The 74^th annual Golden Globes will air January 8, 2017. Here is hoping the people of color who are nominated win something.

Barry Jenkins- Best Screenplay-Moonlight

Moonlight is a film about “connection and self-discovery, Moonlight chronicles the life of a young black man from childhood to adulthood as he struggles to find his place in the world while growing up in a rough neighborhood of Miami.”  It has been nominated for six nominations at the Golden Globes. Barry Jenkins was born in 1979 in Miami, the scene of the feature. Jenkins broke out in 2008 with his film Medicine for Melancholy, and this is first film since then.

Denzel Washington- Best Performance in a Drama- Fences

Denzel Washington has racked up many motion pictures in his years in the film industry. There is Flight, Training Day, Man on Fire, and more. Washington has made his way in Hollywood, winning 69 of the 111 nominations he has received. In Fences, Washington plays Troy Maxson, a retired ball player trying make ends meets in 1950s Pittsburgh. The film is set to debut onDecember 16, but already has a nomination. Washington not only starred in the film, but directed it as well. The film was originally a Pulitzer and Tony award winning play that Washington adapted. The actor may be aging, but is definitely not losing his touch.

Ruth Negga- Best Performance in a Drama- Loving

Audiences may not have heard of Ruth Negga before, but they will know her now. Negga is an Ethiopian-Irish actress who is currently starring in AMC’s Preacher, and has starred in some UK dramas: but Loving is the latest film she has starred in. In Loving, Negga plays Mildred Jetter, an African American woman who marries a white man in the segregated America of 1958. The film is based off real life events, when an interracial couple faces arrest, banishment from their home state, and trial that was documented by Life magazine. The film, and Negga’s acting, could remind the current divided America of 2016 of how it used to be.

Octavia Spencer- Best Supporting Role Performance- Hidden Figures

Hidden Figures is set to premiere Dec 25, but Octavia Spencer already has a nomination. Spencer has starred in films such as The Help, Fruitvale Station, The Divergent Series, and more. The actress has won 28 of her 29 award nominations for playing such pivotal roles. In Hidden Figures; Spencer plays Dorothy Vaughan, an African American mathematician who worked alongside Katherine Johnson to make John Glenn the first American to make a complete orbit of Earth. Spencer is an African American woman breaking barriers in not just the science world but in America overall.

Dev Patel- Best Supporting Role Performance- Lion

Dev Patel is young but has definitely made his mark in Hollywood. The actor has starred in films such as Slumdog Millionaire, The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel, the television show Skins and more. In Lion, Patel plays Saroo Brierly who is searching for his biological family after being separated from them at the age of five. The film is based off the novel and true story by the same name written by Saroo Brierly himself. The film is that of hope, as Patel stated “Saroo has gone through so many transformations in his life. You see it onscreen,” Patel said. “The thing that ties it all together is that drive throughout Saroo’s life, this ferocious drive.” Saroo found his birth mother in India, using Google satellite technology starting in Australia. Patel is the only British Indian nominated for the Golden Globes.

Despite the odds against some nominees and works, one thing remains- there is a diverse representation of actors and various pieces. We hope that people will take the time to learn more about the stories shared, characters represented, and the perspective shared.

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