VFX category narrowed down to 10 films, animated shorts to 15; voting for nominations runs next month, January 8-12, with nomination announcements set for January 17, 2025.
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences just released shortlists in 10 categories for the 97th Academy Awards: Documentary Feature Film, Documentary Short Film, International Feature Film, Makeup and Hairstyling, Music (Original Score), Music (Original Song), Animated Short Film, Live Action Short Film, Sound, and Visual Effects.
Nominations voting begins Wednesday, January 8, 2025, and concludes Sunday, January 12, 2025.
Nominations for the 97th Academy Awards will be announced on Friday, January 17, 2024.
The 97th Oscars will be held on Sunday, March 2, 2025, at the Dolby Theatre at Ovation Hollywood and will be televised live on ABC, streamed live on Hulu, and air live in more than 200 territories worldwide.
All 10 shortlists are shown below:
DOCUMENTARY FEATURE FILM
15 films will advance in the Documentary Feature Film category for the 97th Academy Awards. 169 films were eligible in the category. Members of the Documentary Branch vote to determine the shortlist and the nominees.
The films, listed in alphabetical order by title, are:
- The Bibi Files
- Black Box Diaries
- Dahomey
- Daughters
- Eno
- Frida
- Hollywoodgate
- No Other Land
- Porcelain War
- Queendom
- The Remarkable Life of Ibelin
- Soundtrack to a Coup d’Etat
- Sugarcane
- Union
- Will & Harper
DOCUMENTARY SHORT FILM
15 films will advance in the Documentary Short Film category for the 97th Academy Awards. 104 films qualified in the category. Members of the Documentary Branch vote to determine the shortlist and the nominees.
The films, listed in alphabetical order by title, are:
- Chasing Roo
- Death by Numbers
- Eternal Father
- I Am Ready, Warden
- Incident
- Instruments of a Beating Heart
- Keeper
- Makayla’s Voice: A Letter to the World
- Once upon a Time in Ukraine
- The Only Girl in the Orchestra
- Planetwalker
- The Quilters
- Seat 31: Zooey Zephyr
- A Swim Lesson
- Until He’s Back
INTERNATIONAL FEATURE FILM
15 films will advance to the next round of voting in the International Feature Film category for the 97th Academy Awards. Films from 85 countries and regions were eligible in the category.
Academy members from all branches were invited to participate in the preliminary round of voting and must have met a minimum viewing requirement to be eligible to vote in the category.
In the nominations round, Academy members from all branches are invited to opt in to participate and must view all 15 shortlisted films to vote.
The films, listed in alphabetical order by country, are:
- Brazil, I’m Still Here
- Canada, Universal Language
- Czech Republic, Waves
- Denmark, The Girl with the Needle
- France, Emilia Pérez
- Germany, The Seed of the Sacred Fig
- Iceland, Touch
- Ireland, Kneecap
- Italy, Vermiglio
- Latvia, Flow
- Norway, Armand
- Palestine, From Ground Zero
- Senegal, Dahomey
- Thailand, How to Make Millions before Grandma Dies
- United Kingdom, Santosh
MAKEUP AND HAIRSTYLING
10 films will advance in the Makeup and Hairstyling category for the 97th Academy Awards. All members of the Academy’s Makeup Artists and Hairstylists Branch will be invited to view excerpts and interviews with the artists from each of the shortlisted films on Saturday, January 11, 2025. Branch members will vote to nominate five films for final Oscar consideration.
The films, listed in alphabetical order by title, are:
- The Apprentice
- Beetlejuice Beetlejuice
- A Different Man
- Dune: Part Two
- Emilia Pérez
- Maria
- Nosferatu
- The Substance
- Waltzing with Brando
- Wicked
MUSIC (ORIGINAL SCORE)
20 scores will advance in the Original Score category for the 97th Academy Awards. 145 scores were eligible in the category. Members of the Music Branch vote to determine the shortlist and the nominees.
The scores, listed in alphabetical order by film title, are:
- Alien: Romulus
- Babygirl
- Beetlejuice Beetlejuice
- Blink Twice
- Blitz
- The Brutalist
- Challengers
- Conclave
- Emilia Pérez
- The Fire Inside
- Gladiator II
- Horizon: An American Saga Chapter 1
- Inside Out 2
- Nosferatu
- The Room Next Door
- Sing Sing
- The Six Triple Eight
- Wicked
- The Wild Robot
- Young Woman and the Sea
MUSIC (ORIGINAL SONG)
15 songs will advance in the Original Song category for the 97th Academy Awards. 89 songs were eligible in the category. Members of the Music Branch vote to determine the shortlist and the nominees.
The original songs, along with the motion picture in which each song is featured, are listed below in alphabetical order by film title:
- “Forbidden Road” from Better Man
- “Winter Coat” from Blitz
- “Compress/Repress” from Challengers
- “Never Too Late” from Elton John: Never Too Late
- “El Mal” from Emilia Pérez
- “Mi Camino” from Emilia Pérez
- “Sick In The Head” from Kneecap
- “Beyond” from Moana 2
- “Tell Me It’s You” from Mufasa: The Lion King
- “Piece By Piece” from Piece by Piece
- “Like A Bird” from Sing Sing
- “The Journey” from The Six Triple Eight
- “Out Of Oklahoma” from Twisters
- “Kiss The Sky” from The Wild Robot
- “Harper And Will Go West” from Will & Harper
ANIMATED SHORT FILM
15 films will advance in the Animated Short Film category for the 97th Academy Awards. 88 films qualified in the category. Academy members from the Animation Branch and Short Films Branch were invited to participate in the preliminary round of voting and must have met a minimum viewing requirement to be eligible to vote in the category.
In the nominations round, Academy members from the Animation Branch and Short Films Branch are invited to opt in to participate and must view all 15 shortlisted films to vote.
The films, listed in alphabetical order by title, are:
- Au Revoir Mon Monde
- A Bear Named Wojtek
- Beautiful Men
- Bottle George
- A Crab in the Pool
- In the Shadow of the Cypress
- Magic Candies
- Maybe Elephants
- Me
- Origami
- Percebes
- The 21
- Wander to Wonder
- The Wild-Tempered Clavier
- Yuck!
LIVE ACTION SHORT FILM
15 films will advance in the Live Action Short Film category for the 97th Academy Awards. 180 films qualified in the category. Academy members from all branches were invited to participate in the preliminary round of voting and must have met a minimum viewing requirement to be eligible to vote in the category.
In the nominations round, Academy members from all branches are invited to opt in to participate and must view all 15 shortlisted films to vote.
The films, listed in alphabetical order by title, are:
- Anuja
- Clodagh
- The Compatriot
- Crust
- Dovecote
- Edge of Space
- The Ice Cream Man
- I’m Not a Robot
- The Last Ranger
- A Lien
- The Man Who Could Not Remain Silent
- The Masterpiece
- An Orange from Jaffa
- Paris 70
- Room Taken
SOUND
10 films will advance in the Sound category for the 97th Academy Awards. All eligible members of the Sound Branch vote to determine the shortlist and the nominees. Academy members will be invited to view excerpts from each of the shortlisted films beginning Thursday, January 9, 2025, in the San Francisco Bay area, followed by London, Los Angeles and New York on Saturday, January 11, 2025. Branch members will vote to nominate five films for final Oscar consideration.
The films, listed in alphabetical order by title, are:
- Alien: Romulus
- Blitz
- A Complete Unknown
- Deadpool & Wolverine
- Dune: Part Two
- Emilia Pérez
- Gladiator II
- Joker: Folie à Deux
- Wicked
- The Wild Robot
VISUAL EFFECTS
10 films remain in the running in the Visual Effects category for the 97th Academy Awards. The Visual Effects Branch Executive Committee determined the shortlist. All members of the Visual Effects Branch will be invited to view excerpts and interviews with the artists from each of the shortlisted films on Saturday, January 11, 2025. Branch members will vote to nominate five films for final Oscar consideration.
The films, listed in alphabetical order by title, are:
- Alien: Romulus
- Better Man
- Civil War
- Deadpool & Wolverine
- Dune: Part Two
- Gladiator II
- Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes
- Mufasa: The Lion King
- Twisters
- Wicked
Nominations voting begins on Wednesday, January 8, 2025, and concludes on Sunday, January 12, 2025.
Nominations for the 97th Academy Awards will be announced on Friday, January 17, 2025.
The 97th Oscars will be held on Sunday, March 2, 2025, at the Dolby® Theatre at Ovation Hollywood and will be televised live on ABC, streamed live on Hulu and airs live in more than 200 territories worldwide.
Source: Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences
Dan Sarto is Publisher and Editor-in-Chief of Animation World Network.
