2015 Awards -- Cinema Audio Society (CAS)

The sound guild has released their choices for the year. Always one the last guilds to announce. Most of the time they match up pretty well with Oscar, so a good predictor to look at. The Hateful Eight gets it's first guild mention, and Bridge of Spies looks unexpectedly strong after landing a Bafta nod here as well.
They have an animated category, so I'll post both categories. Although it's been a long time since an animated film was able to break into the Sound Mixing category. In fact, since the year 2000, it's only happened for 3 films..The Incredibles and The Polar Express, both in 2004, and more recently in 2007 with Ratatouille. It's MUCH more likely in the Sound Editing category instead, especially for Pixar films. All 3 of the previous scored there also, as well as Monsters, Inc. in 01, Finding Nemo in 03, Wall-E in 08, Up in 09 and Toy Story 3 in 2010.

ACHIEVEMENT IN SOUND MIXING

BRIDGE OF SPIES
Production Mixer - Drew Kunin
Re-recording Mixer - Andy Nelson, CAS
Re-recording Mixer - Gary Roger Rydstrom, CAS
Scoring Mixer - Thomas Vicari, CAS
ADR Mixer - Bobby Johanson, CAS
Foley Mixer - Chris Manning

THE HATEFUL EIGHT
Production Mixer - Mark Ulano, CAS
Re-recording Mixer - Michael Minkler, CAS
Re-recording Mixer - Chris Minkler
Scoring Mixer - Fabio Venturi
Foley Mixer - Nerses Gezalyan

MAD MAX: FURY ROAD
Production Mixer - Ben Osmo
Re-recording Mixer - Chris Jenkins
Re-recording Mixer - Gregg Rudloff
ADR Mixer - Thomas J. O'Connell
Foley Mixer - Ryan Squires

THE REVENANT
Production Mixer - Chris Duesterdiek
Re-recording Mixer - Jon Taylor, CAS
Re-recording Mixer - Frank Montano
Re-recording Mixer - Randy Thom, CAS
Scoring Mixer - Conrad Hensel
ADR Mixer - Michael Miller, CAS
Foley Mixer - Geordy Sincavage

STAR WARS: THE FORCE AWAKENS
Production Mixer - Stuart Wilson
Re-recording Mixer - Andy Nelson, CAS
Re-recording Mixer - Chris Scarabosio
Scoring Mixer - Shawn Murphy
ADR Mixer - Charleen Steeves
Foley Mixer - Chris Manning

SOUND MIXING IN AN ANIMATED FILM

THE GOOD DINOSAUR
Original Dialogue Mixer - Vince Caro
Re-recording Mixer - Tom Johnson
Re-recording Mixer - Michael Semanick
Scoring Mixer - Brad Haehnel
Foley Mixer - Kyle Rochlin

HOTEL TRANSYLVANIA 2
Original Dialogue Mixer - Howard London, CAS
Re-recording Mixer - Michael Semanick
Re-recording Mixer - Tom Johnson
Scoring Mixer - Brad Haehnel
Foley Mixer - Randy Singer, CAS

INSIDE OUT
Original Dialogue Mixer - Doc Kane
Re-recording Mixer - Tom Johnson
Re-recording Mixer - Michael Semanick
Scoring Mixer - Joel Iwataki
Foley Mixer - Mary Jo Lang, CAS

MINIONS
Original Dialogue Mixer - Carlos Sotolongo
Re-recording Mixer - Gary A. Rizzo, CAS
Re-recording Mixer - Chris Scarabosio
Scoring Mixer - Shawn Murphy
Foley Mixer - Corey Tyler

THE PEANUTS MOVIE
Original Dialogue Mixer - Bill Higley
Re-recording Mixer - Lora Hirschberg
Re-recording Mixer - Randy Thom, CAS
Re-recording Mixer - Leff Lefferts
Scoring Mixer - Casey Stone, CAS
Foley Mixer - Jason Butler

GOLDEN GLOBE WINNERS

Genuine surprise for a few of the winners last night at the Golden Globes. The second that The Revenant took director, I had a feeling that it was taking Picture too. Still a surprise to see Spotlight shut out after the run it's had this year. But an even bigger surprise was the 2 wins for Steve Jobs! You could tell from Kate Winslet and Aaron Sorkin's faces that they were also definitely not expecting it to happen either. Genuine surprise on those wins, as well as (to a lesser extent) the win for Spectre for Best Song. Perfect timing for The Martian to get back into the race, after being snubbe at the Bafta. Also perfect timing for the movie to get back into the public mind consideing it's being released on Blu-Ray tomorrow! Here's the full list of winners from the HFPA...

Best Picture (Drama)
THE REVENANT

Best Picture (Musical/Comedy)
THE MARTIAN

Best Director
ALEJANDRO G. INARRITU - "THE REVENANT"

Best Actor (Drama)
LEONARDO DICAPRIO - "THE REVENANT"

Best Actor (Musical/Comedy)
MATT DAMON - "THE MARTIAN"

Best Actress (Drama)
BRIE LARSON - "ROOM"

Best Actress (Musical/Comedy)
JENNIFER LAWRENCE - "JOY"

Best Supporting Actor
SYLVESTER STALLONE - "CREED"

Best Supporting Actress
KATE WINSLET - "STEVE JOBS"

Best Screenplay
STEVE JOBS

Best Animated Feature
INSIDE OUT

Best Original Score
THE HATEFUL EIGHT

Best Original Song
"WRITING'S ON THE WALL" - SPECTRE

Best Foreign Language Film
SON OF SAUL

LAST MINUTE GOLDEN GLOBE WINNERS PREDICTIONS....

Literally squeaking these in right before the show, just got home. I won't be surprised if there are a few upsets, and a few surprises. Hoping Ricky Gervais kills it like before! Always a few shocks and snubs so not too sure about any of these!
.... I'm putting my predictions for winners + alternate choices. Enjoy the show everyone!

BEST PICTURE (DRAMA)
Prediction:  Spotlight  (alt. Mad Max: Fury Road)

BEST PICTURE (MUSICAL/COMEDY)
Prediction:  The Big Short  (alt. The Martian)

BEST DIRECTOR
Prediction:  George Miller "Mad Max"  (alt. Alejandro G. Inarritu)

BEST ACTOR (DRAMA)
Prediction:  Leonardo DiCaprio "The Revenant"  (alt. Michael Fassbender)

BEST ACTOR (MUSICAL/COMEDY)
Prediction:  Matt Damon "The Martian"  (alt. Steve Carell)

BEST ACTRESS (DRAMA)
Prediction:  Brie Larson "Room"  (alt. Saoirse Ronan)

BEST ACTRESS (MUSICAL/COMEDY)
Prediction:  Amy Schumer "Trainwreck"  (alt. Jennifer Lawrence)

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
Prediction:  Mark Rylance "Bridge of Spies"  (alt. Sylvester Stallone)

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Prediction:  Alicia Vikander "Ex Machina"  (alt. Jennifer Jason Leigh)

BEST SCREENPLAY
Prediction:  Spotlight  (alt. The Big Short)

BEST ANIMATED FEATURE
Prediction:  Inside Out  (alt. Anomalisa)

BEST SCORE
Prediction:  The Hateful Eight  (alt. Carol)

BEST SONG
Prediction:  "See You Again" - Furious 7  (alt. "One Kind of Love")

BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM
Prediction:  Son of Saul  (alt. Mustang)

2015 Awards -- BAFTA Nominations (British Academy of Film and Television Arts)

The British Academy JUST announced their nominees for this year's awards, and as always, there are surprises and snubs everywhere! A few quick notes before the full list of nominees...

• Big bump for BRIDGE OF SPIES, which garnered 9 total nominations including Director and Picture. Mark Rylance has been a mainstay in the awards race this year, but the film overall has been surprisingly quiet. Not anymore.
• After missing out with a few guilds recently, CAROL comes on strong to tie the lead in nods with 9 as well, also including Director and Picture to match the dual nominated performances of Blanchett & Mara.
• THE REVENANT is next with 8 nods total, including Actor for Leo, Director and Picture. With such a strong showing, it's a bit surprising to not see Tom Hardy show up, tho.
• Hitting the tech categories hard as expected, with 7 nominations we have MAD MAX: FURY ROAD. But a snub in the big categories!!! No Picture, no director!!
• 2 films tied with 6 nominations in BROOKLYN and THE MARTIAN, but neither film found a spot in the Best Picture race. We do have acted nods for both, as well as a Director nod for Ridley Scott, and a Best British Film nod to Brooklyn.
• THE BIG SHORT lands with 5 nods, including Best Picture and Director for Adam McKay! Christian Bale is up for supporting actor, but no Steve Carell.
• SPOTLIGHT takes up the last Best Picture spot, but only got 3 total nominations. The others are for Mark Ruffalo is supporting, and screenplay. No director, no Keaton, no McAdams, no techs.
• THE DANISH GIRL and EX MACHINA both land 5 nods, and for each film, 1 of those nods goes to Alicia Vikander, but is up for Lead Actress AND Supporting Actress this year. Good for her. I doubt it'll repeat at the Oscars, but who knows. Eddie Redmayne is also up for Best Actor again.
• And STAR WARS: THE FORCE AWAKENS picks up nods in 4 categories, all techs. Production Design, Sound, Visual Effects & Original Music.
• Strangely, only 3 nominees in Animated Feature, with INSIDE OUT as the definite frontrunner. It also picked up a screenplay nod. But Minions??? Come on, really?
• The Foreign Language category doesn't help us with the Oscars at all. Only 1 of the 5 films is even in the running for the Academy, and that's Theeb.  The Assassin missed out on the shortlist of finalists, and Force Majeure, Timbuktu and Wild Tales were all from last year.

BEST PICTURE

• The Big Short
• Bridge of Spies
• Carol
• The Revenant
• Spotlight

BEST DIRECTOR

• Todd Haynes - "Carol"
• Alejandro G. Inarritu - "The Revenant"
• Adam McKay - "The Big Short"
• Ridley Scott - "The Martian"
• Steven Spielberg - "Bridge of Spies"

BEST ACTOR

• Bryan Cranston - "Trumbo"
• Matt Damon - "The Martian"
• Leonardo DiCaprio - "The Revenant"
• Michael Fassbender - "Steve Jobs"
• Eddie Redmayne - "The Danish Girl"

BEST ACTRESS

• Cate Blanchett - "Carol"
• Brie Larson - "Room"
• Saoirse Ronan - "Brooklyn"
• Maggie Smith - "The Lady in the Van"
• Alicia Vikander - "The Danish Girl"

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR

• Christian Bale - "The Big Short"
• Benicio Del Toro - "Sicario"
• Idris Elba - "Beasts of No Nation"
• Mark Ruffalo - "Spotlight"
• Mark Rylance - "Bridge of Spies"

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS

• Jennifer Jason Leigh - "The Hateful Eight"
• Rooney Mara - "Carol"
• Alicia Vikander - "Ex Machina"
• Julie Walters - "Brooklyn"
• Kate Winslet - "Steve Jobs"

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY

• Bridge of Spies
• Ex Machina
• The Hateful Eight
• Inside Out
• Spotlight

BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY

• The Big Short
• Brooklyn
• Carol
• Room
• Steve Jobs

BEST ANIMATED FEATURE

• Inside Out
• Minions
• Shaun the Sheep Movie

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY

• Bridge of Spies
• Carol
• Mad Max: Fury Road
• The Revenant
• Sicario

BEST FILM EDITING

• The Big Short
• Bridge of Spies
• Mad Max: Fury Road
• The Martian
• The Revenant

BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN

• Bridge of Spies
• Carol
• Mad Max: Fury Road
• The Martian
• Star Wars: The Force Awakens

BEST COSTUME DESIGN

• Brooklyn
• Carol
• Cinderella
• The Danish Girl
• Mad Max: Fury Road

BEST SOUND

• Bridge of Spies
• Mad Max: Fury Road
• The Martian
• The Revenant
• Star Wars: The Force Awakens

BEST VISUAL EFFECTS

• Ant-Man
• Ex Machina
• Mad Max: Fury Road
• The Martian
• Star Wars: The Force Awakens

BEST MAKEUP & HAIR

• Brooklyn
• Carol
• The Danish Girl
• Mad Max: Fury Road
• The Revenant

BEST ORIGINAL MUSIC

• Bridge of Spies
• The Hateful Eight
• The Revenant
• Sicario
• Star Wars: The Force Awakens

BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM

• The Assassin
• Force Majeure
• Theeb
• Timbuktu
• Wild Tales

BEST DOCUMENTARY

• Amy
• Cartel Land
• He Named Me Malala
• Listen To Me Marlon
• Sherpa

BEST BRITISH FILM

• 45 Years
• Amy
• Brooklyn
• The Danish Girl
• Ex Machina
• The Lobster

BEST BRITISH SHORT FILM

• Elephant
• Mining Poems or Odes
• Operator
• Over
• Samuel-613

BEST BRITISH ANIMATED SHORT

• Edmond
• Manoman
• Prologue

OUTSTANDING BRITISH DEBUT

• Stephen Fingleton (Writer/Director) - "The Survivalist"
• Alex Garland (Director) - "Ex Machina"
• Debbie Tucker Green (Writer/Director) - "Second Coming"
• Sean Mcallister (Director/Producer) & Elhum Shakerifar (Producer) - "A Syrian Love Story"
• Naji Abu Nowar (Writer/Director) & Rupert Lloyd (Producer) - "Theeb"

EE RISING STAR

• John Boyega
• Taron Egerton
• Dakota Johnson
• Brie Larson
• Bel Powley

2015 Awards -- Costume Designers Guild

The latest guild to announce their nominees is out. Just like the Art Directors, they break down their nominees into 3 different categories, spreading the wealth. No big snubs, except possibly The Revenant?

COSTUME DESIGN -- PERIOD FILM

BROOKLYN
Odile Dicks-Mireaux

CAROL
Sandy Powell

CRIMSON PEAK
Kate Hawley

THE DANISH GIRL
Paco Delgado

TRUMBO
Daniel Orlandi

COSTUME DESIGN -- FANTASY FILM

CINDERELLA
Sandy Powell

EX MACHINA
Sammy Sheldon Differ

THE HUNGER GAMES: MOCKINGJAY - PART 2
Kurt and Bart

MAD MAX: FURY ROAD
Jenny Beavan

STAR WARS: THE FORCE AWAKENS
Michael Kaplan

COSTUME DESIGN -- CONTEMPORARY FILM

BEASTS OF NO NATION
Jenny Eagan

JOY
Michael Wilkinson

KINGSMAN: THE SECRET SERVICE
Arianne Phillips

THE MARTIAN
Janty Yates

YOUTH
Carlo Poggioli

2015 Awards -- USC Scripter

The USC Scripter is unique in that the award is given to both the screenplay AND the source material, whether it's a book, article, or otherwise. The only big surprise to me this time is no Carol, and a great mention for The End of the Tour, which has been sadly overlooked this award season.

THE BIG SHORT
Adam McKay & Charles Randolph
Adapted from Michael Lewis's nonfiction work "The Big Short: Inside the Doomsday Machine"

BROOKLYN
Nick Hornby
Adapted from the novel by Colm Toibin

THE END OF THE TOUR
Donald Margulies
Adapted from David Lipky's memoir "Although of Course You End Up Becoming Yourself: A Road Trip with David Foster Wallace"

THE MARTIAN
Drew Goddard
Adapted from the novel by Andy Weir

ROOM
Emma Donoghue
Adapted from her novel

2015 Awards -- Writers Guild of America (WGA)

The Writers Guild has announced their nominees. It's always a mixed bag with them, because every year there are several prominent films that end up being ineligible. For these awards, only WGA members are eligible. These year, ineligible films included Inside Out, The Hateful Eight, Ex Machina, Mad Max, Room, Son of Saul, The Danish Girl, 45 Years, Brooklyn, and Anomalisa. So yeah, as usual, take these with a grain of salt. 

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY

BRIDGE OF SPIES
Matt Charman, Ethan Coen & Joel Coen

SICARIO
Taylor Sheridan

SPOTLIGHT
Josh Singer & Tom McCarthy

STRAIGHT OUTTA COMPTON
Jonathan Herman, Andrea Berloff; Story by S. Leigh Savidge, Alan Wenkus & Andrea Berloff

TRAINWRECK
Amy Schumer

 BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY

THE BIG SHORT
Charles Randolph & Adam McKay
Based on the Book by Michael Lewis

CAROL
Phyllis Nagy
Based on the Novel 'The Price of Salt' by Patricia Highsmith

THE MARTIAN
Drew Goddard
Based on the Novel by Andy Weir

STEVE JOBS
Aaron Sorkin
Based on the Book by Walter Isaacson

TRUMBO
John McNamara
Based on the Biography by Bruce Cook

BEST DOCUMENTARY SCREENPLAY

BEING CANADIAN
Robert Cohen

GOING CLEAR: SCIENTOLOGY AND THE PRISON OF BELIEF
Alex Gibney

KURT COBAIN: MONTAGE OF HECK
Brett Morgen

PROPHET'S PREY
Amy J. Berg

Film Review -- INFINITELY POLAR BEAR (2015)

Manic depression and bi-polar disorder are on the table in Infinitely Polar Bear. In a Golden Globe nominated turn, Mark Ruffalo plays Cam Stuart, a father struggling with his own demons when he is put in a role of responsibility of his two daughters. He sees this as an opportunity to reconnect with his ex-wife Maggie (played well by Zoe Saldana), when she decides leaves town to further her education. Thankfully it’s not a case of parental desertion, but instead building herself academically so she can make a better life for her girls. The relationship between the two is messy, a constant battle, and still very loving even after the breakup, which is refreshing to see.

In a story that could’ve been very serious and over-handed, thankfully Polar Bear treats the subject matter with a light touch. It makes the film much more accessible and easier to digest. It’s certainly more of a comedy than you would think, given the title and subject matter. While this takes away the gravitas and intensity, it invariable works in favor of the whole film.

Ruffalo shines, playing a man who’s mind is constantly on the move, switching tasks, for better and worse. His disease isn’t one of great ups-and-downs, but more a substantial, constant battle with himself. His eccentricities are many and random. He seems to be able to do everything he ever wants or needs to know, from sewing a skirt to making chocolate truffles, from karate to small construction projects. A jack-of-all-trades sort who is unfortunately trapped inside his own mind.

His daughters are strong-willed and a bit of a handful, which doesn’t make his task any easier. But they are also brilliant and outspoken, worthy of better than their current situation will allow them.

While the film may not do anything revolutionary, it’s still a pleasant watch, with several worthy performances. The characters are well defined, and while the storyline has a bit of a one-note, repetitive feel at times, the overall narrative makes you care enough about the people you’re watching to give way to a finale that seems just right.

My Rating: B

2015 Awards -- American Society of Cinematographers (ASC)

Always my favorite of the tech categories to watch. The Cinematography guild has announced their nominees for the year. Some very, very worthy choices, in my opinion, coming from several of the best lens-men in the business.

ACHIEVEMENT IN CINEMATOGRAPHY

BRIDGE OF SPIES
Janusz Kaminski

CAROL
Ed Lachman, ASC

MAD MAX: FURY ROAD
John Seale, ASC, ACS

THE REVENANT
Emmanuel Lubezki, ASC, AMC

SICARIO
Roger Deakins, ASC, BSC

Roger Deakins is on his 14th!!!! nomination. He won 3 times previously, for Skyfall, The Shawshank Redemption, and The Man Who Wasn't There. Crazy to think that he's still NEVER WON AN OSCAR!

Janusz Kaminski is on his 6th nomination. 5 of those films were previous works with Spielberg, plus his fantastic work in The Diving Bell and he Butterfly. His most recent nod was for Lincoln.

Ed Lachman is on his 3rd nomination. He was nominated for the film Far From Heaven (also from director Todd Haynes), and was also nom'd in the miniseries category for HBO's Mildred Pierce.

Emmanuel Lubezki is currently on one of the hottest streaks in Hollywood, with his 6th nomination here. Of the previous 5, he has won this award 4 times, for Children of Men, The Tree of Life, Gravity and Birdman. He also won the Oscar the last 2 previous years.

John Seale brings in his 5th nomination. He has one previous win for The English Patient, and received other nominations in the 80s, 90s and 00s, from Rain Man to Cold Mountain.