36th Directors Guild of America Awards

James L. Brooks – Terms of Endearment

• Bruce Beresford – Tender Mercies
• Ingmar Bergman – Fanny and Alexander
• Lawrence Kasdan – The Big Chill
• Philip Kaufman – The Right Stuff

Jeff Bleckner – Hill Street Blues for "Life in the Minors"

• Corey Allen – Hill Street Blues for "Goodbye, Mr. Scripps"
• Christian Nyby – Hill Street Blues for "Here's Adventure, Here's Romance"

James Burrows – Cheers for "Showdown (Part 2)"

• Jim Drake – Buffalo Bill for "Woody Quits"
• Noam Pitlik – Taxi for "Louie and the Blind Girl"

Edward Zwick – Special Bulletin

• Daryl Duke – The Thorn Birds
• John Erman – Who Will Love My Children?

Don Mischer – Motown 25: Yesterday, Today, Forever

• Emile Ardolino – Live from Lincoln Center for "NYC Ballet Salute to George Balanchine"
• Daniel Feldman – Eubie Blake: A Century of Music

Sharron Miller – ABC Afterschool Special for "The Woman Who Willed a Miracle"

• G. Cullingham – ABC Afterschool Special for "It's No Crush, I'm in Love"
• Marlena Laird – General Hospital for "Show No. 242"

Harry Moses – Our Times with Bill Moyers for "Willy Loman Comes to China"

• Alfred R. Kelman and Charles Bangert – The Body Human: The Living Code
• Charles Stone – Viewpoint: The Day After

Stuart Hagmann (TIE)
Bob Brooks (TIE)

• Manny Perez – Dr Pepper's "Detective", "Hunchback", and "Last Meal"
• Joe Pytka – Bud Light's "Boxer", "Pairs", and "Rodeo"
• Neil Tardio – United States Army's "Father & Son" and Xerox' "Laser Printing"