On this episode of ACADEMY ANONYMOUS:

• "Flow" outpacing worthy challengers in a striking Animated Feature category spotlighting diverse techniques, unique voices and international reach.
• Will the financial success of "The Wild Robot" help Dreamworks cross the finish line for the win - something that's evaded them since Aardman's Wallace & Gromit in 2005
• Will we see the vote-split between international titles, "Flow" and "Memoir of a Snail"
• Will the two clay stop-motion features, "Wallace & Gromit" and "Memoir of a Snail" cancel each other out
• Can a robust nomination haul at the ANNIE awards mean that we're in for a surprise GKids nod for "Chicken for Linda"
• Can Disney's "Moana 2" use its boxoffice success to go further than "Frozen 2"
• Will Disney or Pixar be snubbed for their sequel work - as they've been in the past
• Will the lack of U.S. distribution be a factor against "No Other Land"
• National Geographic's "Sugarcane" and Netflix's "Daughters" eyeing nods and wins
• Will both or either colonialism related title, "Dahomey" and "Soundtrack to a Coup d'Etat," secure a nod
• "Black Box" filmmaker may court favor with her first-hand account and powerful testimony
• Audience favorites "Will & Harper," "Porcelain War," and "The Remarkable Life of Ibelin" well positioned to surprise

On this episode of ACADEMY ANONYMOUS:

• "Emilia Perez" - shoe-in and favorite to win OR shocking snub waiting to happen
• "Flow" flexes its appeal with dual mentions in International Film and Animated Film. Voters motivated to nominated Latvia for the first time in Academy history.
• "I'm Still Here" a sure-fire nominee, a massive box-office success for Brazil and a return for director Walter Salles
• Neon to secure "Seed of the Sacred Fig" among the five nominees
• "Kneecap" a strong dark horse after dominating at BAFTA
• "Vermiglio" poised to bring a female filmmaker back into International film for the first time since 2020
• UK might have a winning recipe with break-out "Santosh"
• Netflix's inter-generational Thai film "How To Make Money Before Grandma Dies" a sleeper box-office hit and huge spoiler
• Diop's "Dahomey" lands in two longlists, looking good for at least one nomination and another success story for MUBI this year
• Double entries this year from Netflix, Sony Classics, MUBI, and Janus
• Can Sony Pictures Classics return to dominant form in this category and land two films among the five nominees, "I'm Still Here" and "Kneecap." A feat they have failed to repeat since 2018.

On this episode of ACADEMY ANONYMOUS:

• How many photo-real animal work can the Visual Effects branch spotlight
• Is there room for both Weta's dystopian apes and dancing ape on the Visual Effects five
• Is the Ridley Scott name on the long list enough to carry “Gladiator 2” into a nomination
• Can “Twisters” and “Alien: Romulus” capitalize on their distinct settings and effects to distinguish themselves from the rest of the lineup
• Alex Garland looks to crash the Visual Effects category again after previously winning with “Ex-Machina” and reaping a nod from the Visual Effects Society with "Civil War"
• “Wicked” favored for a nod by pundits but not the traditional kind of work visual effects artists fall for, especially with the musical “Better Man” outperforming it at the VES
• Will Disney finally lose out on a Visual Effects nomination - their first since the category expanded in 2010? Or is Shawn Levy and his production company their “ace in the hole”?
• Can “Wicked” and “Emilia Perez" coexist in Best Sound, the first time for multiple musicals in the category since 1968
• Can one-time Best Picture favorite “Blitz” use BAFTA nod to capture at least a single nod at the Oscar
• “A Complete Unknown” to continue Sound branch’s love for musical biopics and James Mangold projects
• “Dune, Part 2” bolstered in Sound by its Visual Effects nomination
• How a spot on the VFX longlist has bolstered the chances of “Gladiator 2,” “Deadpool & Wolverine,” and “Alien: Romulus” to steal a spot as a Best Sound nominee
• Can “The Wild Robot” find favor in the Sound branch - where few animated titles and only Pixar have been before?
  
  

On this episode of ACADEMY ANONYMOUS:

• Newcomer from "The Brutalist" likely to breakthrough at the Oscars
• Will "Conclave" composer suffer a snub due to his recent win for "All Quiet on the Western Front"
• "Wicked" unlikely to beat Original Score bias against Broadway musical adaptions
• "Emilia Perez" poised for three nods among both Song & Score categories
• Reznor & Ross just the right kind of magic to overcome BAFTA snub after Golden Globe win for "Challengers." Can they double-up song and score?
• "Nosferatu" proving to have broad voter appeal with BAFTA nod for its atmospheric music
• Hans Zimmer - disqualified for "Dune, Part 2" - hoping to get recognized for his body of work this year with Steve McQueen collaboration on "Blitz"
• Alberto Iglesias a possible spoiler in Original Score for another collaboration with Almodovar in "The Room Next Door"
• "Kneecap" Original Song nomination TOO IRRESISTIBLE an ending for a story-book year, especially after BAFTA haul
• Diane Warren tries for another win with Tyler Perry's "The Six Triple Eight"
• Too much Netflix in the Original Song longlist, likely to burn multiple contenders
• "Sing Sing" to capitalize on Best Picture buzz to land on Original Song
• Original Song may provoke voter confusion with longlist that has Lin-Manuel Miranda and "Moana 2" competing against each other, after having been nominated for their collaboration in 2016
• Can "The Wild Robot" help Dreamworks land both score and song nods for the same film for the first time in their history?
• Vote-split effect among Original Song contenders? - Documentaries, animated features, blockbusters.

On this episode of ACADEMY ANONYMOUS:

• "Conclave" Costume Designer FINALLY breaks into Costume Designers Guild - but will it be enough to overcome the "Contemporary Curse"
• Jacqueline West falls short at BAFTA as "Dune, Part 2" loses ground
• "Wicked" the perfect recipe for Costume & Production Design crossover nods
• Robert Eggers and Linda Muir welcomed into BAFTA & CDG - "Nosferatu" looking good to double-up on Costumes & Makeup
• After FINALLY returning with a nod for last year's "Napoleon," can the Costume Designer of "Gladiator 2" go back-to-back?
• Arianne Phillips' BAFTA-"bounce-back" a promising sign for "A Complete Unknown" after guild and Makeup snub.
• Can Tim Burton's Makeup effects give "Beetlejuice Beetlejuice" an edge in the Makeup category
• As actress campaign stumbles, can "Maria" still reap nods Below-The-Line
• "The Substance" looking like the favorite for Makeup but is the team too unfamiliar for Academy voters
• "Emilia Perez" the rare international title to make Makeup guild - a positive sign or a red-herring
• In Makeup, where performance matters, at least one nod featuring the work of "Man of a Thousand Faces" Sebastian Stan looks promising
• All signs point to Makeup voters omitting any work modeled after real-life people. Will voters really go full-genre this year?

On this episode of ACADEMY ANONYMOUS:

• A very complete consensus five for Production Design
• A Robert Eggers breakthrough Below-The-Line
• Susie Davies just the right kind of vet and “Conclave” the right kind of vehicle to beat the “Contemporary Curse”
• Overlap between sister categories - Production Design, Costume Design and Makeup
• The mandatory Visual Effects nominee
• Can Production Design and Cinematography go 5-for-5
• Directors who Production Designers seriously love - Tim Burton & Ridley Scott
• Is it ever wise to discount Arthur Max for a spot among the Production Design five
• Is the lineup COMPLETE without a historically-rendered period piece - the secret weapon for “A Complete Unknown” spoiler
• Can breakthrough “Nosferatu” Below-The-Line love translate into Best Picture

On this episode of ACADEMY ANONYMOUS:

• Film Editing, a possible rough draft of the Academy Award’s Best Director
• ACE Eddie film editing snubs & surprises: “A Complete Unknown” & “Civil War”
• “Challengers” using the the sports film genre to its advantage
• Too many nominations for Sean Baker
• Less veterans likely at the Oscars with editors of American blockbusters “Dune, Part 2” & “Wicked” having reaped nominations recently
• The curious case of “September 5” mirroring the editing snubs of “Spotlight” - are voters watching the film?
• “Emilia Perez” editor to be welcomed back into the Oscar, “Conclave” editor poised for first career nod
• “The Brutalist” overlooked at BAFTA & ACE, too long for editors to consider it seriously in this category. Will it doom its Best Picture chances?
• The films potentially trying to jump from surefire Best Sound nominees to Film Editing nominees
• Performance & Writing mentions still key for any film trying to crack Film Editing nomination
• “Emilia Perez” SNUBBED by Cinematographers guild, behind SEVEN other titles!
• Netflix streak of Cinematography nominations in jeopardy
• Can beloved veteran Ed Lachmann go back-to-back this year for “Maria” after last year’s surprise lone nomination for black-and-white “El Conde”?
• Jarin Blaschke and Lol Crawley FINALLY land ASC nominations for Best Cinematography
• ‘Wicked” cinematography backlash not enough to stop female director of photography, Alice Books. Can she ride her historic inclusion at the American Cinematographers Society into an Oscar nomination?
• ‘The Girl With The Needle” & “Nicke Boys” striking visuals land in ASC Spotlight category, but too edgy for mainstream Academy voters
• Jacques Audiard’s “Emilia Perez” out at ASC. But Jacques Audiard’s frequent DP collaborator finally breaks in with “Conclave” - how’s that for irony.

On this episode of ACADEMY ANONYMOUS:

• ANORA & A REAL PAIN locks for Original Screenplay
• Two unconventional writing pieces in THE SUBSTANCE & THE BRUTALIST cement their chances for Screenplay with solid Best Picture bids, but are they really writers’ cup of tea?
• Four first-time nominees and the shrinking window for a veteran writer on the Original Screenplay shortlist. Can CIVIL WAR or SATURDAY NIGHT recover?
• Justin Kuritzkes to ride breakthrough year into first Oscar nomination for writer-fave CHALLENGERS
• A (too little too late?) boost for writer Mike Leigh’s HARD TRUTHS with vocal support from Barry Jenkins & Greta Gerwig
• ALL WE IMAGINE AS LIGHT hopes for a solo nod in writing after being the rare critics darling not submitted for International Film
• Can the experimental NICKEL BOYS lock up a screenplay nod on the strength and popularity of its Pulitzer Prize-winning source material
• DUNE PART 2 struggling to repeat after Dune Part One’s nomination
• Can the Almodovar name push his English-language debut THE ROOM NEXT DOOR past musical fare
• SING SING vast writing team hopes to secure at least one nomination with writers
• Veteran CONCLAVE writer the favorite to finally win
• Former writing nominees, Mangold and Jay Cocks collaboration an easy call for Adapted Screenplay
• WICKED and EMILIA PEREZ trying to scale a mountain of history against them and land among the Adapted Screenplay nominees. Can ONE or BOTH beat the odds?