenson, George R. R. Martin, D. B. Weiss; HBO *'' The Killing'' — Linda Burstyn, Jeremy Doner, Soo Hugh, Dan Nowak, Nic Pizzolatto, Dawn Prestwich, Veena Sud, Nicole Yorkin, Aaron Zelman;

*''

New Girl ''New Girl'' is an American television sitcom created by Elizabeth Meriwether and produced by 20th Television for Fox that originally aired from September 20, 2011, to May 15, 2018. The series revolves around a kooky teacher, Jessica Day ( Zoo ...

'' — Nick Adams, Rachel Axler, Brett Baer, Donick Cary, Dave Finkel, Berkley Johnson, Josh Malmuth, Elizabeth Meriwether, J. J. Philbin, Joe Port, Luvh Rakhe, Joe Wiseman; FOX

Episodic Drama

"Box Cutter" ('' Breaking Bad'') — Vince Gilligan; AMC "The Good Soldier" (''

'') — Henry Bromell; Showtime *"A Dangerous Maid" ('' Boardwalk Empire'') — Itamar Moses; HBO *"The Age of Reason" ('' Boardwalk Empire'') — Bathsheba Doran; HBO *"End Times" ('' Breaking Bad'') — Thomas Schnauz & Moira Walley-Beckett; AMC *"Just Let Go" ('' Dexter'') — Jace Richdale; Showtime

Episodic Comedy

" Caught in the Act" (''

'') — Steven Levitan & Jeffrey Richman; ABC *"

Mother's Day Mother's Day is a celebration honoring the mother of the family or individual, as well as motherhood, maternal bonds, and the influence of mothers in society. It is celebrated on different days in many parts of the world, most commonly in th ...

" (''

'') — Dan O'Shannon & Ilana Wernick; ABC *" Goodbye Michael" (''

The Office ''The Office'' is a mockumentary sitcom created by Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant, first made in the United Kingdom, then Germany, and subsequently the United States. It has since been remade in ten other countries. The original series o ...

'') — Daniels; NBC *"Object Impermanence" ('' Weeds'') — Falk; Showtime *" PDA" (''

'') — Robert Padnick; NBC *"

Queen of Jordan This is a list of the women who have been queen consort of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan since the emirate was elevated to the status of a kingdom in 1949. As all monarchs of Jordan have been required by law to be male, there has never been ...

" ('' 30 Rock'') — Tracey Wigfield; NBC

Long form – original – over one hour – one or two parts, one or two airing times

'' Cinema Verite'' — David Seltzer; HBO *'' Five'', "Pearl," Written by Deirdre O'Connor, "Charlotte," Written by Stephen Godchaux, "Cheyanne," Written by Howard Morris, "Lili," Written by Jill Gordon, "Mia," Written by Wendy West; Lifetime

Long form – adaptation – over one hour – one or two parts, one or two airing times

Too Big to Fail "Too big to fail" (TBTF) and "too big to jail" is a theory in banking and finance that asserts that certain corporations, particularly financial institutions, are so large and so interconnected that their failure would be disastrous to the great ...

'' — Teleplay by Peter Gould, Based on the book ''

'' by Andrew Ross Sorkin; HBO *'' Mildred Pierce'' — Teleplay by Todd Haynes & Jon Raymond, Based on the book '' Mildred Pierce'' by James M. Cain; HBO

Short Form - original new media

“Episode 1,” “Episode 2,” “Episode 4,” “Episode 5,” “Episode 6” (''Aim High'') by Heath Corson & Richie Keen; cambio.com/aim-high “Episode 2.1: Employment,” “Episode 2.2: Clientele,” “Episode 2.3: Personal Property,” “Episode 2.4: The American Dream,” “Episode 2.5: Debt Ceiling” (''Downsized'') by Daryn Strauss; downsizedthewebseries.com “Episode 3.1: The Return,” “Episode 3.5: The Testosterone,” “Episode 3.6: The Advice,” “Episode 3.7: The Date” (''Jack in a Box'') by Michael Cyril Creighton; jackinaboxsite.com

Animation – any length – one airing time

" Homer the Father" (''

The Simpsons ''The Simpsons'' is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series is a satirical depiction of American life, epitomized by the Simpson family, which consists of Homer Simpson, Homer, Marge ...

'') — Joel H. Cohen; FOX *"

Bart Stops to Smell the Roosevelts "Bart Stops to Smell the Roosevelts" is the second episode of the The Simpsons (season 23), twenty-third season of the American animated television series ''The Simpsons''. It originally aired on the Fox Broadcasting Company, Fox network in the Un ...

" (''

'') — Tim Long; FOX *" The Blue and the Gray" (''

'') — Rob LaZebnik; FOX *" Donnie Fatso" (''

'') — Chris Cluess; FOX *"

Moonstruck ''Moonstruck'' is a 1987 American romantic comedy-drama film directed and co-produced by Norman Jewison, written by John Patrick Shanley, and starring Cher, Nicolas Cage, Danny Aiello, Olympia Dukakis, and Vincent Gardenia. The film follows L ...

" ('' Ben 10: Ultimate Alien'') — Len Uhley; Cartoon Network *" The Silence of the Clamps" ('' Futurama'') — Eric Rogers; Comedy Central

Comedy/variety – (including talk) series

The Colbert Report ''The Colbert Report'' ( ) is an American late-night talk and news satire television program hosted by Stephen Colbert that aired four days a week on Comedy Central from October 17, 2005, to December 18, 2014, for 1,447 episodes. The show fo ...

'' — Michael Brumm,

Stephen Colbert Stephen Tyrone Colbert ( ; born May 13, 1964) is an American comedian, writer, producer, political commentator, actor, and television host. He is best known for hosting the satirical Comedy Central program '' The Colbert Report'' from 2005 ...

, Rich Dahm, Paul Dinello, Eric Drysdale, Rob Dubbin, Glenn Eichler, Dan Guterman, Peter Gwinn, Jay Katsir, Barry Julien, Frank Lesser, Opus Moreschi, Tom Purcell, Meredith Scardino, Scott Sherman, Max Werner; Comedy Central *'' Conan'' — Jose Arroyo, Andres du Bouchet, Deon Cole, Josh Comers, Dan Cronin, Michael Gordon, Berkley Johnson, Brian Kiley, Laurie Kilmartin, Rob Kutner, Todd Levin, Brian McCann, Conan O'Brien, Matt O'Brien, Jesse Popp, Andy Richter, Brian Stack, Mike Sweeney; TBS *'' Jon Benjamin Has a Van'' — Leo Allen, Jon Benjamin; Comedy Central *'' Late Night with Jimmy Fallon'' — AD Miles, David Angelo, Patrick Borelli, Gerard Bradford,

Jeremy Bronson Jeremy Bronson (born June 18) is an American television producer and writer, best known for his work on '' The Mindy Project'', '' Speechless'', and ''Late Night with Jimmy Fallon''. He is currently under an overall deal with ABC Studios. Early ...

, Mike DiCenzo, Jimmy Fallon, John Haskell, Eric Ledgin, Dan Opsal, Amy Ozols, Gavin Purcell, Diallo Riddle, Jon Rineman, Bashir Salahuddin, Justin Shanes, Michael Shoemaker, Jen Statsky, CJ Toledano; NBC *''

Real Time with Bill Maher ''Real Time with Bill Maher'' is an American television talk show that airs weekly on HBO, hosted by comedian and political satirist Bill Maher. Much like his previous series ''Politically Incorrect'' on Comedy Central and later on ABC, ''Real ...

'' — Scott Carter, Adam Felber, Matt Gunn, Brian Jacobsmeyer, Jay Jaroch, Chris Kelly, Bill Maher, Billy Martin, Amani Redd; HBO *''

Saturday Night Live ''Saturday Night Live'' (often abbreviated to ''SNL'') is an American late-night live television sketch comedy and variety show created by Lorne Michaels and developed by Dick Ebersol that airs on NBC and Peacock (streaming service), Peacock. ...

'' — Seth Meyers, Doug Abeles, James Anderson, Alex Baze, Heather Anne Campbell, Matt Craig, Jessica Conrad, James Downey, Tom Flanigan, Shelly Gossman, Steve Higgins, Colin Jost, Zach Kanin, Chris Kelly, Erik Kenward, Rob Klein, Jonathan Krisel,

Lorne Michaels Lorne Michaels (born Lorne David Lipowitz; November 17, 1944) is a Canadian-American producer, screenwriter, and comedian. He is best known for creating and producing ''Saturday Night Live'' (1975–1980, 1985–present) and producing the '' La ...

John Mulaney John Edmund Mulaney (born August 26, 1982) is an American stand-up comedian, actor, writer, and producer. He first rose to prominence for his work as a writer on ''Saturday Night Live'' from 2008 to 2013, where he contributed to numerous ...

, Christine Nangle, Michael Patrick O'Brien,

Paula Pell Paula Pell (born April 15, 1963) is an American comedy writer, producer, and actress, best known for her work writing for the sketch series ''Saturday Night Live,'' being recognized with a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Writing for a Variety ...

, Simon Rich, Marika Sawyer, Akiva Schaffer, Sarah Schneider, Pete Schultz, John Solomon, Kent Sublette, Jorma Taccone,

Bryan Tucker Bryan H. Tucker is an American actor, comedian, and screenwriter. He has been the co-head writer for the TV program ''Saturday Night Live'' since 2014. Early life Bryan Tucker was born and raised in Chesterfield County, Virginia. After gradua ...

; NBC *''

The Daily Show with Jon Stewart ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...

'' — Rory Albanese, Kevin Bleyer, Richard Blomquist, Steve Bodow, Tim Carvell, Wyatt Cenac, Hallie Haglund, J.R. Havlan, Elliott Kalan, Dan McCoy, Sam Means, Jo Miller, John Oliver, Zhubin Parang, Daniel Radosh, Jason Ross, Jon Stewart; Comedy Central

References

{{WGAAwards 2011

Writers Guild of America Awards The Writers Guild of America Awards is an award for film, television, and radio writing including both fiction and non-fiction categories given by the Writers Guild of America, East and Writers Guild of America West since 1949. Eligibility T ...

2011 in American cinema 2011 in American television