Here Are The Oscar Winners!

Posted on April 25, 2021 by Lisa Marie Bowman

Best Picture — Nomadland

Best Director — Chloe Zhao for Nomadland

Best Actor — Anthony Hopkins In The Father

Best Actress — Frances McFormand in Nomadland

Best Supporting Actor — Daniel Kaluuya, Judas and the Black Messiah

Best Supporting Actress — Yuh-jung Youn in Minari

Best Adapted Screenplay — Christopher Hampton and Florian Zeller for The Father

Best Original Screenplay — Emerald Fennell for Promising Young Woman

Best Animated Feature — Soul

Best Documentary Feature — My Octopus Teacher

Best International Feature Film — Another Round

Best Live Action Shot Subject — Two Distant Strangers

Best Animated Short Subject — If Anything Happens, I Love You

Best Documentary Short — Collette

Best Original Score — Soul

Best Original Song — “Fight For You” from Judas and the Black Messiah

Best Cinematography — Mank

Best Costume Design — Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom

Best Editing — Sound of Metal

Best Makeup and Hair Styling — Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom

Best Production Design — Mank

Best Sound — Sound of Metal

Best Visual Effects -Tenet

My Final 2020 Oscar Predictions

Posted on April 25, 2021 by Lisa Marie Bowman

Since today is Oscar Sunday and all, I guess it’s time for me to make my final predictions for what will win tonight! Here we go! No guts, no glory!

Best Picture: Nomadland

Best Director: Chloe Zhao for Nomadland

Best Actor: Chadwick Boseman in Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom

Best Actress: Carey Mulligan in Promising Young Woman

Best Supporting Actor: Daniel Kaluuya in Judas and the Black Messiah

Best Supporting Actress: Youn Yuh-jung in Minari

Best Original Screenplay: Promising Young Woman

Best Adapted Screenplay: Nomadland

Best Animated Film: Soul

Best International Feature Film: Another Round

Best Documentary Feature: Collective

Best Documentary Short: A Concerto is a Conversation

Best Live Action Short Film: Two Distant Strangers

Best Animated Short Film: If Anything Happens I Love You

Best Original Score: Soul

Best Original Song: Husavik from Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga

Best Sound: Sound of Metal

Best Production Design: Mank

Best Cinematography: Mank

Best Makeup and Hairstyling: Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom

Best Costume Design: Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom

Best Editing: The Trial of the Chicago 7 (bleh)

Best Visual Effects: Tenet

If I score 100% accuracy on my predictions, here’s how the night will end in totals:

3 Oscars — Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom, Nomadland

2 Oscars — Mank, Promising Young Woman, Soul

1 Oscar — Another Round, Collective, A Concerto is A Conversation, Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga, If Anything Happens I Love You, Judas and the Black Messiah, Minari, Sound of Metal, Tenet, The Trial of the Chicago 7, Two Distant Strangers

In another few hours, we shall discover how good I am at guessing.

The Independent Spirit Awards Honor Carey Mulligan!

Posted on April 22, 2021 by Lisa Marie Bowman

Promising Young Woman

The Independent Spirit Awards were awarded tonight, honoring the best in independent film. Nomadland picked up Best Feature while Carey Mulligan won Best Female Lead for Promising Young Woman. It wouldn’t surprise me if this proved to be a preview of what will happen this Sunday at the Oscars!

Here are the Spirit winners:

BEST FEATURE
First Cow
Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom
Minari
Never Rarely Sometimes Always
Nomadland

BEST FEMALE LEAD
Nicole Beharie – Miss Juneteenth
Viola Davis – Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom
Sidney Flanigan – Never Rarely Sometimes Always
Julia Garner – The Assistant
Frances McDormand – Nomadland
Carey Mulligan – Promising Young Woman

SOMEONE TO WATCH AWARD
The Someone to Watch Award, now in its 27th year, recognizes a talented filmmaker of singular vision who has not yet received appropriate recognition.
David Midell – Director of The Killing of Kenneth Chamberlain
Ekwa Msangi – Director of Farewell Amor
Annie Silverstein – Director of Bull

BEST MALE LEAD
Riz Ahmed – Sound of Metal
Chadwick Boseman – Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom
Adarsh Gourav – The White Tiger
Rob Morgan – Bull
Steven Yeun – Minari

PRODUCERS AWARD
The Producers Award, now in its 24th year, honors emerging producers who, despite highly limited resources, demonstrate the creativity, tenacity and vision required to produce quality independent films.
Kara Durrett
Lucas Joaquin
Gerry Kim

BEST DIRECTOR
Lee Isaac Chung – Minari
Emerald Fennell – Promising Young Woman
Eliza Hittman – Never Rarely Sometimes Always
Kelly Reichardt – First Cow
Chloé Zhao – Nomadland

TRUER THAN FICTION AWARD
The Truer Than Fiction Award, now in its 26th year, is presented to an emerging director of non-fiction features who has not yet received significant recognition.
Cecilia Aldarondo – Director of Landfall
Elegance Bratton – Director of Pier Kids
Elizabeth Lo – Director of Stray

BEST NEW NON-SCRIPTED OR DOCUMENTARY SERIES
Atlanta’s Missing and Murdered: The Lost Children
City So Real
Immigration Nation
Love Fraud
We’re Here

JOHN CASSAVETES AWARD (Given to the best feature made for under $500,000)
The Killing of Two Lovers
La Leyenda Negra
Lingua Franca
Residue
Saint Frances

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
Jay Keitel – She Dies Tomorrow
Shabier Kirchner – Bull
Michael Latham – The Assistant
Hélène Louvart – Never Rarely Sometimes Always
Joshua James Richards – Nomadland

BEST INTERNATIONAL FILM (Award given to the director)
Bacurau
The Disciple
Night of the Kings
Preparations to be Together for an Unknown Period of Time
Quo Vadis, Aida?

BEST EDITING
Andy Canny – The Invisible Man
Scott Cummings – Never Rarely Sometimes Always
Merawi Gerima – Residue
Enat Sidi – I Carry You With Me
Chloé Zhao – Nomadland

BEST MALE PERFORMANCE IN A NEW SCRIPTED SERIES
Conphidance – Little America
Adam Ali – Little America
Nicco Annan – P-Valley
Amit Rahav – Unorthodox
Harold Torres – Zero, Zero, Zero

BEST FEMALE PERFORMANCE IN A NEW SCRIPTED SERIES
Elle Fanning – The Great
Shira Haas – Unorthodox
Abby McEnany – Work in Progress
Maitreyi Ramakrishnan – Never Have I Ever
Jordan Kristine Seamón – We Are Who We Are

BEST NEW SCRIPTED SERIES
I May Destroy You
Little America
Small Axe
A Teacher
Unorthodox

BEST SCREENPLAY
Lee Isaac Chung – Minari
Emerald Fennell – Promising Young Woman
Eliza Hittman – Never Rarely Sometimes Always
Mike Makowsky – Bad Education
Alice Wu – The Half of It

BEST DOCUMENTARY
Collective
Crip Camp
Dick Johnson is Dead
The Mole Agent
Time

BEST SUPPORTING MALE
Colman Domingo – Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom
Orion Lee – First Cow
Paul Raci – Sound of Metal
Glynn Turman – Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom
Benedict Wong – Nine Days

BEST FIRST FEATURE
I Carry You With Me
The Forty-Year-Old Version
Miss Juneteenth
Nine Days
Sound of Metal

BEST FIRST SCREENPLAY
Kitty Green – The Assistant
Noah Hutton – Lapsis
Channing Godfrey Peoples – Miss Juneteenth
Andy Siara – Palm Springs
James Sweeney – Straight Up

BEST SUPPORTING FEMALE
Alexis Chikaeze – Miss Juneteenth
Yeri Han – Minari
Valerie Mahaffey – French Exit
Talia Ryder – Never Rarely Sometimes Always
Yuh-jung Youn – Minari

ROBERT ALTMAN AWARD (Given to one film’s director, casting director and ensemble cast)
One Night in Miami…
Director: Regina King
Casting Directors: Kimberly R. Hardin
Ensemble Cast: Kingsley Ben-Adir, Eli Goree, Aldis Hodge & Leslie Odom Jr.

BEST ENSEMBLE CAST IN A NEW SCRIPTED SERIES
I May Destroy You
Ensemble Cast: Michaela Coel, Paapa Essiedu, Weruche Opia & Stephen Wight

The Costume Designers Guild Honors Promising Young Woman and Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom

Posted on April 14, 2021 by Lisa Marie Bowman

With the Oscars just a little over a week away, there’s still a few precursors to be awarded. Last night. the Costume Designers Guild announced their picks for the best of 2020. And here they are:

Excellence in Sci-Fi / Fantasy Film
“Dolittle” – Jenny Beavan
“Jingle Jangle: A Christmas Journey” – Michael Wilkinson
“Mulan” – Bina Daigeler
“Pinocchio “– Massimo Cantini Parrini
“Wonder Woman 1984” – Lindy Hemming

Excellence in Contemporary Film
“Barb and Star Go to Vista Del Mar” – Trayce Gigi Field
“Birds of Prey (and the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn)” – Erin Benach
“Da 5 Bloods” – Donna Berwick
“Promising Young Woman” – Nancy Steiner
“The Prom” – Lou Eyrich

Excellence in Period Film
“Emma.” – Alexandra Byrne
“Judas and the Black Messiah” – Charlese Antoinette Jones
“Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom” – Ann Roth
“Mank” – Trish Summerville
“One Night in Miami ” – Francine Jamison-Tanchuck

The Set Decorator Society of America Honors Promising Young Woman, Mank, Tenet, and The Prom!

Posted on April 1, 2021 by Lisa Marie Bowman

Yesterday, the Set Decorator Society of America (SDSA) announced their picks for the best set designs of 2020! The winners were Promising Young Woman, Mank, Tenet, and The Prom. Out of those four, only Mank and Tenet were also nominated for the Best Production Design Oscar.

As far as the Oscar goes, I think Mank probably has the edge over Tenet, if just because the Academy seems to really, really like Mank.

Here are the SDSA nominees and winners:

Best Achievement in Décor/Design of a Contemporary Feature Film
Da 5 Bloods
Set Decoration by Jeanette Scott
with Production Design by Wynn Thomas
Hillbilly Elegy
Set Decoration by Merissa Lombardo SDSA
with Production Design by Molly Hughes
I’m Thinking of Ending Things
Set Decoration by Mattie Siegal
with Production Design by Molly Hughes
Promising Young Woman
Set Decoration by Rae Deslich SDSA
with Production Design by Michael T. Perry
Sound of Metal
Set Decoration by Tara Pavoni
with Production Design by Jeremy Woodward

Best Achievement in Décor/Design of a Period Feature Film
Emma.
Set Decoration by Stella Fox
with Production Design by Kave Quinn
Mank
Set Decoration by Jan Pascale SDSA
with Production Design by Donald Graham Burt
Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom
Set Decoration by Karen O’Hara SDSA, Diana Stoughton
with Production Design by Mark Ricker
News of the World
Set Decoration by Elizabeth Keenan SDSA
with Production Design by David Crank
The Trial of the Chicago 7
Set Decoration by Andrew Baseman SDSA
with Production Design by Shane Valentino

Best Achievement in Décor/Design of a Science Fiction or Fantasy Feature Film
The Midnight Sky
Set Decoration by John Bush
with Production Design by Jim Bissell
Palm Springs
Set Decoration by Kelsi Ephraim
with Production Design byJason Kisvarday
Roald Dahl’s The Witches
Set Decoration by Rafaella Giovannetti SDSA
with Production Design by Gary Freeman
Tenet
Set Decoration by Kathy Lucas
with Production Design by Nathan Crowley
Wonder Woman 1984
Set Decoration by Anna Lynch-Robinson SDSA
with Production Design by Aline Bonetto

Best Achievement in Décor/Design of a Comedy or Musical Feature Film
Borat Subsequent Moviefilm: Delivery of Prodigious Bribe to American Regime For Make Benefit Once Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan
Set Decoration by Alina Pentac (Romania Unit)
with Production Design by David Saenz de Maturana
Dolittle
Set Decoration by Lee Sandales
with Production Design by Dominic Watkins
Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga
Set Decoration by Naomi Moore
with Production Design by Paul Inglis
The King of Staten Island
Set Decoration by David Schlesinger SDSA
with Production Design by Kevin Thompson
The Prom
Set Decoration by Gene Serdena SDSA
with Production Design by Jamie Walker McCal

The Writers Guild Honors Promising Young Woman And, For Some Unfathomable Reason, Borat

Posted on March 21, 2021 by Lisa Marie Bowman

The Writers Guild of America has announced their picks for the best written films and TV shows of 2020. Below are the three film awards. I’m happy to see Promising Young Woman won for Best Original Screenplay. As for Borat winning for Best Adapted Screenplay …. yeah, okay. The WGA can honor whoever they want but just don’t pretend like Borat won for any reason other than the whole Rudy Guiliani thing. (Does it really take a lot of effort and skill to make Rudy Guiliani look foolish?) That Borat beat both One Night In Miami and Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom is embarrassing.

Anyway, here’s the winners:

ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
Judas and the Black Messiah – Screenplay by Will Berson & Shaka King, Story by Will Berson & Shaka King and Kenny Lucas & Keith Lucas (Warner Bros.)
Palm Springs – Screenplay by Andy Siara, Story by Andy Siara & Max Barbakow (Hulu)
Promising Young Woman – Written by Emerald Fennell (Focus Features)
Sound of Metal – Screenplay by Darius Marder & Abraham Marder, Story by Darius Marder & Derek Cianfrance (Amazon Studios)
The Trial of the Chicago 7 – Written by Aaron Sorkin (Netflix)

ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
Borat Subsequent Moviefilm – Screenplay by Sacha Baron Cohen & Anthony Hines & Dan Swimer & Peter Baynham & Erica Rivinoja & Dan Mazer & Jena Friedman & Lee Kern, Story by Sacha Baron Cohen & Anthony Hines & Dan Swimer & Nina Pedrad, Based on Characters Created by Sacha Baron Cohen (Amazon Studios)
Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom – Screenplay by Ruben Santiago-Hudson, Based on the Play Written by August Wilson; (Netflix)
News of the World – Screenplay by Paul Greengrass and Luke Davies, Based upon the Novel by Paulette Jiles (Universal Pictures)
One Night in Miami – Screenplay by Kemp Powers, Based on the Stage Play “One Night in Miami” by Kemp Powers (Amazon Studios)
The White Tiger – Screenplay by Ramin Bahrani, Based on the Book “The White Tiger” by Aravind Adiga (Netflix)

DOCUMENTARY SCREENPLAY
All In: The Fight for Democracy – Written by Jack Youngelson (Amazon Studios)
The Dissident – Written by Mark Monroe and Bryan Fogel (Briarcliff Entertainment)
Herb Alpert Is… – Written by John Scheinfeld (Abramorama)
Red Penguins – Written by Gabe Polsky (Universal Pictures)
Totally Under Control – Written by Alex Gibney (Neon)

What If Lisa Picked The Oscar Nominees: 2020 Edition

Posted on March 14, 2021 by Lisa Marie Bowman

With the Oscar nominations due to be announced tomorrow, now is the time that the Shattered Lens indulges in a little something called, “What if Lisa had all the power.” Listed below are my personal Oscar nominations. Please note that these are not the films that I necessarily think will be nominated. The fact of the matter is that the many of them will not. Instead, these are the films that would be nominated if I was solely responsible for deciding the nominees this year. Winners are listed in bold.

I should also point out that I’ve only nominated films that were actually released in 2020. Undoubtedly, Nomadland, Minari, Judas and the Black Messiah, and The Father will do very well with the Academy tomorrow but, as far as I’m concerned, they’re 2021 films and not eligible for my nominations. They will be eligible next year, when I do my 2021 edition of What If Lisa Had All The Power.

It should also go without saying that I’ve nominated films that I’ve actually seen.

You’ll also note that I’ve added four categories, all of which I believe the Academy should adopt — Best Voice-Over Performance, Best Casting, Best Stunt Work, and Best Overall Use Of Music In A Film.

Click on the links to see my nominations for 2019, 2018, 2017, 2016, 2015, 2014, 2013, 2012, 2011, and 2010!)

Best Picture

The Assistant
Bad Education
First Cow
The Girl With A Bracelet
i’m thinking of ending things
Lovers Rock
Palm Springs
Promising Young Woman
Soul
The Vast of Night

Best Director

Stéphane Demoustier for The Girl With A Bracelet
Emerald Fennell for Promising Young Woman
Charlie Kaufman for i’m thinking of ending things
Steve McQueen for Lovers Rock
Andrew Patterson for The Vast of Night
Kelly Reichardt for First Cow

Best Actor

Ben Affleck in The Way Back
Riz Ahmed in Sound of Metal
Chadwick Boseman in Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom
John Boyega in Red, White, and Blue
Hugh Jackman in Bad Education
Delroy Lindo in Da 5 Bloods

Best Actress

Alison Brie in Horse Girl
Sidney Flanigan in Never Rarely Sometimes Always
Julia Garner in The Assistant
Melissa Guers in The Girl With A Bracelet
Sophia Loren in The Life Ahead
Carey Mulligan in Promising Young Woman

Best Supporting Actor

Brian Dennehy in Driveways
Aldis Hodge in One Night In Miami
Orion Lee in First Cow
Clarke Peters in Da 5 Blood
Paul Raci in The Sound of Metal
J.K. Simmons in Palm Springs

Best Supporting Actress

Jane Adams in She Dies Tomorrow
Glenn Close in Hillbilly Elegy
Olivia Cooke in Sound of Metal
Allison Janney in Bad Education
Chiara Mastroianni in The Girl With A Bracelet
Talia Ryder in Never Rarely Sometimes Always

Best Voice Over Performance

Jack Cruz in What Did Jack Do?
Bruce Davis in The Vast of Night
Tina Fey in Soul
Jamie Foxx in Soul
Nick Offerman in Frances Ferguson
Chris Pratt in Onward

Best Original Screenplay

The Assistant
Palm Springs
Possessor
Promising Young Woman
Soul
The Vast of Night

Bad Education

Best Adapted Screenplay

Bad Education
Emma
First Cow
The Girl With A Bracelet
i’m thinking of ending things
The Outpost

Best Animated Feature Film

A Shaun The Sheep Movie: Farmageddon
Onward
Red Shoes and the Seven Dwarfs
Soul

Best Documentary Feature Film

Alabama Snake
Athlete A
The Mystery of D.B. Cooper
Natalie Wood: What Remains Behind
The Social Dilemma
Tread

Best International Feature Film

Figurant
The Girl With A Bracelet
Gunpowder Heart
The Hater
The Life Ahead
The Shock of the Future

Best Live Action Short Film

Basic
Figurant
Host
Run/On
Waffle
What Did Jack Do?

Best Documentary Short Film

Betye Saar: Taking Care of Business
John Was Trying To Contact Aliens
Lions in the Corner
Quilt Fever

Best Animated Short Film

Canvas

If Anything Happens I Love You

Best Original Score

Call of the Wild
First Cow
Mangrove
Possessor
She Dies Tomorrow
The Shock of The Future

Best Original Song

“Boss Bitch” from Birds of Prey
“Diamonds” from Birds of Prey
“Everybody Dies” from The Outpost
“Future Shock Work in Progress” from The Shock of the Future
“Gratia Plena” from Fatima
“Husavik” from Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga
“Jah Jah Ding Dong” from Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga
“Metamorph” from Gunpowder Heart
“The Spirit of Christmas” from The Christmas Chronicles 2
“True Love’s Flame” from What Did Jack Do?

Best Overall Use of Music

Bill & Ted Face The Music
Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga
Lovers Rock
Proising Young Woman
The Shock of the Future
Soul

Best Sound

Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga
Lovers Rock
The Outpost
Possessor
The Shock of the Future
Sound of Metal

Best Production Design

Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga
Emma
First Cow
i’m thinking of ending things
Possessor
The Shock of the Future

Best Casting

The Assistant
First Cow
Lovers Rock
Palm Springs
Promising Young Woman
The Vast of Night

Best Cinematography

First Cow
i’m thinking of ending things
Lovers Rock
Mank
She Dies Tomorrow
The Vast of Night

Best Makeup and Hairstyling

Bill & Ted Face The Music
i’m thinking of ending things
Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga
Hillbilly Elegy
Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom
Promising Young Woman

Best Costume Design

Emma
Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga
Fatima
First Cow
Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom
Tesla

Best Film Editing

Extraction
i’m thinking of ending things
The Outpost
Palm Springs
Promising Young Woman
The Way Back

Best Stuntwork

Bad Boys For Life
Birds of Prey
Bloodshot
Extraction
The Hunt
The Outpost

Best Visual Effects

The Christmas Chronicles 2
The Midnight Sky
The Outpost
Possessor
Radioactive
Tesla

Films By Number of Nominations

8 Nominations — First Cow, Promising Young Woman

7 Nominations — Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga, i’m thinking of ending things

6 Nominations — The Girl With A Bracelet, Lovers Rock, The Outpost, Shock of the Future, Soul, The Vast of Night

5 Nominations — Palm Springs, Possessor

4 Nominations — The Assistant, Bad Education, Sound of Metal

3 Nominations — Birds of Prey, Emma, Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom, She Dies Tomorrow, What Did Jack Do?

2 Nominations — Bill & Ted Face the Music, The Christmas Chronicles 2, Da 5 Bloods, Extraction, Fatima, Figurant, Gunpowder Heart, Hillbilly Elegy, The Life Ahead, Never Rarely Sometimes Always, Onward, Tesla, The Way Back

1 Nomination — Alabama Snake, Athlete A, Bad Boys For Life, Basic, Bettye Saar: Taking Care of Business, Bloodshot, Call of the Wild, Canvas, Driveways, Frances Ferguson, The Hater, Horse Girl, Host, The Hunt, If Anything Happens I Love You, John Was Trying To Contact Aliens, Lions in the Corner, Mangrove, Mank, Midnight Sky, The Mystery of D.B. Cooper, Natalie Wood: What Remains Behind, One Night in Miami, Quilt Fever, Radioactive, Red Shoes and the Seven Dwarfs, Red White and Blue, Run/On, A Shaun The Sheep Movie: Farmageddon, The Social Dilemma, Tread, Waffle

Films By Number of Oscars Won

3 Oscars — The Girl With A Bracelet, Promising Young Woman

1 Oscar — The Assistant, Bad Education, Driveways, Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga, Figurant, First Cow, Frances Ferguson, If Anything Happens I Love You, i’m thinking of ending things, John Was Trying To Contact Aliens, Lovers Rock, Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom, The Outpost, Palm Springs, Possessor, Shock of the Future, The Social Dilemma, Soul, Sound of Metal, The Vast of Night, What Did Jack Do?

Tomorrow, the Oscar nominations will be released and we’ll see if how much or, more likely, how little the Academy and I agree upon!

Here Are The DGA Nominations!

Posted on March 9, 2021 by Lisa Marie Bowman

The DGA nominations have been announced!

The Directors Guild of America nominations are about as close to a reliable Oscar precursor as you’re going to get during the awards season so this is very good news for everyone who was nominated. It’s also good news for those of us who were worried that the Borat momentum couldn’t be stopped.

DGA Nominees

Lee Isaac Chung – “Minari”
Emerald Fennell – “Promising Young Woman”
David Fincher – “Mank”
Aaron Sorkin – “The Trial of the Chicago 7”
Chloe Zhao – “Nomadland”

DGA Nominees For First-Time Feature:

Radha Blank (“The Forty-Year-Old Version”)

Fernando Frías de la Parra (“I’m No Longer Here”)

Regina King (“One Night in Miami”)

Darius Marder (“Sound of Metal”)

Florian Zeller (“The Father”)

Here Are The Producers Guild Nominations!

Posted on March 8, 2021 by Lisa Marie Bowman

The Producers Guild announced their nominees for the best of 2020 earlier today. A lot of people are expression shock that Borat picked up a nomination but it’s something that I’ve been predicting for a while now. The film industry is largely made up of Democrats and Sacha Baron Cohen has managed to convince a lot of otherwise intelligent people that his film was somehow essential to defeating Donald Trump.

(Seriously — do you know of any Trump supporters who changed their mind as a result of Borat or who even watched the movie?)

Borat was nominated. Da 5 Bloods and News of the World, two films that many are expecting to be Oscar nominated, were not. Does this mean that Borat is going to pick up an Oscar nomination? Perhaps. Then again, let’s not forget how excited people briefly were when Deadpool was nominated by the PGA a few years ago. And, before that, Nightcrawler.

In other words, we’ll see. (Personally, I think that Borat will be nominated. If they were willing to go for VIce, it’s hard to imagine the Academy not going for Borat.) The Oscar noms will be announced next week. Until then, here are the PGA Nominations!

The Award for Outstanding Producer of a Feature Theatrical Motion Picture
Borat Subsequent Moviefilm
Judas and the Black Messiah
Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom
Mank
Minari
Nomadland
One Night in Miami
Promising Young Woman
Sound of Metal
The Trial of the Chicago 7

The Award for Outstanding Producer of Animated Theatrical Motion Pictures
The Croods: A New Age
Onward
Over the Moon
Soul
Wolfwalkers

The Award for Outstanding Producer of Documentary Motion Pictures
The PGA previously announced the nominations in this category on February 2nd, 2020.

David Attenborough: A Life on Our Planet
Dick Johnson Is Dead
My Octopus Teacher
Softie
A Thousand Cuts
Time
The Truffle Hunters

Lisa Marie’s Final 2020-2021 Oscar Predictions

Posted on March 1, 2021 by Lisa Marie Bowman

The 2020 Oscar nominations are finally going to be announced on March 15th and then the Oscars themselves are going to be awarded at the end of April. To be honest, we should call these the 2020-2021 Oscars because I refuse to think of Nomadland, Minari, or The Father as being 2020 films. Because of the extended eligibility window, they’re all Oscar-eligible but still….

That means that it’s time for me to make my final Oscar predictions for this latest awards cycle. Last night, The Golden Globes cleared up a few races and suggested that a few others are still in a state of flux. Of the three big surprise winners from last night (Andra Day, Jodie Foster, and Rosamund Pike) Day seems to be the most likely to benefit from her victory. I also think that Foster might benefit as well, just because she’s Jodie Foster and she doesn’t appear in a lot of films nowadays. I’m also willing to say that, based on his getting a GG nom and a SAG nom, I think Jared Leto has a better chance than some might realize of picking up another Oscar nomination.

What about Glenn Close? On the one hand, Close has never won an Oscar and she gives a very awards baity performance in Hillbilly Elegy. On the other hand, Hillbilly Elegy was critically-blasted and both the film and Close’s performance were included on the Razzie longlist, which was released earlier today. (The Razzies suck but that’s a topic for another post.) I would feel better about Close’s chances if she had won a Golden Globe last night but I’m still inclined to include her in my predictions.

(To be honest, up until Close lost, I still thought there was a chance that Hillbilly Elegy could pick up an Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close-style best picture nomination, the type of nomination that comes as a result of voters watching a critically lambasted film for one performance and saying, “Well, that wasn’t as bad as everyone says!”)

Finally, I’m going to continue to predict a surprise Best Picture nomination for Borat Subsequent Moviefilm, just because it’ll be another chance for the same voters who nominated Vice to express their feelings about Donald Trump and Rudy Guiliani.

If you want to see how my thinking has evolved over this long awards season, check out my predictions for January (2020), February (2020), March (2020, April, May, June, July, August, September, October, November, December, and January (2021)!

Here are my final predictions:

Best Picture

Borat Subsequent Moviefilm

Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom

Mank

Minari

News of the World

Nomadland

One Night In Miami

Promising Young Woman

The Trial of the Chicago 7

(I’m predicting 9 best picture nominees. I’m looking forward to the Academy going back to having a set number of best picture nominees. It breaks my heart not to include First Cow and Sound of Metal among my predicted nominees.)

Best Director

Lee Isaac Chung for Minari

Emerald Fennell for Promising Young Woman

Regina King for One Night in Miami

Aaron Sorkin for Mank

Chloe Zhao for Nomadland

Best Actor

Riz Ahmed in Sound of Metal

Chadwick Boseman in Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom

Anthony Hopkins in The Father

Gary Oldman in Mank

Steven Yeun in Minari