The American Society of Cinematographers is having their annual awards dinner Saturday night. Weirdly, they have seven nominees to Oscar’s five. Captain Phillips and 12 Years a Slave are the two ASC nominees the Oscars left out. The way these awards usually work is the same way many of the other categories often do — Best Picture frontrunners lead the way. You have to go back to 2006 to find a year when the Oscar winner for cinematography was not a Best Picture nominee. This year, there are two candidates, Gravity and Nebraska. In truth, if we’re being honest, The Grandmaster’s cinematography probably blows all of the other contenders out of the water. But Gravity is the film, of the Best Picture contenders, that really stands out and it’s the film that will likely win both the ASC and Oscar. ASC voters tend to be a little more oriented towards what’s actually good cinematography versus what just looks pretty. The Oscar voters all vote for that category so they know about as much as any old person on the street, which is to say, Best Picture contender usually, and something pretty to look at.
In Contention’s Kris Tapley said on Twitter than he thought if anyone was going to upset at the ASC it would be Bruno Delbonnel. If that were to happen at the Oscars, it would be irony of ironies that a Coen brothers film would finally win Best Cinematography and it wouldn’t be Roger Deakins. It is beautiful cinematography but was so The Man Who Wasn’t There and No Country for Old Men, to name only two.
“Chivo” (the affectionate nickname given to the esteemed Mr. Emmanuel Lubezki) has already won two ASC awards, for Children of Men and Tree of Life. But each time he’s lost the Oscar, first to Claudio Miranda for Life of Pi last year and in ’07 to fellow Mexican, Guillermo Navarro for Pan’s Labyrinth.
Saturday Chivo will likely pick up his 3rd ASC win on his way to winning the Oscar for Gravity. I know nothing, clearly, about cinematography but I know a little something about photography and to me, The Grandmaster is the exceptional one. But that’s just me.
ASC | Oscar
| The Grandmaster | The Grandmaster |
| Gravity | Gravity* |
| Inside Llewyn Davis | Inside Llewyn Davis |
| Nebraska | Nebraska* |
| Prisoners | Prisoners |
| 12 Years a Slave* | |
| Captain Phillips* |
History/charts after the jump.
ASC Nominations for Outstanding Achievement in Cinematography:
won ASC | Won
Oscar
*nominated for Best Pic
+Won Best Pic
2012
| Anna Karenina | Anna Karenina |
| Life of Pi | Life of Pi* |
| Les Miserables* | Django Unchained* |
| Lincoln | Lincoln* |
| Skyfall | Skyfall |
2011
| The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo | The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo |
| The Tree of Life | The Tree of Life* |
| Hugo | Hugo* |
| The Artist | The Artist+ |
| Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy | War Horse* |
2010
| Inception | Inception* |
| The King’s Speech | The King’s Speech+ |
| The Social Network | The Social Network* |
| True Grit | True Grit* |
| Black Swan | Black Swan* |
2009
| Avatar | Avatar* |
| The White Ribbon | The White Ribbon |
| Nine | Harry Potter Half Blood Prince |
| Inglourious Basterds | Inglourious Basterds* |
| The Hurt Locker | The Hurt Locker+ |
2008
| Roger Deakins, Revolutionary Road | Tom Stern, Changeling |
| Claudio Miranda, …Benjamin Button | Claudio Miranda, …Benjamin Button* |
| Wally Pfister, The Dark Knight | Wally Pfister, The Dark Knight |
| Roger Deakins, Chris Menges, The Reader | Roger Deakins, Chris Menges, The Reader* |
| Anthony Dod Mantle, Slumdog Millionaire | Anthony Dod Mantle, Slumdog Millionaire+ |
2007
| Roger Deakins, Jesse James | Roger Deakins, Jesse James |
| Roger Deakins, No Country | Roger Deakins, No Country+ |
| Robert Elswit, There Will Be Blood | Robert Elswit, There Will Be Blood* |
| Janusz Kaminski, Diving Bell | Janusz Kaminski, Diving Bell |
| Seamus McGarvey, Atonement | Seamus McGarvey, Atonement* |
2006
| Emmanuel Lubezki, Children of Men | Emmanuel Lubezki |
| Dick Pope, The Illusionist | Dick Pope, The Illusionist |
| Robert Richardson, The Good Shepherd | Guillermo Navarro, Pan’s Labyrinth |
| Deam Semler, Apocalypto | Wally Pfister, The Prestige |
| Vilmos Zsigmond, The Black Dahlia | Vilmos Zsigmond, The Black Dahlia |
2005
| Batman Begins, Wally Pfister | Batman Begins, Wally Pfister |
| Brokeback Mountain, Rodrigo Pietro | Brokeback Mountain, Rodrigo Pietro* |
| Good Night, and Good Luck, Robert Elswit | Good Night and Good Luck, Robert Elswit* |
| King Kong | New World, Emmanuel Lubezki |
| Memoirs of a Geisha | Memoirs of a Geisha, Dion Beebe |
2004
| The Aviator* | The Aviator* |
| Collateral | House of Flying Daggers |
| The Passion of the Christ | The Passion of the Christ |
| Ray* | Phantom of the Opera |
| A Very Long Engagement | A Very Long Engagement |
2003
| Russell Boyd, Master and Commander | Master and Commander* |
| Andrew Lesnie, ROTK* | City of God |
| John Schwartzman, Seabiscuit |
Seabiscuit* |
| John Seale, Cold Mountain | Cold Mountain |
| John Toll, The Last Samurai | Girl with the Pearl Earring |
2002
| Michael Ballhaus, Gangs of New York |
Michael Ballhaus, Gangs of New York* |
| Pawel Edelman, The Pianist | Pawel Edelman, The Pianist* |
| Conrad Hall, Road to Perdition |
Conrad Hall, Road to Perdition |
| Ed Lachman, Far From Heaven | Ed Lachman, Far From Heaven |
| Rodrigo Prieto, Frida | Dione Beebe, Chicago+ |
2001
| Roger Deakins, Man Who Wasn’t There | Roger Deakins, Man Who Wasn’t There |
| Bruno Delbonnel, Amélie | Bruno Delbonnel, Amélie |
| Don McAlpine, Moulin Rouge* | Don McAlpine, Moulin Rouge* |
| Andrew Lesnie, LOTR | Andrew Lesnie, LOTR* |
| John Schwartzman, ASC (“Pearl Harbor”) | Slawomir Idziak – Black Hawk Down |
2000
| Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon |
Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon* |
| Gladiator | Gladiator+ |
| O Brother, Where Art Thou? | O Brother, Where Art Thou? |
| The Patriot | The Patriot |
| The Perfect Storm | Malèna |
1999
| American Beauty+ | American Beauty+ |
| Snow Falling on Cedars | Snow Falling On Cedars |
| Sleepy Hollow | Sleepy Hollow |
| The Insider | The Insider |
| The Sixth Sense | The End Of the Affair |
1998
| The Thin Red Line | The Thin Red Line |
| Shakespeare In Love | Shakespeare In Love+ |
| Saving Private Ryan | Saving Private Ryan* |
| Elizabeth | Elizabeth* |
| The Horse Whisperer | A Civil Action |
1997
| Titanic+ | Titanic+ |
| Amistad | Amistad |
| Kundun | Kundun |
| L. A. Confidential | L. A. Confidential* |
| The Boxer | The Wings Of the Dove |
1996
| The English Patient+ |
The English Patient+ |
| Evita | Evita |
| Fargo* | Fargo* |
| Fly Away Home | Fly Away Home |
| Michael Collins | Michael Collins |
| The Ghost and The Darkness |
1995
| Braveheart+ | Braveheart+ |
| Apollo 13* | A Little Princess |
| The Bridges of Madison County | Sense and Sensibility* |
| Batman Forever | Batman Forever |
| Crimson Tide | Shanghai Triad |
| Se7en |
1994
| Shawshank Redemption | Shawshank Redemption* |
| Legends of the Fall | Legends of the Fall |
| Love Affair | Red |
| Forrest Gump | Forrest Gump+ |
| Wyatt Earp | Wyatt Earp |
1993
| Searching for Bobby Fischer | Searching for Bobby Fischer |
| The Piano | The Piano* |
| Heaven & Earth | Farwell My Concubine |
| Schindler’s List | Schindler’s List + |
| The Fugitive | The Fugitive* |
1992
| Hoffa | Hoffa |
| A Few Good Men* | The Lover |
| Howards End* | Howards End |
| The Last of the Mohicans | Unforgiven+ |
| A River Runs Through It | A River Runs Through It |
1991
| Bugsy | Bugsy* |
| JFK | JFK* |
| Prince of Tides | Prince of Tides* |
| Hook | Thelma and Louise |
| Terminator 2 | Terminator 2 |
1990
| Dances with Wolves | Dances with Wolves+ |
| Dick Tracy | Dick Tracy |
| Avalon | Avalon |
| Godfather III | Godfather III* |
| Ghost* | Henry and June |
1989
| The Abyss | The Abyss |
| The Bear | The Fabulous Baker Boys |
| Blaze | Blaze |
| Born on the Fourth of July* | Born on the Fourth of July* |
| The War of the Roses | Glory |
1988
| Mississippi Burning | Mississippi Burning* |
| Tequila Sunrise | Tequila Sunrise |
| Rain Man | Rain Man+ |
| Unbearable Lightness of Being | The Unbearable Lightness of Being |
| Dangerous Liaisons* | Who Framed Roger Rabbit? |
1987
| Empire of the Sun | Empire of the Sun |
| The Last Emperor | The Last Emperor+ |
| Matewan | Matewan |
| Someone to Watch Over Me | Hope and Glory* |
| The Untouchables | Broadcast News* |
1986
| Peggy Sue Got Married | Peggy Sue Got Married |
| The Mission | The Mission* |
| A Room with a View | A Room with a View* |
| Star Trek IV | Star Trek IV |
| The Karate Kid Part II | Platoon+ |
