Following on the heels of the Cinema Audio Society today is the Costume Designers Guild, which has selected nominees in its three patented categories.

The first thing you’ll notice, naturally, is yet another “War Horse” snub. I haven’t been expecting an Oscar nomination for the film’s costumes and the period field is particularly stacked this season, but nevertheless, another miss.

There aren’t many surprises on the list, though the appearance of “X-Men: First Class” in the fantasy category is a nice inclusion for its blend of period styles with comic book tropes. Once upon a time I thought costumer Sammy Sheldon might be a possibility for an Oscar nod, and maybe that’s even still the case. Ditto “Thor,” outfitted by four-time nominee Alexandra Byrne.

Another pleasant change of pace was “Melancholia” showing up in the contemporary field, alongside expected contenders like “Bridesmaids,” “The Descendants” and “The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo.” Nicolas Winding Refn’s “Drive” and that signature scorpion jacket gets a nice notice there, too.

The safe haven for the “Harry Potter” and “Pirates of the Caribbean” films has been the fantasy field here for a few years, and both entries in the respective franchises showed up today. Though “Red Riding Hood” getting to call itself an awards player of any sort — yikes.

As usual, you can expect the fair majority of eventual Oscar nominees to include period contenders. Oscar frontrunner “The Artist” was chalked up there, along with predicted nominees “Jane Eyre,” “The Help” and “Hugo.” Also there is “W.E.,” as well a serious contender.

In the way of snubs, the inventive work on “Immortals” (spotlighted in our recent list of bubble-contending hopefuls) received no love, nor did, perhaps more surprisingly, “Anonymous.” Ditto other possible nominees like “My Week with Marilyn” and “Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy” (the latter, again, spotlighted by Guy recently). And it’s interesting that “Captain America: The First Avenger” couldn’t join its fellow comic adaptations.

But don’t take snubs here too much to heart. The Academy’s costume designers branch often includes this or that contender completely snubbed by the guild. So there is hope yet.

Check out the full list of nominees for the 2011 Costume Designers Guild awards below. And remember to follow the Best Costume Design race in the Contenders section throughout the season.

Excellence in Period Film:

“The Artist” (Mark Bridges)

“Jane Eyre” (Michael O’Connor)

“The Help” (Sharen Davis)

“Hugo” (Sandy Powell)

“W.E.” (Arianne Phillips)

Excellence in Fantasy Film:

“Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2” (Jany Temime)

“Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides” (Penny Rose)

“Red Riding Hood” (Cindy Evans)

“Thor” (Alexandra Byrne)

“X-Men: First Class” (Sammy Sheldon)

Excellence in Contemporary Film:

“Bridesmaids” (Leesa Evans & Christine Wada)

“The Descendants (Wendy Chuck)

“Drive” (Erin Benach)

“The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo” (Trish Summerville)

“Melancholia” (Manon Rasmussen)

Be sure to keep track of the ups and downs of the 2011-2012 film awards season via The Circuit.

Also: Stay tuned later today for Gerard’s final predictions in the craft categories in today’s Tech Support two-parter!

For year-round entertainment news and awards season commentary follow @kristapley on Twitter.

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