"

BEVERLY HILLS, California (AP) - Hollywood warmed up for its awards season with a love fest that recognised top actors and directors for films that haven't been released yet.
Robert De Niro, Bradley Cooper, director David O. Russell and writer-director Quentin Tarantino were among the honourees on Monday at the 16th annual Hollywood Film Awards, which bills itself as "the official launch of awards season."
The event recognises films that are likely positioned as awards contenders, such as Tarantino's anticipated Django Unchained.
In accepting his award for screenwriter of the year, Tarantino remarked that it was strange to get an award for a film he's still working on, but added that he could use it as ammunition to defend long dialogue scenes during the editing process.