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As devastating wildfires<\/a> ravaged Los Angeles, film insiders at Wednesday night\u2019s New York Film Critics Circle Awards<\/a> paid emotional tribute to their friends and colleagues on the opposite coast. \u201cMy heart is with absolutely everyone in Los Angeles county,\u201d said The Brutalist<\/em> writer-director Brady Corbet<\/strong>, accepting best picture honors at the gala onstage at New York City\u2019s Tao Downtown.<\/p>\n After an impassioned introduction from Robert Pattinson<\/strong>, who a decade ago starred in Corbert\u2019s first film as a director, The Childhood of a Leader<\/em>, Corbet recalled how it took him and his wife Mona Fastvold<\/strong>, a co-writer on The Brutalist<\/em>, \u201cyears to rebuild\u201d after their house burned down nearly a decade ago.<\/p>\n Corbet\u2019s leading man Adrien Brody<\/strong>, who won best actor from the NYFCC in a vote that took place last December, also grew emotional about the tragedy. \u201cI would be remiss not to mention the weight of what\u2019s on all of our minds and in our hearts tonight,\u201d said the actor. \u201cIt\u2019s been a heavy day for me. It\u2019s always hard to accept something like this when there\u2019s so much suffering in the world. My heart goes out to all the families and the animals and our colleagues.\u201d<\/p>\n Brody, who was presented with his award by co-star Guy Pearce<\/strong>, continued, \u201cThis is our community. I just want to thank and commend the bravery of the first responders, and the sacrifices and their meaningful work that deserves our recognition tonight. My thoughts are with everyone affected by this horrific event.\u201d<\/p>\n This content can also be viewed on the site it originates<\/a> from.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n Indie auteur Jim Jarmusch<\/strong> presented best screenplay to Anora<\/em>\u2019s Sean Baker<\/strong> and declared from the podium that the wildfires are \u201cbrought to you by climate deniers,\u201d adding, \u201cPeople are saying that \u2018woke\u2019 is a bad word, but I think it\u2019s time we wake the fuck up!\u201d<\/p>\n Baker then shared his own condolences for those affected by the Los Angeles fires, which have brought awards season to a standstill, even delaying the Oscar nominations announcement<\/a>. After thanking leading lady Mikey Madison<\/strong>, who was in attendance at the New York Film Critics Circle Awards, Baker jokingly insisted that his mother would not agree with the choice to give him this award.<\/p>\n \u201cThat\u2019s true,\u201d he continued. \u201cI don\u2019t think she even made it through Red Rocket<\/em>\u201d\u2014his sexually explicity 2021 film starring Simon Rex<\/strong>. \u201cAfter she saw half of it, she asked me what was next, and I pitched Anora<\/em> to her over the phone, and she literally said, \u2018Sean, people don\u2019t want to see that<\/em>!\u2019\u201d Over laughs from the audience, Baker added, \u201cI love my mom. She\u2019s the best and actually she\u2019s why I\u2019m here, because she introduced me to cinema. She just hates my movies.\u201d<\/p>\n Baker continued to charm the crowd of New York-based journalists by reading excerpts from his screenplay that repeat the phrase \u201cAni and Ivan have sex\u201d with new locations swapped in. \u201cYou guys just awarded that best screenplay,\u201d he joked. \u201cYou can\u2019t take this back!\u201d Baker concluded his remarks by thanking the critics\u2019 group for their validation. \u201cI\u2019m encouraged to continue to write and make these films that will eventually receive scathing and demoralizing reviews from the one and only Richard Brody<\/strong>,\u201d he quipped, referring to The New Yorker<\/em>\u2019s chief film critic\u2014who, suffice it to say, didn\u2019t love Anora<\/em><\/a>. \u201cLet\u2019s just avoid eye contact tonight. But rest assured my mom will read your reviews,\u201d Baker said.<\/p>\n<\/div>\nX content<\/h4>\n