Zero Dark Thirty Wins Big With The Alliance Of Women Film Journalists

Zero Dark Thirty was not only considered one of the best films to be released in 2012, it also happens to be a pretty impressive showing of female power in Hollywood. Not only does the movie have Kathryn Bigelow at the helm, the first female filmmaker to ever win the Best Director award at the Oscars, but Jessica Chastain's performance as the strong-willed, determined Maya is considered by many to be one of the best performances of the year, by a man or a woman. And the Alliance of Women Film Journalists definitely agrees.

The critics organization has announced the winners of their annual EDA awards and, unsurprisingly, Zero Dark Thirty was the big winner. The film, which will be expanding to theaters nationwide this Friday, not only took home the top prize, voted the best movie of the year, but also won Best Director, Best Screenplay, Best Actress, and Best Editing as well as the Best Woman Director award in the EDA Female Focus Awards categories, the AWFJ Award For Humanitarian Activism - Female Icon Award (for Chastain) and the Unforgettable Moment Award (Chastain's "I'm the motherfucker who found this place" tying with Anne Hathaway's performance of "I Dreamed A Dream" in Les Miserables). You can scope out the full list of winners below and head over to the organization's official website to find out more about them.

Best FilmZero Dark ThirtyBest DirectorKathryn Bigelow, Zero Dark ThirtyBest Screenplay, OriginalZero Dark Thirty - Mark BoalBest Screenplay, AdaptedArgo - Chris TerrioBest DocumentarySearching For Sugar Man - Malik BendjelloulBest Animated FilmParaNormanBest ActressJessica Chastain - Zero Dark ThirtyBest Actress in a Supporting RoleAnne Hathaway - Les MiserablesBest ActorDaniel Day-Lewis - LincolnBest Actor in a Supporting RolePhillip Seymour Hoffman - The MasterBest Ensemble CastSilver Linings PlaybookBest EditingZero Dark Thirty - William Goldenberg, Dylan TichenorBest CinematographyLife of Pi - Claudio MirandaBest Film Music Or ScoreBeasts of the Southern Wild - Dan Romer, Benh ZeitlinBest Non-English-Language FilmAmourEDA FEMALE FOCUS AWARDSThese awards honor WOMEN only.Best Woman DirectorKathryn Bigelow - Zero Dark ThirtyBest Woman ScreenwriterLucy Alibar (and Benh Zeitlin) - Beasts of the Southern WildKick Ass Award For Best Female Action StarJennifer Lawrence - The Hunger GamesBest Animated FemaleBrave - Merida - Kelly MacdonaldBest Breakthrough PerformanceQuvenzhané Wallis - Beasts of the Southern WildActress Defying Age and AgeismJudi Dench - SkyfallAWFJ Award For Humanitarian Activism - Female Icon Award(Presented to an actress for the portrayal of the most positive female role model, or for a role in which she takes personal and/or career risks to plumb the female psyche and therefore gives us courage to plumb our own, and/or for putting forth the image of a woman who is heroic, accomplished, persistent, demands her rights and/or the rights of others.)Jessica Chastain - Zero Dark ThirtyThis Year’s Outstanding Achievement By A Woman In The Film Industry(Presented only when warranted to a female who has had a banner-making, record-breaking, industry-changing achievement during any given year — such as Kathryn Bigelow’s Best Director Oscar win, or for an actress having multiple outstanding films released during one year.)Women Documentary Filmmakers, including Heidi Ewing and Rachel Grady (Detropia), Lauren Greenfield (Queen of Versailles), Alison Klayman (Ai Weiwei Never Sorry) and Sarah Burns (The Central Park Five).EDA SPECIAL MENTION AWARDSAWFJ Hall Of Shame AwardSean Anders for That’s My BoyActress Most in Need Of A New Agent (Tie)Katherine Heigl - One For The MoneyReese Witherspoon - This Means WarMovie You Wanted To Love But Just Couldn’tAnna KareninaUnforgettable Moment Award (Tie)Les Miserables - Anne Hathaway as Fantine singing I Dreamed A DreamZero Dark Thirty - Jessica Chastain as Maya says, “I’m the mother…”Best Depiction Of Nudity, Sexuality, or SeductionThe Sessions - Helen Hunt and John HawkesSequel or Remake That Shouldn’t Have Been Made Award (Tie)Red DawnTotal RecallMost Egregious Age Difference Between The Leading Man and The Love Interest AwardFlight - Denzel Washington and Kelly Reilly,..and Nadine Velazquez

Eric Eisenberg is the Assistant Managing Editor at CinemaBlend. After graduating Boston University and earning a bachelor’s degree in journalism, he took a part-time job as a staff writer for CinemaBlend, and after six months was offered the opportunity to move to Los Angeles and take on a newly created West Coast Editor position. Over a decade later, he's continuing to advance his interests and expertise. In addition to conducting filmmaker interviews and contributing to the news and feature content of the site, Eric also oversees the Movie Reviews section, writes the the weekend box office report (published Sundays), and is the site's resident Stephen King expert. He has two King-related columns.