Jose here, with yet another batch of guild nominees. This time members of the Art Directors Guild have determined nominees in three categories (which are just as nonsensical as those of the Costume Designers Guild...how is Her contemporary and Gravity a fantasy?). It's mostly more of the same, except for one or two rather interesting choices here and there, and truly it seems as if Oscar mostly cares about the "old look" which is why the Period nominees might pretty much translate into our final five nominees. Right?
The nominees were the following:
Period Film
American Hustle - Production Designer: Judy Becker
The Great Gatsby - Production Designer: Catherine Martin
Inside Llewyn Davis - Production Designer: Jess Gonchor
Saving Mr. Banks - Production Designer: Michael Corenblith
12 Years a Slave - Production Designer: Adam Stockhausen
Don't these look like our Oscar five? Perhaps remove the Coen brothers movie and add Gravity or Her? All of these are impeccable choices and Catherine Martin should receive awards for everything she does. That scene with Leo throwing the shirts in Gatsby still haunts my dreams (and visits to Banana Republic where I've been made to promise never to reenact that scene again, sigh)
Fantasy Film
Elysium - Production Designer: Philip Ivey
Gravity - Production Designer: Andy Nicholson
The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug - Production Designer: Dan Hennah
Oblivion - Production Designer: Darren Gilford
Star Trek Into Darkness - Production Designer: Scott Chambliss
Other than its music and Andrea Riseborough's to-die-for dress, Oblivion was a pretty run of the mill flick until you remember that house she and Tom Cruise lived/had weird public pool sex in. Between this, Gravity, Star Trek and Elysium (which pretty much had designs from the Versace home collection in the year 2154) all of which are mostly set in space, we might be able to give a very slight edge to The Hobbit, which seems like the "warmest" in terms of design, but also feels like a been-there-done-that deal. Let's just move on to the next category instead...
Contemporary Film
August: Osage County - Production Designer: David Gropman
Blue Jasmine - Production Designer: Santo Loquasto
Captain Phillips - Production Designer: Paul Kirby
Her - Production Designer: K.K. Barrett
The Wolf of Wall Street - Production Designer: Bob Shaw
Am I the only one who keeps being surprised by all the Blue Jasmine love? Don't get me wrong, if anything Woody's movies are often too ignored in terms of technical categories so this is rather pleasant. Earlier this year I saw The Assembled Parties on Broadway and all I can say is Santo Loquasto is a genius, he gets exactly what is it about key design elements that make someone's space their own. For example in Ginger's little house in Jasmine, we have ethnic decorations, lots of color and bright patterns, she obviously did all the decoration herself, while Jasmine's apartment and country home are so specifically designed that they feel more like museums than live in places. Loquasto transmits so much about who these women are merely by their choice of plates!
Who are you pleased to see among these nominees? Who do you think was snubbed?