10 contenders remain in Visual Effects Oscar race

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences today announced that 10 films remain in the running in the Visual Effects category for the 88th Academy Awards®.

The Academy’s Visual Effects Branch Executive Committee determined the shortlist. All members of the Visual Effects Branch will now be invited to view 10-minute excerpts from each of the shortlisted films on Saturday, January 9, 2016. Following the screenings, the members will vote to nominate five films for final Oscar consideration.

9 Foreign Language Films Advance in Oscar Race

Nine features will advance to the next round of voting in the Foreign Language Film category for the 88th Academy Awards®. Eighty films had originally been considered in the category.

Foreign Language Film nominations for 2015 are being determined in two phases.

The Phase I committee, consisting of several hundred Los Angeles-based Academy members, screened the original submissions in the category between mid-October and December 14. The group’s top six choices, augmented by three additional selections voted by the Academy’s Foreign Language Film Award Executive Committee, constitute the shortlist.

112 Original Scores in 2015 Oscar Race

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences today announced that 112 scores from eligible feature-length motion pictures released in 2015 are in contention for nominations in the Original Score category for the 88th Academy Awards®.

A Reminder List of works submitted in the Original Score category will be made available with a nominations ballot to all members of the Music Branch, who shall vote in the order of their preference for not more than five achievements. The five achievements receiving the highest number of votes will become the nominations for final voting for the award.

The American Film Institute announces winners for the AFI Awards 2015

It’s once again time for AFI AWARDS, an annual celebration of outstanding achievements in the moving image arts that recognizes the year’s most culturally and artistically significant works of both film and television. And what a stellar year its been.

AFI AWARDS aren’t like other accolades about the art form — they acknowledge the importance of the collaborative nature of film and TV production.

As chosen by the jury, the 10 most outstanding movies and 10 most outstanding television programs of 2015 are:

Library of Congress announces 25 additions to the National Film Registry for 2015

2015 National Film Registry: Ghostbusters Gets the Call
Top Gun, L.A. Confidential and Edison’s Sneeze Among Film Additions

Acting Librarian of Congress David Mao announced today the annual selection of 25 motion pictures to be named to the National Film Registry of the Library of Congress. These films, which epitomize the diversity and richness of the nation’s cinematic heritage, have been identified as motion pictures that deserve to be preserved because of their cultural, historic or aesthetic importance.

"Selecting a film for the National Film Registry recognizes its importance to cinema and America’s cultural and artistic history," said Mao. "The registry is an invaluable way to advance public awareness of the richness, creativity and variety of our nation’s film heritage."

Under the terms of the National Film Preservation Act, each year the Librarian of Congress names to the National Film Registry 25 motion pictures that are "culturally, historically or aesthetically" significant. The films must be at least 10 years old. The Librarian makes the annual registry selections after conferring with the distinguished members of the National Film Preservation Board (NFPB) and Library film staff, as well as considering thousands of public nominations. The public is urged to nominate titles for next year’s registry at the NFPB’s website.

7 features advance in race for makeup and hairstyling Oscar

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences today announced that seven films remain in competition in the Makeup and Hairstyling category for the 88th Academy Awards®.

On Saturday, January 9, 2016, all members of the Academy's Makeup Artists and Hairstylists Branch will be invited to view 10-minute excerpts from each of the seven shortlisted films. Following the screenings, members will vote to nominate three films for final Oscar consideration.

2015 Black List scripts announced [UPDATED]

The Black List was compiled from the suggestions of over 250 film executives, each of whom contributed the names of up to ten of his or her favorite scripts that were written in, or are somehow uniquely associated with, 2015 and will not have begun principal photography during this calendar year.

This year, scripts had to receive at least six mentions to be included on the Black List. All reasonable effort has been made to confirm the information contained herein. The Black List apologizes for all misspellings, misattributions, incorrect representation identification, and questionable 2015 affiliations.

305 feature films in contention for 2015 Best Picture Oscar

Three hundred five feature films are eligible for the 2015 Academy Awards®, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced today.

To be eligible for 88th Academy Awards consideration, feature films must open in a commercial motion picture theater in Los Angeles County by midnight, December 31, and begin a minimum run of seven consecutive days.

Under Academy rules, a feature-length motion picture must have a running time of more than 40 minutes and must have been exhibited theatrically on 35mm or 70mm film, or in a qualifying digital format.

Toronto Film Critics Association announces 2015 award winners

Todd Haynes’s Carol takes Best Picture, Best Director
The Forbidden Room, My Internship in Canada and Sleeping Giant compete for Rogers $100,000 Best Canadian Film Award

Carol, the swooning tale of a life-changing love affair, won two top prizes at the 2015 awards of the Toronto Film Critics Association.

Todd Haynes’ 1950s melodrama was named Best Picture, and Haynes named Best Director. The film’s stars, Cate Blanchett and Rooney Mara, were runners-up for this year’s Best Actress and Best Supporting Actress prizes, respectively.

The TFCA named Tom Hardy Best Actor for the second consecutive year for his dual role as homicidal twin crime lords Reggie and Ronnie Kray in Brian Helgeland’s Legend; he’d won the 2014 award for holding the screen all by his lonesome in Steven Knight’s solo drama Locke.

The 28th European Film Awards 2015 – winners

The European Film Academy held their 29th European Film Awards ceremony tonight at the Haus der Berliner Festspiele in Berlin.

The top prizewinner of the evening was Paolo Sorrentino's Youth (La giovinezza). It took the biggest prize for European Film, as well as the awards for European Director and European Actor (Michael Caine). Additionally, it's star Michael Caine was also presented with an Honourary Award. Another Sorrentino film The Great Beauty (La grande bellezza) won those same three categories two years ago, and then went on to win Best Foreign Language Film at the Oscars.

The European Actress award went to Charlotte Rampling for her role in Andrew Haigh's 45 Years. She too was presented with an additional honour, the European Film Academy Lifetime Achievement Award.

74 Original Songs vie for 2015 Oscar

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences today announced that 74 songs from eligible feature-length motion pictures released in 2015 are in contention for nominations in the Original Song category for the 88th Academy Awards.

During the nominations process, all voting members of the Music Branch will receive a Reminder List of works submitted in the category and a DVD copy of the song clips. Members will be asked to watch the clips and then vote in the order of their preference for not more than five achievements in the category. The five achievements receiving the highest number of votes will become the nominations for final voting for the award. A maximum of two songs may be nominated from any one film.

To be eligible, a song must consist of words and music, both of which are original and written specifically for the film. A clearly audible, intelligible, substantive rendition of both lyric and melody must be used in the body of the film or as the first music cue in the end credits.

Nominations announced for the 73rd Golden Globe Awards

Carol, The Revenant, Steve Jobs and The Big Short led the the nominations for the 73rd Golden Globe Awards, announced early in the morning today, December 10. Among the TV nominees the highlights were American Crime, Fargo, Mr. Robot, Outlander, Transparent and Wolf Hall, with three nominations each.

The nominations were introduced by HFPA president Lorenzo Soria and announced by America Ferrera, Angela Bassett, Chloe Grace Moretz and Dennis Quaid.

For both films and TV this year’s nominations made it clear that this would be a wide open race, with no clear favorites. With five nominations – best motion picture, drama; best performance by an actress, drama for both Cate Blanchett and Rooney Mara; best director, Todd Haynes; and best original score, Carter Burwell – Carol leaps to the forefront but The Big Short, The Revenant and Steve Jobs are right behind, with four nominations each. The Revenant and The Big Short have an important advantage, though – both were included in the best motion picture categories, for drama and musical or comedy, respectively.

Nominations announced for the 22nd Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards

Nominees for the 22nd Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards for outstanding individual, cast and ensemble performances in film and television of 2015, as well as the nominees for outstanding action performances by film and television stunt ensembles were announced this morning at the Pacific Design Center’s SilverScreen Theater in West Hollywood.

SAG-AFTRA Executive Vice President Gabrielle Carteris introduced Anna Faris (Mom, The House Bunny) and Anthony Mackie (Captain America: The Winter Soldier, The Hurt Locker), who announced the nominees for this year’s Actors® live on TNT, TBS, truTV, sagawards.tntdrama.com and truTV.com. Prior to that, SAG Awards Committee Chair JoBeth Williams and Committee Member Jason George announced the stunt ensemble nominees during a live webcast on sagawards.tntdrama.com. A replay of both announcements is available for viewing on sagawards.tntdrama.com.

TIFF announces Canada’s Top Ten for 2015

Canada’s Top Ten Film Festival expands with three-city simulcast and coast-to-coast screenings
Celebrated lineup includes works by Patricia Rozema, Guy Maddin, Philippe Falardeau, Alan Zweig, plus an onstage conversation with Kiefer Sutherland

TIFF salutes the country’s cinematic superstars tonight, revealing the Canada’s Top Ten Film Festival lineup of the top 10 features, shorts and student shorts for 2015. Established in 2001, the festival celebrates and promotes contemporary Canadian cinema and raises awareness of Canadian achievements in film. Running January 8 to 17, 2016 at TIFF Bell Lightbox in Toronto, the 10-day event presents public screenings of the selected films accompanied by introductions and Q&A sessions with filmmakers, as well as special events, industry panels and free engagements. On January 16, Golden Globe–, Emmy- and Screen Actors Guild Award– winning Canadian actor Kiefer Sutherland will take the stage for an intimate discussion about his fascinating career. The 1985 landmark film My American Cousin rounds out the lineup as the festival’s Canadian Open Vault selection.

20 Contenders Advance in the Visual Effects Oscar Race

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences today announced that 20 films are in the running in the Visual Effects category for the 88th Academy Awards®.

The Academy’s Visual Effects Branch Executive Committee determined the preliminary shortlist. This year, in the Visual Effects category, the number of eligible films initially shortlisted for further consideration was increased to a maximum of 20 titles. The number of films that will be shortlisted for nominations voting remains at 10, which will be announced later this month.

IIDEX Canada 2015 award winners and designs

Baker Brothers' truly wooden coffee table

IIDEX just wrapped up two intense days showcasing interior design, furniture and architecture in Toronto. Lectures, workshops, guest speakers, breakfasts, receptions, awards and dozens of exhibit booths attracted the best of Canada's design and architcture industries.

Some images that caught our eye:

Third edition of The Shortest Day: a treat for families, kids and movie-lovers of all ages

The Shortest Day returns for a third year across the country from December 18 to 21, 2015, with an outstanding program of new, classic and award-winning shorts by some of Canada’s most talented filmmakers. This year’s free event—a fun way for families and movie-lovers to celebrate the lead-up to the winter solstice on December 21, the shortest day of the year, and usher in the holiday season—features 28 shorts organized into four thematic programs: Kids (under 8, 61 minutes), Family (56 minutes), Musical (16+, 74 minutes) and Dramas and Comedies (16+, 91 minutes).

Among the shorts from Ontario-based filmmakers this year is Bacon & God’s Wrath (Dramas and Comedies program) from director Sol Friedman. Bacon & God’s Wrath screened in the Short Cuts Programme at the 2015 Toronto International Film Festival. Friedman’s short, an endearing mixed-media docu-collage, tells the story of a 90-year-old Jewish woman who reflects on her life’s experiences as she prepares to try bacon for the first time.

New York Film Critics Circle Awards announces winners for 2015

The New York Film Critics Circle held its voting for their NYFCC Awards this morning and have announced its award winners for the year 2015. The big winner was the Todd Haynes lesbian-themed drama Carol. It won for Best Picture, Best Director (Haynes), Best Screenplay (Phyllis Nagy), and Best Cinematographer (Edward Lachman).

While Spotlight was the top prizewinner at this weekend's Gotham Independent Film Awards, its only win from the NYFCC was Best Actor for Michael Keaton. Neither film featured prominently in yesterday's awards selection by the National Board of Review. Spotlight received a mention as one of the top ten films of the year, while Carol was omitted entirely.

15 Documentary Features Advance in 2015 Oscar Race

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences today announced that 15 films in the Documentary Feature category will advance in the voting process for the 88th Academy Awards. One hundred twenty-four films were originally submitted in the category.

The Academy’s Documentary Branch determined the shortlist in a preliminary round of voting. Documentary Branch members will now select the five nominees from among the 15 titles.

The 88th Academy Awards nominations will be announced live on Thursday, January 14, 2016, at 5:30 a.m. PT at the Academy’s Samuel Goldwyn Theater in Beverly Hills.

National Board of Review Announces 2015 Award Winners

2015 Gala to be held on Tuesday, January 5, 2016 hosted by Willie Geist

The National Board of Review has named Mad Max: Fury Road the 2015 Best Film of the Year.

NBR President Annie Schulhof said, “2015 has been a banner year for popular cinema. We are thrilled to be awarding George Miller and Ridley Scott, two iconic filmmakers at the top of their game, while also celebrating the next generation of talent.”

The 2015 William K Everson Film History Award recipient is Cecilia De Mille Presley, the granddaughter of legendary director, Cecil B. DeMille. As Vice Chair of the National Film Preservation Foundation, she has devoted her life to film preservation. In honor of her grandfather’s legacy she has co-authored the book CECIL B. DEMILLE: THE ART OF THE HOLLYWOOD EPIC.

25th Annual IFP Gotham Independent Film Award Winners Announced

The Independent Filmmaker Project (IFP) tonight announced the winners of the 25h Annual Gotham Independent Film Awards at its awards ceremony held at Cipriani Wall Street in New York City.

Winning the Best Feature, Best Screenplay, and a Special Jury Award for Ensemble Performance was Spotlight, director Tom McCarthy’s dramatic retelling of the Boston Globe’s investigative unit’s coverage in 2002 of the Archdiocese of Boston sex abuse scandal. McCarthy also shared Spotlight’s Best Screenplay win with co-writer Josh Singer.

The award for Best Documentary went to The Look of Silence, Joshua Oppenheimer’s film that follows an optician as he confronts the men who killed the brother he never knew during the 1965-66 Indonesian genocide. The harrowing and moving documentary serves as a companion piece to Oppenheimer’s The Act of Killing, for which he previously won the 2013 Gotham Award for Best Documentary.