A website called cinemascope is reporting that Israel has chosen Ari Folman’s “Waltz with Bashir” to represent the country in the foreign film Oscar race. Very wise. Nice to see animated films getting this kind of an awards push, what with “Persepolis” repping France last year. Let’s just hope “Waltz” doesn’t get the shaft like “Persepolis” and “4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days” last year from a majorly disfunctional branch of the Academy.
Guy, by the way, has been doing a nice job of wrangling the foreign film news lately, so keep it hear as updates keep coming.
Comments
7 responses to “Israel picks the animated ‘Waltz’ for its foreign Oscar contender”
Interesting… I wonder how this will affect the movie’s Best Animated Feature Film chances (where it arguably has a better chance of getting in). Maybe with the increased visibility it will be able to have an easier time getting in (just like last year’s Persepolis may have benefited from increased speculation.
Don’t really see it scoring noms in both categories this year though.
I wonder if Japan will pick Ponyo so it can have a chance to get in somewhere this year, though its pretty near a lock for Best Animatged next year, at least for a nomination, if of course not the win just yet, lol.
Bing: Japan has already made their pick — “Departures.”
This is interesting news. “Waltz” is pretty much a lock for the animated category.
But I think it could likely sneak into Best Foreign Film too. After the uproar over “Persepolis” missing the shortlist last year and the committee promising some kind of reform, they could use this situation to make a point.
Brilliant film. I hope it wins something.
It’s a fantastic film and deserves attention (and wider distribution). Unfortunately, I think a lot of Americans see “foreign films” as a rather obscure category to be visited only occasionally.
Ah, thanks for the info, must have missed that one. In that case, I wonder if Ponyo has a shot at the Globes, or does that require a US release first?
[…] This year, they have a chance to reverse that perception by nominating Israel’s “Waltz With Bashir,” another critical darling from Cannes that should also garner a Best Animated Feature nod […]