On 18 February 2023, the Directors Guild of America (DGA) held the 75th annual awards ceremony in Los Angeles. Hosted by Judd Apatow and introduced by Lesli Linka Glatter, the event honored outstanding directorial achievements across film, television, documentary, commercials, and other media for work released in 2022.
Although the DGA Awards are often overshadowed in public attention by the Academy Awards, they remain a highly regarded industry event. The DGA has a long history of recognizing exceptional directing work and is frequently seen as a bellwether for Oscar nominations and winners. This year’s winners reflect a range of established filmmakers and promising newcomers, underscoring the diversity and creativity within contemporary directing.
The top prize for Theatrical Feature Film went to the directing duo Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert for Everything Everywhere All at Once. Their victory is notable not only for the film’s innovative storytelling and visual inventiveness but also because the duo are relatively new to the DGA’s winners circle and represent a rare example of a joint directing win. They prevailed over a competitive field that included Joseph Kosinski (Top Gun: Maverick), Martin McDonagh (The Banshees of Inisherin), Todd Field (Tár), and Steven Spielberg (The Fabelmans).
Charlotte Wells won the prize for Outstanding Directorial Achievement of a First-Time Theatrical Film for Aftersun. Following recognition at other festivals and award events, Wells’s win reinforces Aftersun’s standing as a critical favorite and highlights the momentum that strong debut features can build during awards season.
In documentary film, Sara Dosa was honored for Fire of Love. The documentary, distributed by National Geographic, chronicles the lives and work of volcanologists Katia and Maurice Krafft, combining compelling storytelling with striking archival imagery. Dosa’s award emphasizes the continued prominence of character-driven documentary filmmaking that brings scientific and adventurous subjects to wide audiences.
The DGA ceremony also celebrates directing across television genres, commercials, reality programming, children’s content, and variety specials. Winners in these categories point to both individual excellence and broader trends in storytelling, production values, and audience engagement across platforms.
The complete list of winners at the 75th Directors Guild of America Awards (2023):
Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Theatrical Feature Film – Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert (Everything Everywhere All at Once)
Nominees: Joseph Kosinski (Top Gun: Maverick); Martin McDonagh (The Banshees of Inisherin); Steven Spielberg (The Fabelmans); Todd Field (Tár)
Outstanding Directorial Achievement of a First-Time Theatrical Film – Charlotte Wells (Aftersun)
Nominees: Alice Diop (Saint Omer); John Patton Ford (Emily the Criminal); Audrey Diwan (Happening); Antoneta Alamat Kusijanović (Murina)
Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Documentary – Sara Dosa (Fire of Love)
Nominees: Matthew Heineman (Retrograde); Laura Poitras (All the Beauty and the Bloodshed); Daniel Roher (Navalny); Shaunak Sen (All That Breathes)
Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Dramatic Series – Sam Levinson (Euphoria) for “Stand Still Like a Hummingbird”
Nominees: Jason Bateman (Ozark) for “A Hard Way To Go”; Vince Gilligan (Better Call Saul) for “Waterworks”; Aoife McArdle (Severance) for “Hide and Seek”; Ben Stiller (Severance) for “The We We Are”
Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Comedy Series – Bill Hader (Barry) for “710N”
Nominees: Tim Burton (Wednesday) for “Wednesday’s Child is Full of Woe”; Amy Sherman-Palladino (The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel) for “How Do You Get to Carnegie Hall?”; Christopher Storer (The Bear) for “Review”; Mike White (The White Lotus) for “BYG”
Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Movies for Television and Limited Series – Helen Shaver (Station Eleven) for “Who’s There”
Nominees: Eric Appel (Weird: The Al Yankovic Story); Deborah Chow (Obi-Wan Kenobi); Jeremy Podeswa (Station Eleven) for “Unbroken Circle”; Tom Verica (Inventing Anna) for “The Devil Wore Anna”
Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Variety/Talk/News/Sports – Liz Patrick (Saturday Night Live) for “Jack Harlow”
Nominees: Paul G. Casey (Real Time with Bill Maher) for “#2010”; Jim Hoskinson (The Late Show with Stephen Colbert) for “#1333”; David Paul Meyer (The Daily Show with Trevor Noah) for a featured performance segment; Paul Pennolino (Last Week Tonight with John Oliver) for “Afghanistan”
Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Variety/Talk/News/Sports – Specials – Glenn Weiss for The 75th Annual Tony Awards
Nominees included directors of major televised events such as the Super Bowl halftime show and tribute specials
Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Reality Programs – Ben Simms (Running Wild with Bear Grylls) for “Florence Pugh in the Volcanic Rainforests of Costa Rica”
Nominees included directors of reality and competition series across streaming and broadcast platforms
Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Children’s Programs – Anne Renton (Best Foot Forward) for “Halloween”
Nominees: Tim Federle (Better Nate Than Ever); Bonnie Hunt (Amber Brown) for “I, Amber Brown”; Dean Israelite (Are You Afraid of the Dark?) for “The Tale of Room 13”; Michael Lembeck (Snow Day)
Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Commercials – Kim Gehrig for Apple’s “Accessibility” and “Run Baby Run”
Other notable nominees included directors of high-profile campaigns for Apple, John Lewis & Partners, Nissan, ITVX, Procter & Gamble, and Upwork
Lifetime Achievement Award in Television
Robert Fishman
Frank Capra Achievement Award
Mark Hansson
Franklin J. Schaffner Achievement Award
Valdez Flagg
The 75th DGA Awards showcased a balance of veteran filmmakers and emerging voices, reflecting current trends in cinematic and television direction—from ambitious feature filmmaking and intimate documentaries to inventive episodic storytelling and compelling commercial work. The winners underscore the importance of direction in shaping narrative impact, visual identity, and audience connection across formats.
Written by Kyle Boulton
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