(Updated: 3/5/10, 12:46p – Added Wes’ info) Our Post-ASC predictions are now ready to be revealed as we continue our look at the categories for the 82nd Annual Academy Awards. Here are five facts on the Cinematography award, our predictions and our favorites.

Trivia: Five Facts

• Among the first categories ever created, Cinematography has been going strong for 81 years. The category was split between black-and-white and color work from 1939 through 1956 and again from 1958 to 1966.
• Schindler’s List was the first black-and-white film since the category dissolved in 1966 to win the Oscar, nearly 30 years later. Since 1993 when it won, no other film has managed the feat (only two films have been nominated since: The Man Who Wasn’t There and Good Night, and Good Luck.)
• Since its inception, 123 statuettes have been given for Cinematography.
• Charles B. Lang Jr and Leon Shamroy are tied for the most nominations in Academy history with 18 each. Behind them is Robert L. Surtees with 16, Harry Stradling Sr with 14 and George Folsey with 13. The most wins is shared between Leon Shamroy and Joseph Ruttenberg with 4 each. Conrad L. Hall, Winton C. Hoch, Arthur Miller, Vittorio Storaro, Robert L. Surtees and Freddie Young are behind them with three each.
• Geoffrey Unsworth and Conrad L. Hall are the only two cinematographers to win the award posthumously in 1980 for Tess and 2002 for Road to Perdition respectively. Allen M. Davey, Joseph August, William C. Mellor and Harry Stradling Sr. were the only previous posthumous nominees.

Predictions

• Avatar (Tripp) (Wes)
• Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
• The Hurt Locker (Wesley, Peter) (Tripp)
• Inglourious Basterds (Wes)
• The White Ribbon (Wesley, Peter)

KEY: (Winner Prediction) (Alternate Winner)

The Commentary

Wesley Lovell – I’m quite torn on this category. The White Ribbon win at the ASC throws a bit of a monkey wrench into the matter. Not only is black-and-white work not very well favored since the category was done away with in the ’60s, but the fact that this is a foreign language film suggests an even larger struggle. But, if the Academy decides it wants to avoid the war between Avatar and Hurt Locker and they don’t feel Inglourious Basterds deserving enough, the sheer paucity of concensus may propel it to victory. But, for me, The Hurt Locker seems a lot more likely to win the award simply for being a Best Picture nominee, though this one is one of the few toss ups still out there.
Tripp Burton – Unlike the ASC award, this will be voted on not just by cinematographers but all branches of the Academy. Therefore, the sweeping effects and lighting of Avatar should sway enough voters over the hand-held grittiness of The Hurt Locker. This could be a key match-up between the two films, though, and a win by The Hurt Locker could give it a lot of momentum.

Our Favorite Winners

KEY:
Appears on Two Lists
Appears on Three Lists
Appears on Four Lists
Appears on Opposing Lists

Wesley Lovell

1. Sunrise (One of the most gorgeous films ever made, nearly everything about it is perfect. It looks better than a vast majority of films shot today.)
2. The Aviator (The Cinematography is one of my favorite aspects of the film. It evokes the many eras of film history through the use of lightning and effects in common use at the time. The golf course scene is one of my favorites.)
3. Rebecca (Large, gorgeous exteriors are far too common winners in this category. Rebecca’s mostly interior work is a prime example of what cinematography can do.)
4. The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (One of the few examples of an award being given out for shot composition, the hobbits had to be filmed at different angles to their taller compatriots, allowing for use of focus depth and lighting effects to create an environment.)
5. Lawrence of Arabia (While I favor the interior shots of most films, Lawrence of Arabia shows what can be done well with exteriors.)

Peter J. Patrick

1. Sunrise (the first and still one of the best – the search over the lake at night remains one of the most exquisitely lit sequences ever filmed.)
2. The Third Man (breathtaking swirling camera movements.)
3. The Bridge on the River Kwai (expansive scenes with detail that never gets lost.)
4. Romeo & Juliet (gorgeous cinematography throughout, particularly during the sword fight and dance sequences.)
5. Cabaret (marvelous capture of the many aspects of this musical drama.)

Tripp Burton

1. Lawrence of Arabia (The desert images, the shadow lighting and the glorious colors add up perfectly, then add in all the iconic compositions and you have this category’s greatest winner)
2. Sunrise (Perhaps the most perfectly composed film of all time)
3. Days of Heaven (The gorgeous images of this film make it a true cinematic work of art)
4. Bound for Glory (Set aside the technical achievements and still have a worthy winner. Add in those innovations and you have a wonderful winner)
5. JFK (There are so many great winners in this category, but the myriad of looks created for this film push it over the top for me)

Wes Huizar

1. Lawrence of Arabia
2. Apocalypse Now
3. Black Narcissus
4. Doctor Zhivago
5. Gone With the Wind

Our Least Favorite Winners

KEY:
Appears on Two Lists
Appears on Three Lists
Appears on Four Lists
Appears on Opposing Lists

Wesley Lovell

1. Slumdog Millionaire (The use of colors is sometimes garish, the shot selections are all over the place. The film feels cheap at times, which it shouldn’t.)
2. How Green Was My Valley (There just doesn’t seem anything special about this film in terms of Cinematography.)
3. Braveheart (The look of the film is a bit washed out and tacky. There are no interesting shots compositions.)
4. Dances With Wolves (This is the kind of film that wins Cinematography because of its vast exterior locations, not because of any competence.)
5. From Here to Eternity (Nothing terribly memorable here.)

Peter J. Patrick

1. Braveheart (confusing war scenes.)
2. Dances With Wolves (pretty but that’s about it.)
3. Legends of the Fall (dull.)
4. Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (see Dances With Wolves.)
5. The Rose Tattoo (nothing special.)

Tripp Burton

1. The Towering Inferno (An ugly looking film with no life to its look)
2. Gandhi (Not a bad winner, just a bland winner)
3. Braveheart (Again, cinematography is a strength in the film, but is done in a very boring style)
4. Dances With Wolves (Like Gandhi, the camera work is more than serviceable, but brings little life to the film)
5. Slumdog Millionaire (Not bad, not good)

Wes Huizar

I don’t have an opinion.