# Chicago Film Critics Association Awards 2012

The 25th Chicago Film Critics Association Awards, honoring the best in film for 2012, were announced on December 17, 2012.

## Winners and nominees

The winners and nominees for the 25th Chicago Film Critics Association Awards are as follows:

### Awards

| Best Film | Best Director |
| Zero Dark Thirty – Kathryn Bigelow, Mark Boal, and Megan Ellison Argo – Ben Affleck, George Clooney, and Grant Heslov Beasts of the Southern Wild – Dan Janvey, Josh Penn, and Michael Gottwald Lincoln – Steven Spielberg and Kathleen Kennedy The Master – JoAnne Sellar, Daniel Lupi, Paul Thomas Anderson, and Megan Ellison | Kathryn Bigelow – Zero Dark Thirty Ben Affleck – Argo Paul Thomas Anderson – The Master Steven Spielberg – Lincoln Benh Zeitlin – Beasts of the Southern Wild |
| Best Actor | Best Actress |
| Daniel Day-Lewis – Lincoln as Abraham Lincoln John Hawkes – The Sessions as Mark O'Brien Denis Lavant – Holy Motors as Mr. Oscar / Various Characters Joaquin Phoenix – The Master as Freddie Quell Denzel Washington – Flight as William "Whip" Whitaker, Sr. | Jessica Chastain – Zero Dark Thirty as Maya Helen Hunt – The Sessions as Cheryl Cohen-Greene Jennifer Lawrence – Silver Linings Playbook as Tiffany Maxwell Emmanuelle Riva – Amour as Anne Laurent Quvenzhané Wallis – Beasts of the Southern Wild as Hushpuppy Naomi Watts – The Impossible as Maria Bennett |
| Best Supporting Actor | Best Supporting Actress |
| Philip Seymour Hoffman – The Master as Lancaster Dodd Jason Clarke – Zero Dark Thirty as Dan Leonardo DiCaprio – Django Unchained as "Monsieur" Calvin J. Candie Dwight Henry – Beasts of the Southern Wild as Wink Tommy Lee Jones – Lincoln as Thaddeus Stevens | Amy Adams – The Master as Peggy Dodd Emily Blunt – Looper as Sara Judi Dench – Skyfall as M Sally Field – Lincoln as Mary Todd Lincoln Anne Hathaway – Les Misérables as Fantine |
| Best Original Screenplay | Best Adapted Screenplay |
| Zero Dark Thirty – Mark Boal Django Unchained – Quentin Tarantino Looper – Rian Johnson The Master – Paul Thomas Anderson Moonrise Kingdom – Wes Anderson and Roman Coppola | Lincoln – Tony Kushner based in part of the book Team of Rivals: The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln by Doris Kearns Goodwin Argo – Chris Terrio based on a selection from The Master of Disguise by Antonio J. Mendez and the Wired magazine article The Great Escape by Joshuah Bearman Beasts of the Southern Wild – Lucy Alibar and Benh Zeitlin based on the play The Perks of Being a Wallflower – Stephen Chbosky based on his novel Silver Linings Playbook – David O. Russell based on the novel by Matthew Quick |
| Best Animated Film | Best Foreign Language Film |
| ParaNorman – Sam Fell and Chris Butler Brave – Mark Andrews and Brenda Chapman Frankenweenie – Tim Burton The Secret World of Arrietty – Hiromasa Yonebayashi Wreck-It Ralph – Rich Moore | Amour (Austria) in French – Directed by Michael Haneke Holy Motors (France) in French – Directed by Leos Carax The Intouchables (France) in French – Directed by Éric Toledano and Olivier Nakache Once Upon a Time in Anatolia (Turkey) in Turkish – Directed by Nuri Bilge Ceylan Rust and Bone (France) in French – Directed by Jacques Audiard |
| Best Documentary Film | Best Original Score |
| The Invisible War – Kirby Dick The Central Park Five – Ken Burns, Sarah Burns, and David McMahon The Queen of Versailles – Lauren Greenfield Searching for Sugar Man – Malik Bendjelloul West of Memphis – Amy J. Berg | The Master – Jonny Greenwood Argo – Alexandre Desplat Beasts of the Southern Wild – Dan Romer and Benh Zeitlin Moonrise Kingdom – Alexandre Desplat Zero Dark Thirty – Alexandre Desplat |
| Best Production Design | Best Editing |
| Moonrise Kingdom – Production Design: Adam Stockhausen; Set Decoration: Kris Moran Anna Karenina – Production Design: Sarah Greenwood; Set Decoration: Katie Spencer Les Misérables – Production Design: Eve Stewart; Set Decoration: Anna Lynch-Robinson Lincoln – Production Design: Rick Carter; Set Decoration: Jim Erickson The Master – Production Design: David Crank and Jack Fisk; Set Decoration: Amy Wells | Zero Dark Thirty – William Goldenberg and Dylan Tichenor Argo – William Goldenberg Cloud Atlas – Alexander Berner and Claus Wehlisch The Master – Leslie Jones and Peter McNulty Skyfall – Stuart Baird |
| Best Cinematography | |
| The Master – Mihai Mălaimare Jr. Life of Pi – Claudio Miranda Lincoln – Janusz Kamiński Skyfall – Roger Deakins Zero Dark Thirty – Greig Fraser | |
| Most Promising Filmmaker | Most Promising Performer |
| Benh Zeitlin – Beasts of the Southern Wild Stephen Chbosky – The Perks of Being a Wallflower Drew Goddard – The Cabin in the Woods Nicholas Jarecki – Arbitrage Colin Trevorrow – Safety Not Guaranteed | Quvenzhané Wallis – Beasts of the Southern Wild Samantha Barks – Les Misérables Kara Hayward – Moonrise Kingdom Dwight Henry – Beasts of the Southern Wild Tom Holland – The Impossible |

## Awards breakdown

The following films received multiple nominations:
| Nominations | Film |
| 10 | The Master |
| 8 | Beasts of the Southern Wild |
| 8 | Lincoln |
| 8 | Zero Dark Thirty |
| 5 | Argo |
| 4 | Moonrise Kingdom |
| 3 | Les Miserables |
| 3 | Skyfall |
| 2 | Amour |
| 2 | Django Unchained |
| 2 | Holy Motors |
| 2 | The Impossible |
| 2 | Looper |
| 2 | The Perks of Being a Wallflower |
| 2 | Silver Linings Playbook |
The following films received multiple wins:
| Wins | Film |
| 5 | Zero Dark Thirty |
| 4 | The Master |
| 2 | Beasts of the Southern Wild |
| 2 | Lincoln |