Precursor: 30th USC Scripter Nominations (2016)

One look at this list and you’ll confirm in your mind that the USC Scripter Awards are one of the most accurate predictors of the Oscars and their nominations. This is precisely the five films I would have suspected as being up for the award. They tend to go for literary works and sometimes plays. Moonlight is especially shocking to see here since it was based on an unproduced play. While the Academy decided it was adapted and a lot of groups followed along, many left it as original, including the Writers Guild of America. Since this group looks at source material and scripts, it’s very surprising that they still went for it. Either way, these are your nominees.