Congratulations to Matthew Stewart (@CineMatthew91), winner of the 1st Annual Awards Connection Oscar Prediction Contest! Matthew correctly predicted the "Spotlight" upset in Best Picture, as well as the "Mad Max" semi-sweep of the tech categories. Excellent work, sir!
Congratulations to all winners!
BEST PICTURE
Spotlight
BEST DIRECTOR
Alejandro González Iñárritu, The Revenant
BEST ACTOR
Leonardo DiCaprio, The Revenant
BEST ACTRESS
Brie Larson, Room
BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
Mark Rylance, Bridge of Spies
BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Alicia Vikander, The Danish Girl
BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
Tom McCarthy and Josh Singer, Spotlight
BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
Adam McKay and Charles Randolph, The Big Short
BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
Emmanuel Lubezki, The Revenant
BEST FILM EDITING
Mad Max: Fury Road
BEST VISUAL EFFECTS
Ex Machina
BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN
Mad Max: Fury Road
BEST COSTUME DESIGN
Mad Max: Fury Road
BEST MAKEUP & HAIRSTYLING
Mad Max: Fury Road
BEST ORIGINAL SCORE
Ennio Morricone, The Hateful Eight
BEST ORIGINAL SONG
“Writing's On the Wall,” Spectre
BEST SOUND EDITING
Mad Max: Fury Road
BEST SOUND MIXING
Mad Max: Fury Road
BEST ANIMATED FEATURE
Inside Out
BEST DOCUMENTARY
Amy
BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM
Son of Saul
BEST DOCUMENTARY SHORT SUBJECT
A Girl in the River
BEST LIVE ACTION SHORT
Stutterer
BEST ANIMATED SHORT
Bear Story
See how Andrew and Allison's predictions pan out as the night goes on
View Andrew's predictions here
View Allison's predictions here
Best Original Screenplay: Spotlight
Andrew: 1/1
Allison: 1/1
Best Adapted Screenplay: The Big Short
Andrew: 2/2
Allison: 1/2
Best Supporting Actress: Alicia Vikander, The Danish Girl
Andrew: 3/3
Allison: 1/3
Best Costume Design: Mad Max: Fury Road
Andrew: 3/4
Allison: 2/4
Best Production Design: Mad Max: Fury Road
Andrew: 4/5
Allison: 2/5
Best Make-up and Hairstyle: Mad Max: Fury Road
Andrew: 5/6
Allison: 3/6
Best Cinematography: The Revenant
Andrew: 6/7
Allison: 4/7
Best Film Editing: Mad Max: Fury Road
Andrew: 7/8
Allison: 4/8
Best Sound Editing & Sound Mixing: Mad Max: Fury Road
Andrew: 8/10
Allison: 6/10
Best Visual Effects: Ex Machina
Andrew: 8/11
Allison: 6/11
Best Animated Short: Bear Story
Andrew: 9/12
Allison: 7/12
Best Animated Feature: Inside Out
Andrew: 10/13
Allison: 8/13
Best Supporting Actor: Mark Rylance, Bridge of Spies
Andrew: 10/14
Allison: 8/14
Best Documentary Short: A Girl in the River: The Price of Forgiveness
Andrew: 10/15
Allison: 9/15
Best Documentary: Amy
Andrew: 10/16
Allison: 9/16
Best Live Action Short: Stutterer
Andrew: 10/17
Allison: 9/17
Best Foreign Film: Son of Saul
Andrew: 11/18
Allison: 10/18
Best Original Score: The Hateful Eight
Andrew: 12/19
Allison: 11/19
Best Original Song: Writing's on the Wall, Spectre
Andrew: 12/20
Allison: 12/20
Best Directing: Alejandro G. Iñárritu, The Revenant
Andrew: 13/21
Allison: 13/21
Best Actress: Brie Larson, Room
Andrew: 14/22
Allison: 14/22
Best Actor: Leonardo DiCaprio, The Revenant
Andrew: 15/23
Allison: 15/23
Best Picture: Spotlight
Andrew: 15/24
Allison: 15/24
Alright, the Oscars are about to start. Below are my final picks. For the major categories, I chose to pick who I think will win as well as who I think should win (I wish they were the same, but often they do not match). Obviously, like most people, I believe this will be a big night for The Revenant. It has all the momentum right now. Let's see if there are any surprises for us tonight...
Enjoy!
Will this be a big night for The Revenant?
Best Picture:
Best Director:
Best Leading Actor:
Best Leading Actress:
Best Supporting Actor:
Best Supporting Actress:
Best Original Screenplay:
Best Adapted Screenplay:
The Rest...
Best Animated Film
Inside Out
Best Animated Short
Bear Story
Best Cinematography
The Revenant
Best Costume Design
Mad Max: Fury Road
Best Documentary
The Look of Silence
Best Documentary Short
A Girl in the River: The Price of Forgiveness
Best Film Editing
The Revenant
Best Foreign Language Film
Son of Saul
Best Live Action Short
Day One
Best Makeup and Hair Styling
Mad Max: Fury Road
Best Production Design
The Revenant
Best Original Score
Ennio Morricone, The Hateful Eight
Best Original Song
“Writing’s On The Wall,” Spectre
Best Sound Editing
Mad Max: Fury Road
Best Sound Mixing
Mad Max: Fury Road
Best Visual Effects
Star Wars: The Force Awakens
Finally, we have arrived! And what a long, often surprising and strange Oscar season journey it has been. Long gone are the days when it seemed the likes of In the Heart of the Sea, Joy, Truth, Johnny Depp, Will Smith and Sandra Bullock, among others, were headed toward awards glory. Remember Best Supporting Actor front-runner Michael Keaton? How about that long-overdue Oscar for Ridley Scott? And what just weeks ago looked like a Big Short v. Revenant v. Spotlight barn burner for the Best Picture prize has suddenly turned into a possible cakewalk for one contender. Predictable ceremony or not, this has been a boffo year in cinema and we are destined to be in for some fantastic winners on the 28th.
With that said, here are my final Oscar predictions for 2015:
Best Picture
Even if Inarritu and DiCaprio are triumphing on Oscar night, it is not altogether impossible for PGA victor The Big Short or especially SAG winner Spotlight to take the top prize. Watch closely the Film Editing category - if one of those two pictures can stage an upset there early in the evening, they'll probably emerge victorious at the very end of the evening. Not likely, but not inconceivable. Likewise, there remains a chance, albeit an awfully slight one, that Mad Max could take a bunch of technical awards and then stage a double-upset in the last two categories. Alas, The Revenant's the contender with all of the buzz and momentum, peaking at just the right time with critical DGA and BAFTA wins, and heads into Oscar night a modestly healthy favorite for the top trophy. The other four not mentioned, forget it.
Best Director
With DGA and BAFTA victories under his belt, Inarritu appears exceedingly likely to join the likes of John Ford and Joseph L. Mankiewicz as a back-to-back-victory Oscar-winning filmmaker. Not impossible for Miller, McKay or McCarthy to stage a comeback on Oscar night, but it appears awfully unlikely at this point that Mad Max, Big Short or Spotlight are capable of the kind of sweep that would drag their director across the finish line.
Best Leading Actor
With the possible exception of Inside Out in Animated Feature, this is of course the biggest shoo-in of the evening. To rank DiCaprio's competition is an improbable and ultimately pointless task, but I suppose Musical/Comedy Globe winner Damon would be runner-up. Still, it won't even be close.
Best Leading Actress
The BAFTA win over Ronan and Blanchett all but sealed the deal for Larson. At this point, her biggest threat is probably Rampling, in the improbable scenario the latter's anti-#OscarsSoWhite comments create some sort of rallying effect among certain Academy members. Doesn't seem very likely, though, especially considering how small and potentially unseen a film Rampling's is.
Best Supporting Actor
While not quite in the same league as DiCaprio in terms of lockiness, Stallone, despite not garnering nods from SAG or BAFTA, remains a decent favorite here. Rylance is probably the biggest threat - he just won BAFTA and could theoretically serve as a consolation prize for Bridge of Spies - but it doesn't seem terribly likely. The other three gentlemen would need to ride waves, hoping the Academy goes wildly head-over-heels for their pictures.
Best Supporting Actress
Not sure this one's as close a call between Vikander and Winslet as some are suggesting. Keep in mind, Winslet has not defeated Vikander anywhere for The Danish Girl - Vikander garnered a Supporting BAFTA nom for Ex-Machina and was placed Lead over at the Globes. To boot, Winslet already has an Oscar and the Academy clearly isn't too keen on Steve Jobs, which couldn't even muster a nomination for Sorkin's screenwriting. A Winslet win certainly is not impossible, but Vikander clearly has the edge here, even if it's not quite as comfy a margin as DiCaprio's, Larson's or even Stallone's. Mara likely needed the BAFTA victory to have a fighting chance here and McAdams would need the Academy to go completely ga-ga head-over-heels for Spotlight to upset.
Best Original Screenplay
An improbable loss by Spotlight here would signify an improbable shutout for the picture. Can't entirely count out Compton here as a sort of consolation prize, but Spotlight remains an awfully sure bet.
Best Adapted Screenplay
The Big Short is about as much as a heavy favorite here as Spotlight is in Original. That being said, the competition here is certainly stiffer and, with the exception of Carol, I wouldn't be that awe-struck if an upset occurred. I think Room in particular could be poised for a surprise.
As for the rest...
Best Animated Film
Inside Out
Best Animated Short
Bear Story
Best Cinematography
The Revenant
Best Costume Design
The Revenant
Best Documentary
The Look of Silence
Best Documentary Short
Last Day of Freedom
Best Film Editing
Mad Max: Fury Road
Best Foreign Language Film
Son of Saul
Best Live Action Short
Day One
Best Makeup and Hair Styling
Mad Max: Fury Road
Best Production Design
Mad Max: Fury Road
Best Original Score
Ennio Morricone, The Hateful Eight
Best Original Song
"Til It Happens to You," The Hunting Ground
Best Sound Editing
Mad Mad: Fury Road
Best Sound Mixing
The Revenant
Best Visual Effects
Star Wars: The Force Awakens
Calling all Oscar buffs!!
We are proud to present the 1st Annual Awards Connection Oscar Predictions Contest.
The rules are easy and breezy. First, follow us @AwardsConnect on Twitter. Then, simply e-mail your Oscar predictions in all 24 categories (yes, including the likes of Best Sound Editing and Best Documentary Short Subject) to us at theawardsconnection@gmail.com, and include in the e-mail your Twitter handle, as we'll be announcing the contest winner via Twitter.
Whoever gets the most correct predictions will receive a $15 Fandango gift card via e-mail. In the event of a tie, we have the following tie-breaker question: How many Oscars will "Mad Max," "The Revenant" and "Spotlight" win COMBINED? Include your answer in the e-mail. (Ex: If you believe "Mad Max" will win 3 Oscars, "The Revenant" 2 Oscars and "Spotlight" 3 Oscars, your answer should be 8 Oscars.)
The deadline for prediction submissions is Oscar Sunday, February 28th at 6pm eastern time. The contest winner will be announced later in the week on Twiiter and also notified via e-mail.
Questions should be directed to theawardsconnection@gmail.com, or of course feel free to message us on Twitter.
Happy predicting!
For your convenience, here again are this year's nominees:
BEST PICTURE
The Big Short
Bridge of Spies
Brooklyn
Mad Max: Fury Road
The Martian
The Revenant
Room
Spotlight
BEST DIRECTOR
Lenny Abrahamson, Room
Alejandro González Iñárritu, The Revenant
Tom McCarthy, Spotlight
Adam McKay, The Big Short
George Miller, Mad Max: Fury Road
BEST ACTOR
Leonardo DiCaprio, The Revenant
Eddie Redmayne, The Danish Girl
Matt Damon, The Martian
Michael Fassbender, Steve Jobs
Bryan Cranston, Trumbo
BEST ACTRESS
Cate Blanchett, Carol
Brie Larson, Room
Jennifer Lawrence, Joy
Charlotte Rampling, 45 Years
Saoirse Ronan, Brooklyn
BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
Tom Hardy, The Revenant
Mark Ruffalo, Spotlight
Sylvester Stallone, Creed
Christian Bale, The Big Short
Mark Rylance, Bridge of Spies
BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Jennifer Jason Leigh, The Hateful Eight
Kate Winslet, Steve Jobs
Rooney Mara, Carol
Alicia Vikander, The Danish Girl
Rachel McAdams, Spotlight
BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
Jonathan Herman, Andrea Berloff, S. Leigh Savidge, and Alan Wenkus, Straight Outta Compton
Pete Docter, Meg LeFauve, and Josh Cooley, Inside Out
Alex Garland, Ex Machina
Tom McCarthy and Josh Singer, Spotlight
Matt Charman, Joel Coen, and Ethan Coen, Bridge of Spies
BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
Drew Goddard, The Martian
Nick Hornby, Brooklyn
Adam McKay and Charles Randolph, The Big Short
Phyllis Nagy, Carol
Emma Donoghue, Room
BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
Emmanuel Lubezki, The Revenant
Edward Lachman, Carol
Roger Deakins, Sicario
John Seale, Mad Max: Fury Road
Robert Richardson, The Hateful Eight
BEST FILM EDITING
The Big Short
Mad Max: Fury Road
The Revenant
Spotlight
Star Wars: The Force Awakens
BEST VISUAL EFFECTS
Ex Machina Mad Max: Fury Road
The Martian
The Revenant
Star Wars: The Force Awakens
BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN
The Danish Girl
Mad Max: Fury Road
Bridge of Spies
The Martian
The Revenant
BEST COSTUME DESIGN
Carol
Cinderella
The Danish Girl
Mad Max: Fury Road
The Revenant
BEST MAKEUP & HAIRSTYLING
The Revenant
The 100-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out a Window and Disappeared
Mad Max: Fury Road
BEST ORIGINAL SCORE
Ennio Morricone, The Hateful Eight
Carter Burwell, Carol
John Williams, Star Wars: The Force Awakens
Thomas Newman, Bridge of Spies
Johann Johannson, Sicario
BEST ORIGINAL SONG
"Earned It,” Fifty Shades of Grey
“Manta Ray,” Racing Extinction
“Til It Happens to You,” The Hunting Ground
“Simple Song #3,” Youth
“Writing's On the Wall,” Spectre
BEST SOUND EDITING
Mad Max: Fury Road
Star Wars: The Force Awakens
The Martian
Sicario
The Revenant
BEST SOUND MIXING
Bridge of Spies
Mad Max: Fury Road
The Martian
The Revenant
Star Wars: The Force Awakens
BEST ANIMATED FEATURE
Inside Out
Anomalisa
Shaun the Sheep Movie
Boy and the World
When Marnie Was There
BEST DOCUMENTARY
Amy
Cartel Land
The Look of Silence
What Happened, Miss Simone?
Winter on Fire: Ukraine’s Fight for Freedom
BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM
Son of Saul
Mustang
A War
Embrace of the Serpent
Theeb
BEST DOCUMENTARY SHORT SUBJECT
Body Team 12
Chau, Beyond the Lines
Claude Lanzmann: Spctres of Shoah
A Girl in the River Last Day of Freedom
BEST LIVE ACTION SHORT
Ave Maria
Day One
Everything Will Be Okay
Shok Stutterer
BEST ANIMATED SHORT
Bear Story
Prologue
Sanjay’s Super Team
We Can’t Live Without Cosmos
World of Tomorrow