“CODA” adds another big prize before the Oscars: that of PGA producers

The Hollywood Producers Association (PGA) honored the independent feature film “CODA” on Saturday as the Best Film of the Year, reinforcing its chances in the Oscars competition.

The awards given by the Producers Guild of America (PGA), a society of some 8,000 professionals and with extensive influence in the world of Hollywood, are considered a relatively reliable barometer ahead of the Oscars, which will be presented this year on March 27.

“I have always been attracted to stories full of humanity,” said French producer Philippe Rousselet, co-producer of “CODA”, when he received the award. In his opinion, they are “a sign that there is still hope” in the world.

This new version adapting the script of the French film “La Famille Bélier”, by director Eric Lartigau (2014), tells the story of a deaf family in distress. Deaf actors play the main roles. Its title “CODA” is an acronym for “Son of a Deaf Adult” which literally means “hearing child of deaf parents”.

The plot follows Ruby, a hearing high school student, who juggles her musical ambitions and her family's dependence on her to communicate with the “hearing” world.

“In music, a coda means the end of a movement,” the deaf actress Marlee Matlin, who plays Ruby's mother in “CODA”, observed after the award, adding, satisfied with the distinction: “It's wonderful to see such a welcoming audience with our film and it's wonderful to make history.”

Released on Apple TV+, “CODA” had won the top prize at the SAG Awards at the end of February — another major award, as actors are the largest society (around 10,000) within the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

Now the film is well positioned to compete with the big Oscar favorite, the film “The Power of the Dog”, by Jane Campion and produced by Netflix.

- Animations, music and tribute -

Among other winners of the PGA event, “Encanto” won the award for best producer of animated films, reinforcing his own chances for the Oscars before the vote closes on Tuesday.

“Summer of Soul”, the first film by hip hop musician and director Ahmir 'Questlove' Thompson about the “Black Woodstock” festival, which took place in the New York neighborhood of Harlem in 1969, won a new award for best documentary.

On the television side, HBO's “Succession” won the award for Best Television Drama Series.

During the evening, Steven Spielberg paid tribute to “my brother” George Lucas by presenting the creator of the iconic “Star Wars” series with a PGA award for his career. Lucas shared this Milestone award with Kathleen Kennedy, president of Lucasfilm, now owned by Disney.

Lucas, for his part, told the audience that he was very proud that his work marked the beginning of “digital cinema”, which has largely replaced traditional celluloid rolls and accelerated the development of 3D and computer effects that dominate many superhero blockbusters today.

But Lucas acknowledged that some of his peers, including Spielberg, Martin Scorsese and Christopher Nolan, have not yet fully joined the digital revolution and believe that traditional cinema still offers a richer aesthetic. According to him, they think: 'Oh, no, digital, that's not movies, that's something else! '”

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