The Astra Awards

• 1. Introduction

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  The Astra Awards took their name on the 17th of November 2023, when the Hollywood Critics Association's advisory committee voted to rebrand. Within weeks, the HCA Film Awards had become the Astra Film Awards. The group itself was now the Hollywood Creative Alliance. Few awards bodies have renamed themselves during an active season. The ceremony traced its roots to the 10th of January 2018. A small online critics circle held its first Film Awards at the Taglyan Complex in Los Angeles. In the years between that debut and the rebrand, the organization added a television ceremony and a creative arts track for craft workers. It also launched a midseason movie prize. Whether the organization's choices across those years reflected independent critical judgment is a question the record of its winners can help answer.

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• 2. A Name in Transition

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  The Shape of Water claimed Best Picture at the organization's debut Film Awards. The group was then known as the Los Angeles Online Film Critics Society. On the 9th of January 2019, The Hate U Give won the same prize at the second ceremony. Between those two events, the group had quietly widened its reach. The third Film Awards arrived on the 9th of January 2020 under a new name: the Hollywood Critics Association. Scott Menzel hosted. Best Picture went to 1917. The pandemic then intervened. The fourth ceremony was pushed from its usual January slot to the 5th of March 2021 and held virtually. Promising Young Woman took Best Picture. The 5th Film Awards returned the ceremony to a physical venue on the 28th of February 2022: the Avalon Hollywood, with Annaleigh Ashford hosting.

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• 3. Television Arrives

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  Ashley Menzel was direct when the HCA announced its first TV Awards. "Over these past 14 months, many of us have been watching more television than ever before," she said. The inaugural ceremony took place on the 29th of August 2021 in a virtual format. The original plan had been in-person, but the COVID-19 pandemic changed that. Ted Lasso won the streaming comedy prize. The Mandalorian won streaming drama. New Amsterdam won broadcast drama. A year later, the second TV Awards spread across two nights at the Beverly Hilton on August 13-14, 2022. Dulce Sloan hosted the first evening and Cameron Esposito hosted the second. The format divided broadcast and cable categories from streaming. Better Call Saul and Succession tied for Best Cable Drama. FX's The Bear led all nominations for the 2024 Astra TV Awards with 15 bids.

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• 4. The Craft and the Overlooked

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  HCA President Nikki Fowler announced a new prize track on the 13th of October 2022. Fowler described it as "dedicated to celebrating those behind the scenes who don't often get the level of recognition they deserve." The inaugural Creative Arts Awards ceremony took place on the 24th of February 2023. Babylon and Top Gun: Maverick tied for the most film awards that night. The track expanded the following year to cover television craft. The inaugural Astra Creative Arts TV Awards were held on the 8th of January 2024 at the Biltmore Hotel in Los Angeles. They ran alongside the third Astra TV Awards that same evening. The Boys and RuPaul's Drag Race tied for the most awards in the television categories. The Creative Arts TV Awards did not return the following year. From 2024, the organization moved the Stunts and Original Song categories from the Film Awards into the Creative Arts program.

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• 5. A Record of Choices

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  Apple TV+'s CODA won Best Picture, Best Adapted Screenplay, and Best Supporting Actor for Troy Kotsur at the 5th Film Awards in February 2022. Kristen Stewart won Best Actress for Spencer; Andrew Garfield won Best Actor for Tick, Tick... Boom!. On the 16th of February 2023, the HCA announced a live-streaming partnership with KNEKT Television Network for the Film Awards. Eight days later at the Beverly Wilshire Hotel, Everything Everywhere All at Once collected six wins after leading the nominations with 16. Tig Notaro hosted. For the 7th Film Awards on the 6th of January 2024, Rick Glassman hosted and Barbie won eight awards including Best Picture. At the 8th ceremony on the 8th of December 2024, two-time Emmy winner Loni Love hosted and Wicked won Best Picture. Timothee Chalamet won Best Actor for A Complete Unknown; Cynthia Erivo won Best Actress for Wicked. Kieran Culkin won Best Supporting Actor for A Real Pain. Best Supporting Actress produced a tie between Ariana Grande for Wicked and Zoe Saldana for Emilia Perez. The 9th Film Awards, on the 9th of January 2026, introduced split Best Picture prizes: one for comedy and musical, one for drama.

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• 6. New Fronts

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  Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse won Best Picture and Best Director at the 6th Midseason Movie Awards. Gold Derby revealed the winners on the 30th of June 2023. Awards Daily had published the nominees three days earlier. Past Lives won three midseason prizes that same day, including Best Actress for Greta Lee and Best Screenplay for Celine Song. On the 3rd of July 2024, Dune: Part Two claimed Best Picture and Best Director at the 7th Midseason Movie Awards. Zendaya won Best Actress for Challengers; Glen Powell won Best Actor for Hit Man. The organization was simultaneously expanding into new media. The inaugural Astra Podcast Awards took place on the 27th of October 2025. On the 20th of February 2026, the Hollywood Creative Alliance announced the Astra Book Awards. The inaugural ceremony took place on the 20th of April 2026, naming Onyx Storm as Book of the Year. That prize covered books published from the 1st of January 2025 through the 28th of February 2026.

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