Emma Stone and Ryan Gosling (Dale Robinette/Lionsgate)

As a rough year comes to an end, it’s time for holiday celebrations and year-end assessment—which means awards season!

The Washington Area Film Critics Association (your faithful arts editor is a member) just announced their picks for the best of the year, and as sometimes happens, the top award goes to a movie that has not yet been released. Director Damien Chazelle, whose 2014 movie Whiplash was my favorite of that year, wowed the critics with his colorful musical La La Land, starring Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone as star-crossed lovers in Los Angeles.

Gosling and Stone are both favorites in this year’s race for Oscar nominees, but local critics split major acting awards between two other movies, with nods to Casey Affleck in Manchester By The Sea and Natalie Portman in Jackie, opening in D.C. this Friday.

These aren’t the only movies on critics’ minds this month. The Los Angeles Film Critics Association gave its highest award to Moonlight, the touching coming-of-age story of a gay black man.

La La Land opens in D.C. on December 16.

THE 2016 WAFCA AWARD WINNERS:
Best Film:
La La Land

Best Director:
Damien Chazelle (La La Land)

Best Actor:
Casey Affleck (Manchester by the Sea)

Best Actress:
Natalie Portman (Jackie)

Best Supporting Actor:
Mahershala Ali (Moonlight)

Best Supporting Actress:
Viola Davis (Fences)

Best Acting Ensemble:
Hell or High Water

Best Youth Performance:
Lucas Hedges (Manchester by the Sea)

Best Voice Performance:
Liam Neeson (A Monster Calls)

Best Motion Capture Performance:
Mark Rylance (The BFG)

Best Original Screenplay:
Damien Chazelle (La La Land)

Best Adapted Screenplay:
Eric Heisserer, Based on the Story “Story of Your Life” by Ted Chiang (Arrival)

Best Animated Feature:
Kubo and the Two Strings

Best Documentary:
13th

Best Foreign Language Film:
Elle

Best Production Design:
Production Designer: David Wasco; Set Decorator: Sandy Reynolds-Wasco, SDSA (La La Land)

Best Cinematography:
Linus Sandgren, SFS (La La Land)

Best Editing:
Tom Cross, ACE (La La Land)

Best Original Score:
Justin Hurwitz (La La Land)

The Joe Barber Award for Best Portrayal of Washington, DC:
Jackie