| 1. Alfonso Cuarón - ROMA (BAFTA, BFCA win, DGA, GG win) |
| 2. Spike Lee - BlacKkKlansman (BAFTA, BFCA, DGA, GG) |
| 3. Bradley Cooper - A Star Is Born (BFCA, DGA, GG) |
| 4. Adam McKay - Vice (BAFTA, BFCA, DGA, GG) |
| 5. Barry Jenkins - If Beale Street Could Talk (Spirit) |
| 6. Yorgos Lanthimos - The Favourite (BAFTA, BFCA) |
| 7. Pawel Pawlikowski - Cold War (BAFTA) |
| 8. Peter Farrelly - Green Book (BFCA, DGA, GG) |
| 9. Damien Chazelle - First Man (BFCA) |
| 10. Ryan Coogler - Black Panther |
| OTHER CONTENDERS |
| Debra Granik - Leave No Trace (Spirit) |
| BAFTA - British Film Academy Awards |
BFCA - Broadcast Film Critics Association (Critics Choice) |
| DGA - Directors Guild of America |
| GG - Golden Globe |
| Spirit - Independent Spirit Awards |
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Director Watch Podcast Ep. 144 – ‘A Matter of Life and Death (Powell and Pressburger, 1946) with Special Guest Jesse Nussman 
Association of Motion Picture Sound (AMPS) Television and Nonfiction Nominations Announced: ‘Adolescence,’ ‘Black Mirror,’ ‘Slow Horses’ and More 
Trailer Watch: ‘Spider-Man: Brand New Day,’ ‘Dune: Part Three,’ Disclosure Day,’ ‘Wild Horse Nine’ 
‘Anima’ Review: Sydney Chandler and Takehiro Hira Ground Brian Tetsuro Ivie’s Low-Fi Sci-Fi Road Movie [B+] SXSW