Could a bake-off snafu keep 'Harry Potter' from a visual effects nomination?

Posted by · 10:53 am · January 20th, 2012

An unfortunate snafu at last night’s visual effects bake-off — a lengthy branch-specific event that features reel screenings of effects work on the seven visual effects finalists and presentations from the supervisors involved — could keep the wizard and his denouement out of the Oscar equation.

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'The Help,' 'Pariah' lead NAACP Image Award nominees

Posted by · 10:20 am · January 20th, 2012

With six and five nominations respectively, “The Help” and “Pariah” represent the yin and yang of current African American-themed cinema, so it’s apt that they should lead the field in the NAACP Image Awards.

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'Super 8' leads the way with Motion Picture Sound Editors nominees

Posted by · 8:13 am · January 20th, 2012

The Motion Picture Sound Editors (MPSE) used to announce its list of nominees after the Oscars did, meaning the Best Sound Editing category was the one field without much in the way of precursor clues for predicting. That changed recently and now we can get an idea of where the sound branch might lean in the field.

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Oscar Talk: Ep. 78 — Golden Globes, BAFTA nominees, more guild announcements and Sundance 2012

Posted by · 8:08 am · January 20th, 2012

In this week’s podcast, Kris and Anne discuss last weekend’s Golden Globes, the BAFTA an guild announcements of the week and the currently underway Sundance Film Festival.

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Round-up: The dogs have their day

Posted by · 8:00 am · January 20th, 2012

Also: Defending Channing Tatum, and remembering failed Oscar grabs

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A night at the London Critics' Circle Awards

Posted by · 6:08 am · January 20th, 2012

“The Artist” was top dog at the London critics’ swanky black-tie bash last night, but there was plenty of love for “A Separation” and assorted British indies too.

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Interview: Judy Greer on ‘The Descendants' and Payne's 'intimately hands-off' approach

Posted by · 10:42 pm · January 19th, 2012

With “The Descendants” poised as an Oscar front runner, Judy Greer reflects back on the creation of a character who lives through the trajectory of a fully formed story in just a few brief minutes.

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Iowa critics dig 'Descendants'

Posted by · 4:51 pm · January 19th, 2012

The Iowa Film Critics have joined and drowned in the on-going chorus of year-end kudos-dishers. Drowned-in because it’s all just a blur now. “The Descendants” came out on top, winning both Best Picture and Best Director. And there’s Melissa McCarthy, yet again.

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Tech Support: Wrapping up guesses throughout the Academy's craft categories

Posted by · 1:31 pm · January 19th, 2012

Rounding out my picks in the Academy’s crafts branches, from Best Music to Best Visual Effects.

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Taking questions for 1/20 Oscar Talk

Posted by · 12:53 pm · January 19th, 2012

Offer up your burning queries.

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'The Artist,' 'A Separation' and Anna Paquin/Meryl Streep win big with London film critics

Posted by · 12:36 pm · January 19th, 2012

The London Film Critics Circle (of which I’m a member) handed out its year-end kudos this evening, and “The Artist” was the big winner, taking awards for Film of the Year, Director of the Year and Actor of the Year.

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Tech Support: Guessing the nominees throughout the Academy's craft categories

Posted by · 7:49 am · January 19th, 2012

In five days, the nominations for the 84th annual Academy Awards will be announced. It seems extraordinary that another season has nearly passed. And with a silent film and a somewhat fantastical (not-so-) children’s film poised to dominate the major categories, one realizes how quickly trends can change in Hollywood. But now it’s time to make our final picks across the crafts categories.

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'The Artist,' 'Thor,' 'Bridesmaids' among Costume Designers Guild nominees

Posted by · 6:53 am · January 19th, 2012

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

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Round-up: The missing makeup nominee from 'The Iron Lady'

Posted by · 6:47 am · January 19th, 2012

Also: Designing ‘Potter’ and exhausting Uggie

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'Hanna,' 'Pirates' among Cinema Audio Society surprises, 'Transformers' snubbed

Posted by · 4:30 am · January 19th, 2012

And now, as they say, for something completely different. The guild nominations these last few weeks have been rank and file, the usual mish-mash of the same titles reflecting a bit of group think and perfunctory nominations. That ends today, though, as the Cinema Audio Society’s crop of nominees included some eyebrow-raising titles.

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'Weekend' triumphs with Gay and Lesbian Critics Association

Posted by · 6:35 pm · January 18th, 2012

Andrew Haigh’s shimmery boy-meets-boy romance “Weekend” not only won the LGBT-themed category at the awards, but beat “The Artist” and “The Descendants” to the Film of the Year prize too.

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'Bullhead,' 'Pina,' 'A Separation' included on foreign language shortlist

Posted by · 10:17 am · January 18th, 2012

The biggest surprise about the nine-film shortlist for the Best Foreign Language Film Oscar is, well, how unsurprising it is. Seven of the titles I predicted yesterday are on it; the two films I didn’t, Morocco’s “Omar Killed Me” and Taiwan’s “Warriors of the Rainbow,” are the kind of could-have-been-anything choices that we know to […]

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Round-up: Williams takes her Marilyn Monroe impression to GQ

Posted by · 8:15 am · January 18th, 2012

Also: Mourning Colman’s BAFTA snub, and Gervais steps down

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