What sets the SAG Awards apart from others

There is nothing like being recognized by your peers.

Winning an Oscar, an Emmy or a Golden Globe comes with undeniable prestige. Meanwhile, box office returns and ratings give stars a window into what audiences think of their art. But having the people who know the business best – former co-stars, audition competitors, slot rivals and longtime industry friends – consider your performance to be the best in your field is a feeling of validation unprecedented. Enter the Screen Actors Guild Awards.

This year's nominations will be announced by Joey King And Cooper Koch on January 8, and the winners will be revealed during the ceremony on February 23, which will be broadcast live on Netflix.

One of the youngest awards shows on the block, the SAG Awards were established 30 years ago by what was then known as the Screen Actors Guild, the union formed in 1933 to represent leading actors and secondaries of cinema and television throughout the world. (In 2012, SAG merged with the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists to become SAG-AFTRA.) And at the start of the first ceremony in 1995, the legendary Angela Lansbury took the stage to highlight why the night mattered.