In an evening packed with numerous emotional, impactful, and celebratory moments, the Hollywood Foreign Press Association presented a unique blending of its two major yearly endeavors – the Golden Globes and the Grants Banquet.
Normally a grand event, the 79^th edition of the Golden Globes, inside the International Ballroom of the Beverly Hilton Hotel, took on a distinctly intimate atmosphere, respectfully following strict LA County Covid protocol. The stage, adorned with two larger than life Golden Globes, served as the melting pot of the undertaking as representatives of some of the more than 70 organizations; community service, journalistic, educational, and mentorship, that were receiving over $8 Million in grants from the charitable trust of the Association, became the celebrities of the evening as they took the platform to showcase not only their own charities but were given the opportunity to each present the Globes in all 26-motion picture and television categories.
After a rousing retrospective video of past Globe shows, which featured an impressive montage of past winners such as Meryl Streep, Ving Rhames, Halle Berry, Julie Andrews, Morgan Freeman, Jack Lemmon and Regina King, HFPA President Helen Hoehne welcomed the attendees to this unique hybrid event. Noting the important changes the organization has made this past ten months as it strives to become a leader in inclusion and diversity within the entertainment industry, she set in motion a parade of powerful delegates that shined a light on organizations such as Outfest, IndieCollect, Women’s Voices Now, Los Angeles City College, Cal Arts, New Filmmakers LA, American Cinematheque, Veterans in Media and Entertainment, PEN America, Black TV and Film Collaborative, Inner-City Filmmakers, Film Independent, FilmAid and Big Brothers and Big Sisters LA.
Among the grantees highlighted with perceptive video packages of their important work were Get Lit, Streetlights, Las Fotos, which unveiled a powerful perspective on an Indigenous teenager girl whose work with a camera just brought her acceptance to the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University, and St. Elmo Village, which took a neighborhood devastated by the 1965 Watts Riot and built an inspiring artist’s community.

But easily the most poignant moment came when HFPA Chief Diversity Officer Neil Phillips introduced Kyle Bowser of the NAACP Hollywood Branch who delivered a testament to the power the entertainment industry possesses to make significant cultural change. Noting how creative storytelling has been limited by race, origin, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, mental capacity, and physical capability, visionaries saw their talents discounted and discredited.
But in a historic partnership with the HFPA and Gold House, Illuminative and Respectability, the Reimagine Coalition will serve as a conglomerate of divergent affinity groups committed to the promotion of a uniform approach to diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility within the entertainment industry.
As the evening was also a celebration of the artistic achievements of the calendar year 2021, The Power of the Dog, West Side Story, and Succession took home three awards each. Will Smith received his first-ever Globe, Nicole Kidman nabbed her fourth, Arianna DeBose won her first Globe for recreating the same part as a previous Globe winner – Rita Moreno, who played Anita in the 1961 version of West Side Story – Oh Young-sooSquid Game)  while Jane Campion made it back to back wins for women directors of a motion picture.