‘Traffic’ a Major ALMA Winner
The National Council of La Raza, the largest Latino advocacy group in the nation, presented its 2001 American Latino Media Arts Awards on Sunday in Pasadena, honoring excellence in TV and film. Among this year’s winners was “Traffic,” the critically acclaimed film that bears down on the U.S. demand for narcotics and the Mexican drug trade. The council chose it as the year’s best feature film. Set in Mexico and San Diego and using some Spanish dialogue, “Traffic” was also recognized for its exceptional cast. The council presented a special achievement award to Nickelodeon, the children’s cable network that rolled out a cluster of Latino-themed programs last year. And recognized as the breakthrough actress of the year was Jessica Alba, who stars in Fox’s popular drama “Dark Angel.” The complete list of ALMA winners:
* Feature film: “Traffic” (USA Films)
* Latino cast in a feature film: “Traffic”
* Director of a feature film: Carlos Avila, “Price of Glory” (New Line)
* Television series: “Resurrection Blvd.” (Showtime)
* Actor in a television series: Martin Sheen, “The West Wing” (NBC)
* Actress in a television series: Lauren Velez, “Oz” (HBO)
* Actress in a new television series: Elizabeth Pena, “Resurrection Blvd.”
* Lead actress in a syndicated drama series: Gina Torres, “Cleopatra 2525”
* Director of a comedy series: Joe Menendez, “The Brothers Garcia” (Nickelodeon)
* Director of a drama series: Felix Acala, “Third Watch” (NBC)
* Made-for-television movie or miniseries: “For Love or Country: The Arturo Sandoval Story” (HBO)
* Latino cast in a made-for-television movie or miniseries: “For Love or Country: The Arturo Sandoval Story”
* Daytime drama: “General Hospital” (ABC)
* Actor in a daytime drama: A Martinez, “General Hospital” (ABC)
* Actress in a daytime drama: Saundra Santiago, “Guiding Light” (CBS)
* Correspondent or anchor of a national news program: Geraldo Rivera
* Music or awards special: “A Supernatural Evening With Santana” (Fox)
* Host of a variety or awards special: John Leguizamo, “My VH1 Music Awards” (VH1)
* Made-for-television documentary: “Americanos: Latino Life in the United States” (HBO)
* Soundtrack or compilation for television and film: “2000 Latin Grammy Nominees”
* Spanish-language comedy series: “Los Beltran” (Telemundo)
Special Achievement Awards
* Entertainer of the year: Jennifer Lopez
* For excellence in promoting cultural diversity in children’s programming: Nickelodeon
* Ricardo Montalban Lifetime Achievement Award: Bill Melendez
* Breakthrough actress of the year: Jessica Alba