Category: Predictions

The Academy Awards seem to be turning into the Spirit Awards, with dozens of surprise matches between the groups. Best Picture at the Oscars contains four of the five films nominated for Best Feature here. This will be the last precursor of the season and won’t really have much impact since it’s showing the day…

For our sixteenth and final Rundown article, we look at the Big One. After the jump, you’ll find our winner and runner-up predictions for Best Picture as well as general commentary about the race.

For our fifteenth Rundown article, we look at the visual foundations of all films. After the jump, you’ll find our winner and runner-up predictions for Best Production Design and Best Costume Design as well as general commentary about the race. Thursday, we’ll cover the final category.

For our fourteenth Rundown article, we examine a visual category as well as two categories that create the film’s initial vision. After the jump, you’ll find our winner and runner-up predictions for Best Cinematography, Best Original Screenplay and Best Adapted Screenplay as well as general commentary about the race. Wednesday, we’ll cover the final two…

The last of the guilds goes out with a bang as Costume Design was once thought to be a wide-open field, but has seemingly settled like its companion Best Production Design. Here are our predictions and commentary for this penultimate precursor.

For our thirteenth Rundown article, we look at the categories most responsible for our aural understanding of movies. After the jump, you’ll find our winner and runner-up predictions for Best Sound Mixing and Best Sound Editing as well as general commentary about the race. Tuesday, we’ll cover two categories that form the foundation of films…

The WGA prohibits nominations for non-WGA members or films not made under a WGA-approved contract. That’s why you’ll never see animated films on these lists as the WGA doen’t represent animation writers. That’s also why you don’t see some prominent titles this year, including Birdman and Selma. You also have a mis-match between Best Original…

While it is one of the most significant categories at the Oscars, the American Society of Cinematographers has a checkered past when it comes to selecting the winner that will match the Oscars. Look to this category to either clarify or muddy the waters, but it won’t be a definitively jumping off point for your…

The other major sound award at the Oscars, Sound Editing, deals with the creations of new sounds. Formerly called Sound Effects Editing, this award is given to a film that displays excellence in sound effects, foley, dialogue and ADR. The only two categories you really need to focus on here are Best Sound Editing: Sound…

While normal filmgoers don’t know the difference between sound mixing and sound editing, those of us who work this trade know all about the differences. The Cinema Audio Society focuses on sound mixing, the blending of all sound elements, dialogue, sound effects, music and so forth. This overall aural composition forms the soundscape for the…

For our twelfth Rundown article, a category that will bring someone their first Oscar (or second). After the jump, you’ll find our winner and runner-up predictions for Best Actress as well as general commentary about the race. Next week, we’ll start off on Monday with two categories that bring the theatrical experience to life.

For our eleventh Rundown article, a category that’s been surprisingly competitive this year. After the jump, you’ll find our winner and runner-up predictions for Best Actor as well as general commentary about the race. Friday, we’ll cover a companion category.

For our tenth Rundown article, one of the most important discipline in filmmaking. After the jump, you’ll find our winner and runner-up predictions for Best Editing as well as general commentary about the race. Thursday, we’ll cover the year’s most competitive acting race.

For our ninth Rundown article, two visual makeover categories. After the jump, you’ll find our winner and runner-up predictions for Best Makeup and Best Visual Effects as well as general commentary about the race. Wednesday, we’ll cover the category that brings it all together.

For our eighth Rundown article, we look at one of the most hotly contended categories of the year. After the jump, you’ll find our winner and runner-up predictions for Best Director as well as general commentary about the race. Tuesday, we’ll cover two categories that remake people and landscapes from differing perspectives.