Manuel here. One of my favorite thing about this year’s Oscar nominations was the beautiful artwork that adorned the screen as J.J. Abrams, Alfonso Cuarón, Chris Pine and Cheryl Boone Isaacs read out names like Marion Cotillard, Laura Dern and Dan Gilroy though sadly not Ava DuVernay’s nor David Oyelowo’s (might they have a better chance with their next collaboration, that Katrina murder mystery film?)
As it turns out, the Academy is really upping its game when it comes to art you wish you could hang in your living room. Last year’s ceremony poster was quite the snooze-fest and I have to admit, other than that fantastic Olly Moss’s gorgeous poster from 2012, AMPAS’ artwork as of late has been rather dull. You have to go back to 2007 to find my other recent favorite poster (those quotes!). While the official poster for this year’s Neil Patrick Harris’ hosted affair has yet to be revealed, AMPAS’ "Imagine What's Possible" Artist Series is giving me hope they’ll wow us. You can see the full roster of posters here, but I’ve picked out my three favorites below.
Art by Hattie Stewart, Santtu Mustonen & Nick Chaffe respectively.
I wish we could say the same thing for the rest of their marketing efforts (am I the only one underwhelmed by those NPH Oscar ads?). Thankfully, they’ve recruited Oscar winners Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert Lopez to pen an original number for the triple-threat host, though he surely has mutant shoes to fill! This, added to recent news that Adam Levine will be performing "Lost Stars" (from Begin Again) and Common & John Legend will be performing "Glory" (from Selma) means we might have quite the musically-inclined ceremony.
Are you looking forward to NPH's crack at Oscar hosting? Do you also love these artistic portraits of that most famous golden statue? Might the "Let It Go" songwriters be aiming at an Emmy to add to their crowded awards shelf, you think?