Update: Deadline Extended to Wednesday, Jan 14th, Midnight Pacific Time
For the 7th year in a row, to help us better understand the Academy’s voting system, we’re running a Simulated Oscar Ballot built by our own accounting wizard, Rob Y. AD readers represent a demographic that doesn’t match the AMPAS — and yet, in spite of our differences, the results of past years have shown surprising alignment with the choices of Oscar voters. We always want to tell our voters that we’d rather you fill out your ballot with your own preferences rather than try to guess what the Academy might do. Rob says it best: “Pretend you are an honorary member of the Academy, and you are asked to nominate films in their respective categories. Make your selections accordingly.” Simple as that. Have at it!
Voting for the nominations phase will close on January 11 at 10:00 PM PST.
Johan,
The news that Whiplash falls under Adapted came well into the simulated ballot. It would have caused a serious logistical mess to have everyone redo their votes. It makes more sense to keep it where it is.
How do I vote Whiplash in Adapted Screenplay, like at the actual Oscars?
My only qualm with your list is the list.
If you really insist on extending the deadline, I might actually use the time to watch the films I’ve voted for…
Well, I wasn’t sure what people would be putting her down for. lol 😛
Antoinette, my only qualm with your list is there’s not enough Scarlett Johannson!!!
I wanted to vote for Eva Green in WHITE BIRD IN A BLIZZARD, why is it not eligible?
My ballot.
Best Picture
Exodus: Gods and Kings
Interstellar
Captain America: the Winter Soldier
The Hobbit: the Battle of the Five Armies
Lucy
Best Director
Christopher Nolan
Alejandro González Iñárritu
David Fincher
Jeremy Saulnier
Wes Anderson
Best Actress
Scarlett Johannson, Lucy
Scarlett Johannson, Captain America: The Winter Soldier
Scarlett Johannson, Under the Skin
Marion Cotillard, The Immigrant
Anne Hathaway, Interstellar
Best Actor
Tom Hardy, Locke
Andy Serkis, Dawn of the Planet of the Apes
Martin Freeman, The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies
Jake Gyllenhaal, Nightcrawler
Michael Keaton, Birdman
Best Supporting Actress
Mackenzie Foy, Interstellar
Tilda Swinton, Snowpiercer
Agata Kulesza, Ida
Viola Davis, Get On Up
Carrie Coon, Gone Girl
Best Supporting Actor
Benicio Del Toro, Inherent Vice
Josh Brolin, Inherent Vice
Joel Edgerton, Exodus: Gods and Kings
Riz Ahmed, Nightcrawler
Edward Norton, Birdman
Best Cinematography
Exodus: Gods and Kings
Dawn of the Planet of the Apes
Interstellar
Unbroken
Godzilla
I ordered them strategically. And I skipped the writing categories.
I have the same problem; I have not been able to see American Sniper, Whiplash, Foxcatcher, Selma, Most Violent Year, etc. I was lucky that I saw “Birdman” during the ONE week that it was playing locally, and Boyhood came and went so quickly missed it. (I am watching right now as I type this.) Due to my Herculean persistence and grand expenditure of time (8 seconds), I somehow was ale to leap past the favorites to pick Ida, Two Days, One Night, and Unbroken for a few categories.
My tpp few for each category:
Best Picture: 1) Gone Girl 2) Birdman
Director: 1) Linklater, 2) Inarritu
Screenplays: 1) Birdman 2) Grand Budapest, 1) Gone Girl 2) Imitation Game
Best Actress 1) Rosamund Pike, 2) Marion Cotillard—I didn’t see her in the Dardennes film but wanted it to be recognized. I voted for Jones and Adams as well, both of whom I’ve seen.
Best Actor: 1) Michael Keaton 2) Eddie Redmayne
Supporting Actor: 1) JK Simmons 2) Edward Norton I didn’t see Simmons but didn’t love anybody else enough to put them tops. My 4 and 5 were Matthew Goode and Charlie Cox.
Supporting Actress: 1) Jessica Chastain 2) Agata Kulesza in “Ida”
Cinematography: Deakins, Birdman, Ida
It’s rough when I haven’t seen all the films. The preferential ballot really makes you more likely to pick people you think might not get in otherwise. I can see even more clearly how Affleck and Bigelow may have gotten snubbed.
Wait, I just realized: Are you talking about the Denis Lavant JOURNEY TO THE WEST directed by Ming-liang Tsai? Or the Stephen Chow JOURNEY TO THE WEST? I only saw the Chow one.
Regarding everyone’s complaints above:
These were the times I had to scroll all the way down into the master list:
1. To put WE ARE THE BEST! in my number 3 spot for Best Picture
2. To put Marion Cotillard in THE IMMIGRANT in the top spot for Best Actress
3. To put Agata Kulesza in IDA in the number 4 spot for Best Supporting Actress
4. To put Robert Pattinson in THE ROVER in the number 5 spot for Best Supporting Actor
5. To put NIGHTCRAWLER in the top spot for Best Original Screenplay (this one DID admittedly feel strange. How is that not a frontrunner?)
6. To put LOCKE in the number 5 spot for Best Original Screenplay
7. To put SNOWPIERCER in the top spot for Best Adapted Screenplay
8. To put EDGE OF TOMORROW in the number 4 spot for Best Adapted Screenplay
9. To put WE ARE THE BEST! in the number 5 spot for Best Adapted Screenplay
10. To put THE IMMIGRANT in the top spot for Best Cinematography
I only felt confused about NIGHTCRAWLER not being on the top tier for Original Screenplay, otherwise the movies I was choosing that didn’t fall into the frontrunner column (WE ARE THE BEST!, LOCKE, THE IMMIGRANT, THE ROVER, EDGE OF TOMORROW, SNOWPIERCER, IDA) seemed perfectly reasonable being absent there. Nobody’s talking about them, which is exactly why I want to go out of my way to do just that. And for the record, there is a Second tier in most categories that DID feature LOCKE and SNOWPIERCER and several other movies not in the main conversation (like OBVIOUS CHILD).
And for the second concern:
Here are the things I wanted to vote for but could not due to eligibility:
1. THE BABADOOK would have made my top 5 for Best Picture
2. Jennifer Kent for THE BABADOOK would have made my top 5 for Best Director
3. Essie Davis for THE BABADOOK would have made my number one choice for Best Actress
4. Julianne Moore for MAPS TO THE STARS would have made my top 5 for Best Supporting Actress
5. Evan Bird for MAPS TO THE STARS would have made my top 5 for Best Supporting Actor
6. MAPS TO THE STARS would have made my top 5 for Best Original Screenplay
I know Paddy cited NORTE, THE END OF HISTORY, GOODBYE TO LANGUAGE, NYMPHOMANIAC, THE MISSING PICTURE, JOURNEY TO THE WEST and CONCRETE NIGHT as films he would have included. I’ve only seen one of those (JOURNEY TO THE WEST) and it would never occur to me to include that in any of the major categories (perhaps some technical ones) we vote on here. I absolutely want to see the rest of those films, and won’t speak to their worthiness until I do, but NYMPHOMANIAC is a problematic situation anyways. Surely you can’t count it as a whole, since it was split into 2 parts well before an extended Director’s Cut was released, right? And then it becomes an issue of: do you reward Von Trier/Gainsbourg/et al for Part 1 (which was considered a must-see) or Part 2 (which I am told was a great big Fuck You to the audience in the grand tradition of Von Trier Fuck Yous)? I’m assuming Part 1 would be the stronger candidate, but isn’t Charlotte Gainsbourg more of a supporting performance in that before taking the lead in Part 2? And is Stacy Martin worthy of sitting in the top 5 lead actresses this year? Is Von Trier’s work in Part 1 SPECIFICALLY good enough for him to make the final 5 in Director or Screenplay? Best Picture for Part 1? I’m playing a bit of Devil’s Advocate here, honestly. If you think it’s worthy of making the 5, I won’t argue with you. There were only 2 movies this year I couldn’t reward that I felt worthy to be in the conversation. BABADOOK in particular was one of my 5 favorite films of the year. It kinda sucks but it also means I got to spotlight some other underappreciated things instead, like Pattinson in THE ROVER or LOCKE in Original Screenplay. I say bypass the frontrunners and find something else that isn’t getting enough love and feature it in the place of the ones you can’t. That seems like as good a response to this issue as any.
Antoinette – I’m in a decent-sized city (Omaha) and Inherent Vice is only playing in the little art house/indie theater where Alexander Payne serves on the Board of Directors. If not for that theater, which has only been around 12 years or so, this city would never get half these movies when they are reportedly “in theaters everywhere.” The way that indie films are distributed to theaters is broken. I wish they would just charge $12-15 or something for an on-demand rental so I could watch these at home. I see that as being realistic for indies made on a low budget (and they could still release in theaters in major cities to recoup costs). To date, Omaha hasn’t gotten “Foxcatcher” or “Whiplash.” I’m livid about it.
for what’s its worth
Best Picture:
1. Boyhood
2. Whiplash
3. Birdman
4. Interstellar
5. Inherent Vice
—
6. Gone Girl
7. The Grand Budapest Hotel
8. Foxcatcher
9. Selma
Best Director:
1. Linklater
2. Inarritu
3. Chazelle
4. Fincher
5. Miller
Rob, thank you for your explanation and your “it is outweighed” comment because I think that’s a fair way to defend your decision. I also appreciate your acknowledgement that there is in fact a bias.
And thank you LC, too, for adding a second voice to an opinion I was starting to feel alone on.
🙂
Well I was waiting until I could see INHERENT VICE but guess what? It’s not playing here. Apparently where I live is not considered “everywhere”. So…. fuck ’em. I’ll do this later this morning.
I, for one, appreciate the front-runners and second-tier films at the top of the drop-down menus. If you know the film you want (be it X-Men or what have you), you can simply start to type that movie and it comes up for you anyway. There’s a reason that AD is actually a decent simulation of the real Oscar nominations ballots and not just a “fantasy ballot” type of thing. We are all plugged into the awards races and awards season here, not just people who are regulars of IGN or Marvel message boards who have organized a campaign to jump over to this site en masse and throw the AD balloting system for a loop.
Regarding my order. I chose to do that because scrolling through 323 titles to find Whiplash—a frontrunner—is a bit tedious, especially on a phone. This was done completely out of convenience, especially considering having to scroll through a total of 50 drop down menus to fully complete all the ballots.
So who decides who is a frontrunner? Sasha. Although I think she had 0% knowledge that I am doing this here. Scroll up to the top of this page and you will see on the right a list of Frontrunners. If it was listed there for Best Picture, it made it into the top group. If the film was considered a Frontrunner in Directing, Acting, Writing, Cinematography, or Editing without a Best Picture Frontrunner status (e.g. Still Alice) then it made it into the second grouping. The only category I did something different was for Screenplays, as those lists had to be split. I did put the frontrunner statuses for each Screenplay category in their own grouping.
Sasha rightfully decides what is a contender. That’s what this site is all about.
I agree that there is a modicum of bias by doing this list, but I think it is outweighed by the convenience to the reader. If you think about it alphabetical also presents its own bias. But then we could do a random order and leave it to the reader to stumble on their nominee somewhere in the list of 323 films.
“…the helpful sorting would have to have some hypnotic effect on the brains of voters that turn them all into zombies controlled by Dr Rob.” “…all the other voters are being led around by Rob through rings in their noses.” I love you Ryan. If only I used my power for good.
seriously, how about stop trying to find a devious underhanded agenda lurking behind every word typed on this site.
I always thought you had a backhanded agenda.
Having these films listed higher in the pecking order might make quite a few stop and think. It’s not just about those who go into this with them as their undisputed favorites, it’s about the undecided who aren’t going to bother to scroll past the first two tiers. If I’m not mistaken this is a typical criticism of any ballot though, that the the top billed names have an unfair advantage in picking up votes from the indecisive voters,. Anyways, just playing Devil’s Ad…
I encourage everybody to scroll all the way the alphabetical list, consider all 323 titles, and give Mom’s Night Out your fair unbiased consideration for Best Film of 2015.
“an unfair advantage in picking up votes from the indecisive voters”
We don’t have indecisive voters at Awards Daily.
From what I recall of my stats classes there’s definitely some sort of bias created in arranging the titles as such…and for you to lump the movies I mentioned which all have 90+ RT scores as “ridiculous” is frankly more ridiculous. I realize that the chances of these titles being selected is slim to none because of the way the AMPAS operates but why shouldn’t these highly praised blockbusters at least deserve a fair chance?
While I’m more than capable of scrolling through to find them I do have to agree that the setup is indeed a bit unfair, at least for the quality blockbusters that were released this past year; Guardians of the Galaxy, Edge of Tomorrow, Dawn of the Planet of the Apes, X Men: Days of Future Past, etc. Relegating these among “the rest” just contributes to further genre bias and I have to wonder if say Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2 wasn’t even included in the first or second tier in its respective year…
Relegating these among “the rest” just contributes to further genre bias
Anyone who feels that way should feel extra-motivated and fired-up. You should feel determined to go against the grain to make sure your preference for genre films goes on record.
The ballot is not unfair unless it prevents you from voting for your favorites. If the ballot layout inspires you to rebel against it, then yay!, that’s great, we trust that you will do what you want.
Nothing stops anyone from naming Draft Day, Endless Love, Mockingjay, Pompeii, and Let’s Be Cops as the Five Best Movies of 2014. Do it. Let your freak flag fly.
What would be unfair is if Rob made it easy on himself and tossed out all those 200 ridiculous titles altogether.
If the argument is just: “hey, I like Days of Future Past so EVERYBODY who votes has to churn past all my beloved superhero movies before they can find the movies they like,” then I say that argument is weak.
Understood, Ryan. I appreciate that you’ve noted the suggestion and I appreciate that you’ve decided to keep it that way. There really wasn’t a need for an argument! 🙂
For the record, THIS was not a complaint of mine: “Nobody has ever complained about the convenience of finding their favorites quickly,”–you kind of attributed it to me and I don’t acknowledge it 😛
Ryan, thank you for taking a simple observation farther than it needed to go and making personal accusations and assumptions instead of considering the merits of it. If I was wrong it is that I was casual and short about a critique that could have used elaboration–for that I apologize. But I stand by it. Let’s move on?
I’m anxious to see how the PGA and WGA roll out this week. Eek. I just learned that The Theory of Everything and Selma aren’t eligible with WGA, which might matter more to Selma’s chances than Theory’s.
Most of us like the way Rob has designed the ballot, benutty. In 7 years, nobody has ever accused the layout of the ballot of being “unfair.”
Nobody has ever complained about the convenience of finding their favorites quickly, and then, if they need to, doing a deeper dig to find some less typical favorites.
I don’t think people vote by going down the list of 323 movies and stopping to ponder, one title at a time, “hmm, did I love Mom’s Night Out, or not? … Was The November Man one of the year’s 10 best?… Was Draft Day maybe as good as Birdman? ”
No. That’s not how people vote. People have their favorites already in their heads, and the task of completing the ballot is made simple: just find the right names to click. Rob’s clusters of most prominent films helps to facilitate that.
Rob makes it easy for a lot of people to find Whiplash without have to scroll past 323 other titles. I think that’s a good thing. You don’t. ok, suggestion noted. But most of us think the ballot works beautifully just the way it is.
Tell him Ryan!!!!
Benutty, I didn’t mind the order of the films, I found it, as Ryan said, convenient. Not every movie I wanted to put on my ballot was in the shortcuts, but it didn’t bother me to go go through the long list. The titles that are separated from the others are the most talked about on this site. So when Awardsdaily offers a simulated ballot it makes sense to me to single out those movies readers seem to care about.
Btw, I chose to post my picks to do my own FYC campaign…
how about stop complaining and fill out the ballot! we are all very impressed with your vast knowledge of 2014 films. now shut up and play along, otherwise make your own simulated oscar ballot.
Ryan, you just woke up. Cool your jets for a minute and admit that there IS an unfair bias associated with listing certain films ahead of others–it’s even broken into THREE groups for godssake: the ones the creator thinks are most likely to get votes (based on what?), the second tier most likely, and then everything else. It’s well-known that attention spans do have an expiration date and even the most mavericky of people will lose interest in a search and the films at the bottom of the list are much less likely to be chosen.
The criticism is that as much as this site wants to buck the trends of the race it sure reinforces them every chance it gets! I love this site. Do I want it to continue to grow and improve itself and the race? Fuck yes. Is me calling this a bias a critique? Yes. Is your reaction to my opinion over the top? Yes. Stop being so defensive and try taking some criticism and turning it into positive change on improving your site!
You’re assuming I wish to be daring instead of actually choosing my favorites. I don’t care to post my picks here because that’s what the ballot is for.
admit that there IS an unfair bias associated with listing certain films ahead of others
There’s nothing “UNFAIR” about it because there’s absolutely nothing that prevents anyone from completely ignoring the tiered system. There is ZERO impediment to skipping right past all of Rob’s hard work, in his effort to make voting easier and faster for people who will want to vote for some of the most typical choices — all the extra work Rob did that most people will appreciate instead of bitching about.
In order for the system to be unfair, the helpful sorting would have to have some hypnotic effect on the brains of voters that turn them all into zombies controlled by Dr Rob. Maybe you fear that. Most normal people do not.
You’re assuming I wish to be daring instead of actually choosing my favorites.
Did you have any trouble doing that? Did you have any trouble scrolling around to find all your favorites?
If not, then there is no problem with the ballot.
Please give all the other readers at Awards Daily credit for being able to do what they want to do. Just like you. You’re not the only person who knows how to skip past the top tier, trust me. Everybody else is just as independent as you are.
Listen to yourself. You make it sound as if you’re the only person with the wherewithal and gumption, stamina and personal integrity to vote for whatever you want.
You act like you’re worried all the other voters are being led around by Rob through rings in their noses. It’s insulting to all the other voters.
obvious bias in the order the films are presented in the drop downs.
that’s not bias. that’s just done to provide voters a reasonable amount of convenience.
seriously, how about stop trying to find a devious underhanded agenda lurking behind every word typed on this site.
90% of voters will find most of the movies they want in the first group of 25 titles. if a person is such a goddamn maverick that none of those 25 titles appeal to him, then that bold maverick should have no problem at all scrolling down to look for his pet favorite in the big list of 323 films. or does that bold daring maverick have to stop and cry first?
tell us your choices, benutty, so we can see how bold and daring you are – assuming you made it back alive from your brave adventures in the wilderness of the longer alphabetical list.
I agree with some of the comments above. I would have loved to vote for Maps To The Stars, Enemy or The Babadook but still…
This is all very true indeed, and most interesting.
Also, I must admit there are Mini-series and TV movies that surely deserve admiration, and I would barely notice the difference, if I weren’t told they were made for TV.
But as far as the AMPAS is concerned its very own existence and prestige rely on the recognition of Motion Picture as a distinctive and “noble” art form, no matter how superficial or even inexistent the difference with other audiovisual creations might seem (Behind The Candelabra, Maps to the Stars,…).
So, the apparently benign and fair request from Paddy might prove to be a very delicate issue for the Academy, an issue which could question its very own legitimacy.
“I gather you mean those few who actually watch the films before voting”
Ha – exactly.
Theaters are best suited for the big entertainments and that will remain. That’s what they are built for, but there’s no reason we should have to troop out to see smaller intimate films. $500 gets you a home screen bigger than some 1980’s multiplexes used to be.
So, no, I don’t believe it’s the death of cinema, but I do believe in its evolution.
“You cannot tell me that most AMPAS voters view films in the cineplex; they watch at home.”
I gather you mean those few who actually watch the films before voting, because when I read “Pretend you are a member of the Academy”, I assumed that meant “Be as careless as possible”.
Also, I don’t mean to nitpick but T. Hanks and Oprah have their own screenings rooms, which helps recreate the theater experience, even when watching screeners.
Our dilemma remains unanswered though: does giving up on viewing films in theaters signal the death of cinema? Or on the contrary does it mean cinema is now everywhere?
Here are my picks!!!
BEST PICTURE
1. WHIPLASH
2. THE DOUBLE
3. TWO DAYS, ONE NIGHT
4. UNDER THE SKIN
5. THE GRAND BUDAPEST HOTEL
BEST DIRECTOR
1. DAMIEN CHAZELLE, WHIPLASH
2. RICHARD AYOADE, THE DOUBLE
3. JONATHAN GLAZER, UNDER THE SKIN
4. WES ANDERSON, THE GRAND BUDAPEST HOTEL
5. XAVIER DOLAN, MOMMY
BEST LEAD ACTOR
1. CHANNING TATUM, FOXCATCHER
2. BILL HADER, THE SKELETON TWINS
3. RALPH FIENNES, THE GRAND BUDAPEST HOTEL
4. JAKE GYLLENHAAL, NIGHTCRAWLER
5. TIMOTHY SPALL, MR. TURNER
BEST LEAD ACTRESS
1. JULIANNE MOORE, STILL ALICE
2. MARION COTILLARD, TWO DAYS ONE NIGHT
3. JENNY SLATE, OBVIOUS CHILD
4. ROSAMUND PIKE, GONE GIRL
5. ANNE DORVAL, MOMMY
BEST SUPP ACTOR
1. J.K. SIMMONS, WHIPLASH
2. ROBERT DUVALL, THE JUDGE
3. ROBERT PATTINSON, THE ROVER
4. PAUL JESSON, MR. TURNER
5. LOGAN LERMAN, FURY
BEST SUPP ACTRESS
1. SUZANNE CLEMENT, MOMMY
2. RENE RUSSO, NIGHTCRAWLER
3. MAGGIE GYLLENHAAL, FRANK
4. TILDA SWINTON, SNOWPIERCER
5. DOROTHY ATKINSON, MR. TURNER
Aw shit, I forgot about The Congress, Steve. Bummer! That would have been near the top of my list across several categories.
I’d wager that at least half of my choices would have been changed had my idea of allowing all titles released in the US this year been taken up. I know I suggested it too late to put it in place, but something’s gotta be done next year.
“…we might as well give up on cinema and call it an antiquity.”
May as well, Christophe.
I have to agree with Paddy. I’ve seen nowhere near the number of films he has, but for the first time doing this simulated voting, there were three choices that I was not able to make because of the Academy rules. I’m a less that average moviegoer and this is the first time it’s happened. That means their rules have not kept up with the times and the way we view movies. Maybe it’s not necessary to include TV/HBO fare, but VOD – most definitely.
You cannot tell me that most AMPAS voters view films in the cineplex; they watch at home. I can’t picture T.Hanks and Rita sidling for a seat in front of Oprah, tipping her jumbo Pepsi into Gail’s lap, interrupting her texting conversation. That is not how “they”do it, so WTF is the rule about?
In the meantime, my apologies to Goodbye to Language, Robin Wright in The Congress, and Julianne/Maps. Oscar says “no, go away.”
I’m pretty sure Noah should be an adapted screenplay (The Bible).
The date being 1/11 is selfish on my part. I am a math professor and classes begin on 1/20. I need to have the previous weekend to prepare for the semester. So that leaves 1/12 – 1/16 to balance tabulating these ballots with a trip to Vegas.
“The academy should think about including films made for TV”
What next? YouTube videos? Cinema is defined by the theater experience. If we start bundling everything together and ignore the importance of theater release, we might as well give up on cinema and call it an antiquity.
Some movies that I haven’t seen are: Selma, Whiplash, Birdman or Foxcatcher. I’m sure they could be on my list, too. Anyway, here are my choices for today:
Picture:
Boyhood – Mommy – Pride – Night Moves – Snowpiercer
Director:
Richard Linklater (Boyhood) – Kelly Reichardt (Night Moves) – Xavier Dolan (Mommy) – Mike Leigh (Mr. Turner) – Ira Sachs (Love Is Strange)
Actress:
Jessica Chastain (Eleanor Rigby) – Anne Dorval (Mommy) – Marion Cotillard (Two Days) – Rosamund Pike (Gone Girl) – Julianne Moore (Still Alice)
Actor:
Jake Gyllenhaal (Nightcrawler) – Jesse Eisenberg (Night Moves) – Tom Hardy (Locke) – Antoine-Olivier Pilon (Mommy) – James McAvoy (Eleanor Rigby)
Supporting Actress:
Patricia Arquette (Boyhood) – Rene Russo (Nightcrawler) – Tilda Swinton (Snowpiercer) – Suzanne Clement (Mommy) – Jessica Gunning (Pride)
Supporting Actor:
Ben Schnetzer (Pride) – George McKay (Pride) – Ethan Hawke (Boyhood) – Andy Serkis (Dawn) – Alfred Molina (Love Is Strange)
Maybe because of these rules the Academy is forced to pick the same films chosen by the critics. Frankly, they are the best of the bunch.
I’ve written this in another thread but the academy really should reevaluate their rules. The way people watch films has changed drastically just in the last 5 years and will keep evolving. A combined theatrical and VOD release makes sense for films with small distributions.
Moreover, the academy should think about including films made for TV. HBO has been making films that is leagues above some of the stuff released in theaters
Oscar rules also shut out a lot of films with VOD releases. I believe you have to show your film for a certain period of time in theatres before releasing it on VOD for it to qualify. That’s an antiquated perspective on American cinema, and an irrelevant one on AD. A lot of these films don’t give a shit about Oscars, but wouldn’t it be great if they could be treated to a little bit of promotion or advocacy on here? Another chance to champion films that won’t get much traction in the awards race, rather than those which will fare well regardless?
It’s just that my suggestion wouldn’t be a radical reinvention of this system. It’d just be more inclusive and more representative of the year in film, or at least the year in American film.
I feel your pain Paddy. But Oscar rules aren’t that stringent either. How hard is it to release a film for one week in L.A.?
Another thing you could do is list all the worthy ineligible titles and write a post celebrating them. I’m guessing if it’s any good, it might be published on A.D.
My picks:
Best Picture:
BIRDMAN
SELMA
GONE GIRL
THE IMITATION GAME
WHIPLASH
INTO THE WOODS
NIGHTCRAWLER
THE GRAND BUDAPEST HOTEL
INTERSTELLAR
Best Director:
DAVID FINCHER
ALEJANDRO GONZALEZ INARRITU
AVA DUVERNAY
DAMIEN CHAZELLE
WES ANDERSON
Best Actor:
EDDIE REDMAYNE-THE THEORY OF EVERYTHING
MICHAEL KEATON- BIRDMAN
JAKE GYLLENHAAL- NIGHTCRAWLER
TOM HARDY-LOCKE
BENEDICT CUMBERBATCH- THE IMITATION GAME
Best Actress
ROSAMUND PIKE- GONE GIRL
JULIANNE MOORE- STILL ALICE
EMILY BLUNT- INTO THE WOODS
MARION COTILLARD- TWO DAYS, ONE NIGHT
FELICITY JONES- THE THEORY OF EVERYTHING
Best Supporting Actor
J.K. SIMMONS- WHIPLASH
ETHAN HAWKE- BOYHOOD
EDWARD NORTON- BIRDMAN
MARK RUFFALO- FOXCATCHER
CHRIS PINE- INTO THE WOODS
Best Supporting Actress
MERYL STREEP- INTO THE WOODS
JESSICA CHASTAIN- A MOST VIOLENT YEAR
TILDA SWINTON- SNOWPIERCER
KEIRA KNIGHTLY- THE IMITATION GAME
EMMA STONE- BIRDMAN
Best Original Screenplay
BIRDMAN
INTERSTELLAR
NIGHTCRAWLER
SELMA
WHIPLASH
Best Adapted Screenplay
GONE GIRL
INTO THE WOODS
THE IMITATION GAME
STILL ALICE
INHERENT VICE
Best Cinematography
INTO THE WOODS
UNBROKEN
INTERSTELLAR
BIRDMAN
GONE GIRL
PRODUCTION DESIGN
INTERSTELLAR
INTO THE WOODS
UNBROKEN
GRAND BUDAPEST HOTEL
IMITATION GAME
COSTUME DESIGN
INTO THE WOODS
IMITATION GAME
THE THEORY OF EVERYTHING
MALEFICENT
INHERENT VICE
BEST VISUAL EFFECTS
INTERSTELLAR
MALEFICENT
THE HOBBIT
DAWN OF THE PLANET OF THE APES
GODZILLA
BEST MAKEUP
FOXCATCHER
THE THEORY OF EVERYTHING
MALEFICENT
BEST EDITING
BIRDMAN
BOYHOOD
GONE GIRL
THE THEORY OF EVERYTHING
INTO THE WOODS
BEST SOUND EDITING
INTO THE WOODS
INTERSTELLAR
FURY
UNBROKEN
DAWN OF THE PLANET OF THE APES
BEST SOUND MIXING
FURY
INTERSTELLAR
DAWN OF THE PLANET OF THE APES
SNOWPIERCER
GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY
BEST ANIMATED FEATURE:
BIG HERO 6
THE LEGO MOVIE
PRINCESS KAGUYA
THE BOOK OF LIFE
SONG OF THE SEA
I love that we get to do this, and I really, truly appreciate the amount of work that goes into making this.
My one caveat (as I have every year) is that with voting closing so early in January, there are still several films out there that many of us will not get to see before voting closes (Inherent Vice, American Sniper, Selma, etc.).
I’d be willing to organise a poll including all of the favourite films of AD readers, regardless of eligibility regulations. It’d be different from this poll, if Sasha or Ryan want to take me up on that. Cos this poll doesn’t work for me.
For that I’d assume it would take a lot more work and it’d have to be fill in the blanks instead of pull down menus and then you’d have weirdos putting movies that came from all kinds of years since release dates are different in different countries.
Nonsense. There could still be pull down menus. What about all the films released in the US in 2014? That would be easy to research and just as simple to create as the current list. And who the fuck are these weirdos? So what if my favourite film of 2014 wasn’t released in the US this year? I wouldn’t be voting for it since it wouldn’t be eligible under the alternative eligibility guidelines that I’ve suggested. At least I’d be able to vote for the majority of my favourite films of the year. Under the current system, I’m not able to do that.
Films are being ruled out due to rules organised by an entirely separate organisation. And it’s not like we’ll have a chance to vote for The Babadook, Nymphomaniac, The Missing Picture, Norte the End of History, Goodbye to Language, Maps to the Stars, Journey to the West or Concrete Night next year because they actually were released this year. That’s a great deal of the most significant works of art in cinema this year, and I won’t ever be able to vote for them on AD. Makes no sense to me.
Just voted. My nominations recap:
Birdman – 8
Foxcatcher – 7
Nightcrawler – 4
Obvious Child – 3
Locke – 3
Tracks – 2
Mr. Turner – 2
all the rest: 1
Too bad I couldn’t vote for Nymphomaniac and The Babadook
I’m going to wait. I wanna see if I can get to INHERENT VICE first.
This vote has always been about voting as if we were Academy members. It’s not about your favorite ineligible film. It’s not the Awards Daily Awards. For that I’d assume it would take a lot more work and it’d have to be fill in the blanks instead of pull down menus and then you’d have weirdos putting movies that came from all kinds of years since release dates are different in different countries. We could just do an easy peasy Best of 2014 according to Awards Daily post where everyone lists their favorites in each category the comments near the Oscar ceremony or something. Otherwise, it’s too much to ask. That way you’d get to say your piece, and it wouldn’t be anymore work for our hosts. But that’s still up to them. Maybe they don’t want to know your stinky favorites. 😛
Despite some of the movies or performances I would’ve voted for I still voted
Best Picture
1.Begin Again
2.The Fault in our Stars
3.The Gambler
4. Gone Girl
5. Night Crawler
(The Toy Soldiers Would’ve been #2 on my list if eligible)
Best Actor
1. Jake Gyllenhall Nightcrawler
2. Nicholas Cage Joe
3. Jessie Eisenberg Night Moves
4. Brendan Gleeson Calvary
5. Tom Hardy Locke
Best Actress
1.Keira Knightley Begin Again
2. Jenny Slate Obvious Child
3. Shailene Woodley The Fault in our stars
4. Tessa Thompson
5. Rosamund Pike Gone Girl
(Alt)
1.Robyn Buck Hard Sun
2. Sarah Forestier Suzanne
3. Elisabeth Moss The One I love all 3 of them would’ve made my top 5 if eligible
Best Supporting Actor
1.J.K Simmons Whiplash
2.Ronnie Gene Blevins Joe
3. John Lithgow Love is Strange
4.Channing Tatum Foxcatcher
5. Ethan Hawks Boyhood
(Alt)
Jonathan Pryce Listen Up Phillip
Best Supporting Actress
1.Patricia Arquette Boyhood
2. Rene Russo Nightcrawler
3. Dakota Fanning Night Moves
4. Marissa Tomei Love is strange
5. Maggie Smith My Old Lady
Najarra Townsend The Toy Soldiers would’ve made my top 5 if elegible
PS, no, I would have voted Norte as my favourite film of the year as well, as long as Lav Diaz’s other new narrative film, From What Is Before, hadn’t been eligible. It’s not eligible for the Oscars for some curious reason, so it’s not on here.
Rob, is there a specific reason for following the Oscars’ eligible titles list? Why couldn’t we have made our own rules for eligibility? Because the Oscars’ list is proving to be quite dissatisfying, and it’s clear that I’m not the only one who feels this way.
I Agree with Paddy!!!!!!!
This ballot disappoints me very much.
Over half of my favourite films, including all of my very favourites, are absent from the ballot due to a nonsensical adherence to the Academy’s eligibility guidelines. Awards Daily is not The Academy – we should have out own eligibility requirements.
I appreciate the advantages of having the system that Rob has devised, whereby there are set titles that can be easily sorted, since it makes his task significantly simpler. I just don’t see why we have to use the Academy’s list. There’s no good reason for it imo.
I can only find five films on that list that I’ve rated 9/10 this year, and none that I’ve rated 10/10. That’s outrageous, and it’s the fault of The Academy. Rob, Ryan, Sasha, whomever has the power to change this, can we please have different eligibility rules next year? Because I’m too disheartened to bother voting this year.
My picks:
Pic./Dir./Cin./Edit. (slight variations)
UNBROKEN
BIG EYES
THE TALE OF PRINCESS KAGUYA
PADDINGTON
MAGIC IN THE MOONLIGHT
ALT:
INTERSTELLAR
EXODUS: GODS AND KINGS
MR. TURNER
THE GRAND BUDAPEST HOTEL
INTO THE WOODS
Lead Actor
Jack O’Connell – UNBROKEN
Timothy Spall – MR. TURNER
Bill Murray – ST. VINCENT
Hugh Bonnefoy – PADDINGTON
Eddie Redmayne – THE THEORY OF EVERYTHING
Supp. Actor
Christoph Waltz – BIG EYES
Oscar Isaac – THE TWO FACES OF JANUARY
Miyavi – UNBROKEN
Joel Edgerton – EXODUS: GODS AND KINGS
Chris Pine – INTO THE WOODS
Lead Actress
Amy Adams – BIG EYES
Sally Hawkins – PADDINGTON
Emma Stone – MAGIC IN THE MOONLIGHT
Jennifer Aniston – CAKE
Angelina Jolie – MALEFICENT
Supp. Actress
Jessica Chastain – INTERSTELLAR
Keira Knightley – THE IMITATION GAME
Meryl Streep – INTO THE WOODS
Jacki Weaver – MAGIC IN THE MOONLIGHT
Kirsten Dunst – THE TWO FACES OF JANUARY
Orig. Screenplay
BIG EYES
MAGIC IN THE MOONLIGHT
THE TALE OF PRINCESS KAGUYA
ST. VINCENT
THE GRAND BUDAPEST HOTEL
Adapt. Screenplay
UNBROKEN
PADDINGTON
THE BOXTROLLS
THE TWO FACES OF JANUARY
INTO THE WOODS
There might be a few changes or swaps in the future, but the bulk of it should remain.
I agree with PJ. Adapted screenplay is surprisingly weak this year. I found myself casting a vote for Edge of Tomorrow, which I enjoyed, but it’s not really my kind of movie. Still, I had to go for it here…
Adapted screenplay is a mess. Was very hard trying to find 5 films to fill it.
Alfredo,
Never underestimate the power of conformity.
Rob
Also, I’m still upset THE BABADOOK isn’t eligible for any categories. Essie Davis would be my number 2 vote behind Rosamund Pike.
The results always disappoint me because despite how much bitching we do about all the different critics and awards groups not thinking outside the box, we always vote similarly to them.
I remember Zero Dark Thirty was present in multiple categories despite at the time the film playing in a handful of theaters in NY and LA. So there’s no way enough AD readers saw it to label it as “best”.
Please AD readers vote for what YOU like not what you think the academy will go for!
I voted in the categories of Best Picture and Best Director. I’m not good with acting. Much more difficult.
I’m thinking this year in film has been wayyyyyy off. Very few films have been a success either critically or in box office.
“Tusk” is an option but “The Babadook” is not.
Thanks, Rob!
Great job, as usual, btw.
I voted for Boyhood
Birdman
Mr turner
Foxcatcher
Two nights. ,one day for bp
Adaped screenplay was very weak.
Steve50, it does not appear on AMPAS’s list:
http://www.oscars.org/sites/default/files/2014_reminder_list.pdf
Many thanks for undertaking this, Rob.
Fun! Love doing this evey year
Goodbye to Language 3D is not eligible in any category?
It’s quite funny that I’m allowed to select from the dropdown menu films like THE NUT JOB and HORRIBLE BOSSES 2 for Best Picture, but not my favorite film NORTE, THE END OF HISTORY. 🙂 I’m probably the only one voting for that film, so it’s really no big deal. I’ll go vote for BOYHOOD then for #1.
Until 1/11 at 10PM (PST)
Awesome! How long will this be open for?