The winners of the Directors Guild of America Outstanding Directorial Achievement Awards for 2011, and the recipients of the Guild's 2012 Career Achievement Awards were announced tonight during the 64th Annual DGA Awards Dinner at the Grand Ballroom at Hollywood & Highland in Los Angeles. Michel Hazanavicius won the DGA's Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Feature Film for The Artist.

Following the welcome by DGA President Taylor Hackford to an audience of more than 1,600 guests, director/producer/actor Kelsey Grammer hosted the ceremony.

Presenters included (in alphabetical order): DGA Secretary-Treasurer Michael Apted; Bérénice Bejo (The Artist); George Clooney (The Descendants); Bryan Cranston (Breaking Bad); Jon Cryer (Two and a Half Men); Laura Dern (Enlightened); Jean Dujardin (The Artist); DGA President Taylor Hackford; 2010 DGA Feature Film Award winner Tom Hooper (The King's Speech); Stana Katic (Castle); Ben Kingsley (Hugo); Gary Oldman (Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy); Kathleen Robertson (Boss); Octavia Spencer (The Help); DGA Third Vice President Betty Thomas; Michelle Williams (My Week with Marilyn); and Deborah Ann Woll (True Blood).

  • Jon Cassar, The Kennedys (Reelz Channel)
  • Amy Schatz, A Child's Garden of Poetry (HBO)

Special Awards

The recipients of the Directors Guild of America Service and Achievement Awards for 2012 are:

  • Edwin Sherin, Given in recognition of outstanding creative achievement, contribution to the DGA or to the profession of directing.
  • Katy Garretson, Given to an Assistant Director or Unit Production Manager in recognition of their career and service to the industry and the DGA.
  • Dennis W. Mazzocco, Given to an Associate Director or Stage Manager in recognition of their service to the industry and DGA.

The DGA Award for Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Feature Film has traditionally been one of the industry's most accurate barometers for who will win the Best Director Academy Award.

Only six times since the DGA Awards began in 1948 has the Feature Film winner not gone on to win the corresponding Academy Award.

The six exceptions are as follows: