The Writers Guild of America Awards were held tonight, and Ben Affleck‘s Argo continued its sweep through awards season by netting Best Adapted Screenplay for writer Chris Terrio.  Mark Boal won Best Original Screenplay for the film that will actually continue to resonate for years to come, Zero Dark Thirty.  Meanwhile, Malik Bendejelloul‘s won Best Documentary Screenplay for the wonderful Searching for Sugar Man.  Over on the TV side, Breaking Bad won Best Drama Series, Louie won Best Comedy Series, and Girls won Best New Series.  Hatfields & McCoys and Game Change continued their awards winning streaks by picking up Best Long Form (Original) and Long Form (Adapted), respectively.  Finally, Portlandia beat out some stiff competition (such as The Daily Show and The Colbert Report) to pick up Best Comedy/Variety.

The nominations for the 2013 Producers Guild Awards have been announced.  The PGA’s are a fairly reliable predictor of the Academy Awards, as last year all but two eventual Best Picture nominees (The Tree of Life and Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close) were PGA nominees.  This year’s contenders include expected fare like Argo, Les Miserables, and Lincoln, indies such as Beasts of the Southern Wild and Moonrise Kingdom, and critical favorite Zero Dark Thirty.  The PGA’s are also fond of singling out one “popular” choice, and in this year’s case that film looks to be the excellent Skyfall

In addition to the feature films, the PGAs also announced the nominees in television.  Drama series nominees include the usual suspects like Homeland, Mad Men, Breaking Bad, and Game of Thrones, while the comedy category is filled out by 30 Rock, Louie, Modern Family, and for some reason The Big Bang Theory.  Notably absent is HBO’s Girls and NBC’s brilliant Parks and Recreation.  Hit the jump to check out the full list of film and television nominees.  The 24th Annual PGA Awards will be held on January 26th.

The American Film Institute has announced its annual Top 10 lists.  In the film category, this awards season’s usual suspects popped up as Zero Dark Thirty, Lincoln, Argo, Les Miserables and Silver Linings Playbook made the cut alongside Django Unchained and Moonrise Kingdom.  AFI is notable for also including a few popular titles on their lists (last year Bridesmaids and The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo landed in the Top 10), and this year is no exception as fan-favorite The Dark Knight Rises nabbed a spot.  Notably absent, though, is Paul Thomas Anderson’s polarizing drama The Master.

On the TV side of things, Emmy-winner Homeland made the cut as well as Breaking Bad, Game of Thrones, Louie, The Walking Dead, and FX’s American Horror Story.  AMC’s Mad Men landed on the list for a fifth time, making it the most recognized AFI Awards TV honoree in history.  Hit the jump to check out the full Top 10’s for both TV and Film.

The Producers Guild of American announced the TV and Digital Series nominations for the 24th Annual Producers Guild Awards today.  The Outstanding Producer of Episodic Television Drama nominees include Breaking Bad, Downton Abbey, Game of Thrones, Homeland, and Mad Men, while the comedy category consists of 30 Rock, The Big Bang Theory, Curb Your Enthusiasm, Louie, and Modern Family.  Hit the jump to see the full list of nominees.  All other nominations (including film) will be announced on January 3, 2013, followed by the 2013 Producers Guild Award ceremony on January 26, 2013.

It appears that Louis C.K. is taking the Larry David route with his very popular (and brilliant) TV series Louie.  FX announced today that the comedian will take an extended hiatus, with the fourth season not expected to air until Spring 2014.  This comes just a couple of weeks after the show’s season three finale capped off a wonderfully strange string of episodes that saw fantastic guest turns by the likes of David Lynch, Amy Poehler, Parker Posey, Jerry Seinfeld, and Chris Rock.  Here’s what C.K. had to say about the decision to take some time off:

“I want the show to keep getting better, I want season 4 to go somewhere new.”

Hit the jump for more details about the decision and a timetable for season four’s schedule.

The 2012 Emmy Awards air Sunday at 8pm on ABC during all of your other programming (set those DV-Rs!), so is the show worth watching?  Will there be any upsets?  Or will it just be worth it to sit there smugly as Bryan Cranston wins again for Breaking Bad, turning to your friends, significant other or Siri and saying “I totally called that.”  Hit the jump to see my predictions for who will win and whoshould win Sunday night based on Vegas odds, rumors, secret handshakes, the predictability of Emmy voters, with maybe an upset or two thrown in to keep things interesting.

FX Networks has renewed Louis C.K.’s impossibly great comedy series Louie for a fourth season, per TV Line.  The show is currently in the middle of a fantastic third season run, and it’s a minor miracle that the offbeat series has lasted this long.  C.K. basically films whatever he wants, and FX thankfully decides to air what he turns in (which is gold).  He acts as showrunner, writer, director, and star of the series, and he also edited every episode for seasons one and two before bringing in Woody Allen’s longtime editor Susan E. Morse for season three.

For a gauge as to just how “offbeat” Louie can get, look no further than the latest episode of season three.  The installment featured C.K. and guest star Parker Posey on a date that at one point found C.K. wearing a dress.  The episode was at once hilarious, heartbreaking, sweet, and insightful as it followed the two wandering aimlessly around New York City at night.  This season four renewal is great news indeed, and if you haven’t checked out Louie yet I highly recommend you do so.

Louis C.K. is one of the most honest and respected comedic voices of his generation, was recently named the world’s greatest comedian by Entertainment Weekly, and has amassed a huge following of fans who enjoy his hilarious stand-up and his FX comedy series Louie, for which he serves as show creator, executive producer, writer, director, editor and star.  Along with the show kicking off Season 3, Louis is going to launch a 39-city tour of his stand-up in October, with tickets all priced at $45 and available for purchase through www.LouieCK.net.

During a recent interview to promote the return of his popular comedy series, Louis C.K. talked about the challenges of juggling everything that he does, the guest stars that he’s excited about this season, how FX really leaves him alone to make the show that he wants, his motivation for selling tickets for his stand-up tour directly through his website, what it’s like to be recognized more often now, and what he typically likes to watch when he has the time.  Check out what he had to say after the jump.

Last night the second annual Critics’ Choice Television Awards were revealed, and while fans usually gripe about these kinds of people being out of touch with the public, they’re usually more accurate than the Emmys when it comes to picking the best that TV has to offer. This time was no exception as Homeland, the best new drama of the season took home the big award for Best Drama Series and Community finally won its biggest award yet by winning the Best Comedy Series award. It’s just a shame that creator Dan Harmon won’t be around next season to try again, though we’re going to give the new showrunners a chance before truly griping.

There were also some great wins for cast members from Breaking Bad, Parks and Recreation and Modern Family, not to mention some much deserved loved for BBC’s Sherlock and its star Benedict Cumberbatch, and FX’s animated comedy series Archer. I can’t say there’s much I disagree with here. Even the tie for Best Actress in a Comedy Series makes perfect sense. My favorite award though is the one that went to Louis C.K. for his turn on his own series Louie, followed closely by Paul Rudd‘s guest turn on Parks and Recreation as opposing city council candidate Bobby Newport (“Leslie, we did it!”). In addition, critics even gave us a taste of what they think the most promising shows of next season are by naming five of them the most exciting of the upcoming slate.  Check out the full list of winners after the jump.

Yesterday we brought you the Critics’ Choice Award nominees.  Tonight belongs to the Television Critics Association.  Homeland tops the list with 4 nominations.  While it got the extra boost over established veterans in the Outstanding New Program category, the taut thriller earned its spots in Best Drama and Program of the Year as well as the nod to Claire Danes for her stellar performance.  The critics understandably still love Breaking Bad and Bryan Cranston, Mad Men and Jon Hamm, Louie and Louis C.K., Game of Thrones and Peter Dinklage, Parks and Recreation and Amy Poehler.  Creator/star Lena Dunham is the freshest face in the bunch, representing in both Individual Achievement in Comedy and Outstanding New Program with Girls.  But as always, there are a few head-scratchers.  Jessica Lange for American Horror Story is a legacy vote, and while her scenery-chewing was very entertaining—for Individual Achievement in Drama?  No.  And Smash somehow sneaked into Outstanding New Program rather than, say, Veep or Awake.

Still, the TCA always gets more right than they do wrong, especially with their neat Heritage Award.  (This year’s eclectic contenders are Cheers, Lost, Saturday Night Live, Star Trek, and Twin Peaks.)  Read the full list after the jump.

You’re driving down the street, and it’s suddenly blocked off.  You notice these weird yellow signs with nonsensical letters or numbers.  There’s unusual glow lighting up a neighborhood you can’t usually see from your house.  What you might have here is a film company shooting in your town.  It happens a lot, and you never know where they might pop up…until now.

The following is a semi-comprehensive list of films currently shooting, what they’re shooting, and where they’re shooting.  We’ll be telling you where you might get to see the very famous, the kinda famous and (if all goes well) the soon-to-be famous. While we can’t list every single movie, television show, or student film in production, you’ll get a pretty good idea of what the heck is going on where all those people are buzzing about.  Want to know where in the world are Matt Damon, Harrison Ford, Sylvester Stallone, Woody Harrelson, and Leonardo DiCaprio? Hit the jump for more.

Though Woody Allen has head overseas for his more recent film ventures, the filmmaker and comedian loves New York City. However, it doesn’t seem like Louis C.K. is all that fond of his residence there, but this new promo for the third season of his FX comedy series Louie still takes a cue from Allen’s opening credits for Manhattan. Using a track that sounds a little bit like the classic stylings of George Gershwin and some beautiful shots of The Big Apple, it seems like another fitting tribute to the city right to the very end. You’ll see what I mean when you watch the new teaser after the jump along with the aforementioned credit sequence for your reference.  The third season of  Louie premieres on June 28th.

Spring hasn’t even started yet, but FX is already making moves to get you ready for a summer of television with new seasons of Wilfred starring Elijah Wood (the season premiere will have a guest star appearance by Robin Williams) and Louie with Louis C.K. In addition, the network has also revealed the premiere dates for their new series like Anger Management, marking the return of Charlie Sheen to a series since his crazy breakdown and departure from Two and a Half Men, and Russell Brand‘s non-scripted series Strangely Uplifting.

All of the series will premiere on Thursday, June 28th. Anger Management kicks off the comedy block at 9/8c with a two-episode premiere (the show’s regular timeslot will be at 9:30/8:30c) followed by the second season premiere of Wilfred at 10/9c. Louie follows with its third season premiere at 10:30/9:30c followed by the debut of Russell Brand’s show Strangely Uplifting at 11/10c, filmed in front of a live audience. This block sounds almost as impressive as NBC’s Thursday night line-up and just might give it a run for its money. However, it all depends on how the two new series pan out. For a full press release with plenty more information on all these series, hit the jump.

“Top 10” lists are a dime a dozen this time of year, so I hope you’ll bear with me as I add one more. While many are busy debating the merits of Drive vs. The Artist, I thought it appropriate to take a look at the year in television. There’s no denying that the TV landscape has changed enormously over the past decade. Once a wasteland of disposable entertainment, the rise of original programming outside the network system has resulted in some of the best storytelling across any medium. This past year we were given more than a couple fantastic new shows to add to our weekly DVR list, and we saw a fair number of inventive and genuinely funny veteran comedy series get even better. Hit the jump to check out my picks for the best in television of 2011.

As part of the TCA Press Tour presentation for FX Networks, President and General Manager John Landgraf took some time to talk about the growth of their comedies – Wilfred, Louie, It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia, The League and Archer – the strength of their dramas – Sons of Anarchy, Justified and Rescue Me – their hopes for their new shows, including American Horror Story from Ryan Murphy, and what they are looking for, in the future.  Here are the most interesting points:

• In 2011, FX is on track to achieve the highest ratings in all measures, in the 17-year history of the channel, up 17% in adults 18-49 and 18% in total viewers in prime. They have also achieved their goal of programming original dramas and comedies, all year round.
• FX has ordered a Season 8 and 9 of the acclaimed hit comedy It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia with an option for a Season 10, making it the longest-running live-action comedy in basic cable history. In addition, FX Productions is entering into a three-year exclusive television overall deal with RCG – the production company run by Sunny creators/executive producers Rob McElhenney, Charlie Day and Glenn Howerton.
• The full 13-episode third season of Archer will return in January 2012, with three episodes airing this Fall, behind the first three episodes of Season 7 of It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia, which premieres on September 15^th. The Season 3 premiere of The League will debut after Sunny on October 6^th.
• Wilfred was the highest-rated first season of a comedy ever on FX, leading them to renew it for a second season of 13 episodes, while Louie has also been renewed for third season of 13.
• American Horror Story, from Glee executive producers Ryan Murphy and Brad Falchuk, is being established as a serialized saga that can go on for multiple years, with subsequent seasons either taking place in the past or in the present, depending on how the story unfolds.
• Powers (in the vein of David Fincher’s Seven or Zodiac),  based on the acclaimed graphic novel by Brian Michael Bendis and Michael Avon Oeming and starring Jason Patric, and Outlaw Country, a family drama set against the backdrop of Southern organized crime, are the next two drama pilots that FX will be looking at for possible pick-up

Hit the jump for more of what he had to say: