DC Film Critics Name Forest Whitaker Best Actor, Helen Mirren Best Actress

WASHINGTON, Dec. 11 /PRNewswire/ -- The Washington, DC Area Film Critics Association (WAFCA) today selected a movie honoring the memories of the brave heroes of September 11, the poignant United 93, as Best Film of the Year in a victory that could spur the movie's burgeoning Oscar hopes. Director Martin Scorsese was voted by the group as Best Director for his smash hit movie The Departed, while Forest Whitaker (The Last King of Scotland) was named Best Actor, and Helen Mirren (The Queen) continued her march to the Oscars as she was named Best Actress as both actors brought characters to real, and even sympathetic, life.

"What a wonderful way to celebrate our fifth anniversary by honoring this fine collection of talented films and groundbreaking performances. This year gave us true cinematic royalty with a Queen, a King and a Dreamgirl," said WAFCA President Tim Gordon.

As a sign of the strength of her performance and show stopping ability that brought ovations during screenings in DC, Jennifer Hudson (Dreamgirls) was a two time winner awarded Best Supporting Actress and Breakthrough Performance of the Year. In other categories, Djimon Hounsou (Blood Diamond) was named Best Supporting Actor, Happy Feet danced away with Best Animated Feature and Pan's Labyrinth Best Foreign Language Film.

Additionally, WAFCA honored two first time feature length screenwriters as Jason Reitman walked away with Best Adapted Screenplay for the DC-based Thank You For Smoking and Michael Arndt won Best Original Screenplay for the summer's surprise indie hit Little Miss Sunshine.

The Washington, DC Area Film Critics Association is comprised of 36 DC- based film critics from television, radio, print and the internet. Voting was conducted from December 9 - 10, 2006.

  Final Results 2006 Washington, DC Area Film Critics Association Awards

  Best Film
  United 93/Universal

  Best Actor
  Forest Whitaker - The Last King Of Scotland

  Best Actress
  Helen Mirren - The Queen

  Best Supporting Actor
  Djimon Hounsou - Blood Diamond

  Best Supporting Actress
  Jennifer Hudson - Dreamgirls

  Best Director
  Martin Scorsese - The Departed

  Best Screenplay, Original
  Michael Arndt - Little Miss Sunshine

  Best Screenplay, Adapted
  Jason Reitman - Thank You For Smoking

  Best Foreign Film
  Pan's Labyrinth/Picturehouse

  Best Animated Feature
  Happy Feet/Warner Brothers

  Best Documentary
  An Inconvenient Truth/Paramount Classics

  Best Breakthrough Performance
  Jennifer Hudson - Dreamgirls

  Best Ensemble
  Little Miss Sunshine/Fox Searchlight

  Best Art Direction
  Marie Antoinette/SONY Pictures Entertainment