84th Academy Awards Nominations

The 84th Academy Awards show is fast approching!

Early this morning, the final nominations were announced in the Academy's Samuel Goldwyn Theater. Below are the nominees for the categories that I care about the most, though I am always curious about each Oscar awarded. There are a lot of hard working people in Hollywood and around the world! These are listed in the order of their importance to me.

SHORT FILM - ANIMATED (listed in alphabetical order by title)


"Dimanche/Sunday," Patrick Doyon, director (National Film Board of Canada)
"The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore," William Joyce and Brandon Oldenburg, directors (Moonbot Studios LA, LLC)
"La Luna," Enrico Casarosa, director (Pixar Animation Studios)
"A Morning Stroll," Grant Orchard, director and Sue Goffe, producer (Studio AKA)
"Wild Life," Amanda Forbis and Wendy Tilby, directors (National Film Board of Canada)


There were initially 44 shorts that qualified for this category. Those that passed Phase 1 but were cut include "I Tawt I Taw a Puddy Tat," "Luminaris," "Magic Piano," "Paths of Hate," and "Specky Four-Eyes."   


This one is important to me because I volunteer for an organization that has the honor of qualifying a film to be considered for nomination in this category. As the Producer of the 2011 SIGGRAPH Computer Animation Festival, I am proud that our Best in Show Award winner "The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore" made it to the final round. Previous years that I've been involved, as Assistant Producer, our Juries' selections have also made it to the final list of nominees. These films include “Oktapodi" (2009) and “French Roast” (2010).


VISUAL EFFECTS (listed in alphabetical order)


"Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2"
"Hugo"
"Real Steel" - Congrats to Erik Nash &amp & Swen Gillberg from Digital Domain!
"Rise of the Planet of the Apes"
"Transformers: Dark of the Moon" - Congrats to Matthew Butler from Digital Domain!


Films recently cut from Phase 1 include "Captain America: The First Avenger," "Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol," "Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides," "The Tree of Life," and "X-Men: First Class." Additional early nominees included "Cowboys & Aliens," "Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows," "Sucker Punch," "Super 8," and "Thor."


The category is close to my heart because this is the industry that I work in. Last year, I was involved in the production of "Thor," my boyfriend contributed to "X-Men: First Class" as the FX Supervisor and our company worked on "Real Steel" and "Transformers: Dark of the Moon." We are incredibly proud of all our hard working artists and production teams that worked on each of these films. It's not always easy but seeing our work included in these lists certainly is satisfying. 


ANIMATED FEATURE FILM (listed in alphabetical order)


"A Cat in Paris"
"Chico & Rita"
"Kung Fu Panda 2"
"Puss in Boots"
"Rango"


Initially, there were 18 films nominated in this category including "The Adventures of Tintin," "Happy Feet Two," and "Winnie the Pooh."


This category is close to our own and I have many friends that have worked on the films in this category. I know their teams have also put a lot of work into these films and I wish them the best of luck!


FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM (listed in alphabetical order by country)


Belgium, "Bullhead," Michael R. Roskam, director;
Canada, "Monsieur Lazhar," Philippe Falardeau, director;
Iran, "A Separation," Asghar Farhadi, director;
Israel, "Footnote," Joseph Cedar, director;
Poland, "In Darkness," Agnieszka Holland, director;


Films cut after Phase 1 include "Superclásico" (Denmark), "Pina" (Germany), "Omar Killed Me" (Morocco), and "Warriors of the Rainbow: Seediq Bale" (Taiwan).


Technically I have no affliation to this category besides being in the same industry. However, it's one close to my heart due to years of studying film in college and the exposure to wonderful foreign films that my professors exposed me too. Thank you to the brilliant Dr. Charles Eidsvik, Dr. Richard Neupert, and Dr. Antje Ascheid as well as the intelligent Teaching Assistants and Grad Students that helped in my education as a student and as a fellow TA. 


For a more detailed list of the Awards (and who will actually be receiving the golden statue) can be found here. I hoping I'll be able to throw an Oscar Party this year. Feel free to send me ideas or let me know who you're rooting for in each category. I'd love to hear!