The Producers Guild of America announced their nominees for the Producer of the Year awards this week, showing a surprising amount of attention to the science-fiction genre, as if sci-fi fans needed any further reminder that 2009 was a great year for new sci-fi.

Avatar, District 9, and Star Trek all received nominations for the PGA's prestigious Daryl F. Zanuck award, with the animated films Up and 9 getting nods in the animation category. The Zanuck award is usually a good indicator for which film will end up with the Best Picture Oscar -- 13 out of 20 Zanuck winners have gone on to take the Academy Award for Best Picture. The PGA winners will be selected on January 24.

(via Variety)