The Academy has released the list of all titles that are eligible for Best Picture and general Oscar categories this year. (Note: a few of the categories have different rules like docs, animated films, foreign films). The most amusing thing about looking over the list is tallying how many you've never heard of and how many you forgot were actually released. It's also fun to see really odd juxtapositions that come from alpha order... like Tangerine sandwiched between two bro friendly franchises: Taken 3 and Ted 2...
For those of you that are like "hey, I thought ____ was in the running for foreign film last year". Yes it's true. There are some of those. But if a film does not have a theatrical qualifying release in the States the year it is submitted for foreign language film and then does not with the nomination for foreign film, it can be eligible for general categories the next year if it receives a theatrical release. That's what happened to City of God years ago; it was submitted for 2002 and snubbed for foreign only to be released in 2003 with shocking Oscar attention as a result. But not every foreign title, even if it gets a release during the calendar year it's Oscar submitted for best foreign language film does the paperwork to be eligible in other categories. For instance the fine Brazilian film The Second Mother was theatrically released and earned nearly $400,000 in the arthouses over the early fall but it is not eligible outside of foreign film this year. Same story with The Assassin which is now in theaters but only bothered to be considered for foreign film (in other words you won't see it as a surprise Best Cinematography nominee though many fans were rooting for that).
Other things worth noting. Some films that feel like 2015 films actually had qualifying runs in 2014 so they were eligible last year (damn those qualifying runs) -- Paddington is the biggest hit that fits that category. Maps to the Stars was lost somewhere between the two years. Notable films that hit theaters in 2015 that we talked about righ here on the blog but that won't be eligible (probably because they didn't bother to submit paperwork) include: the drug drama Animals, the period romance A Little Chaos with Kate Winslet, Song One with Anne Hathaway and Strangerland with Nicole Kidman.
The complete list is after the jump if you're interested...
ADULT BEGINNERS
AFTER WORDS
THE AGE OF ADALINE
ALLELUIA
ALOFT
ALOHA
ALTERED MINDS
ALVIN AND THE CHIPMUNKS: THE ROAD CHIP
AMERICAN ULTRA
AMY
ANOMALISA
ANT-MAN
ARDOR
AVENGERS: AGE OF ULTRON
BEASTS OF NO NATION
BECOMING BULLETPROOF
BEFORE WE GO
BEST OF ENEMIES
BEYOND THE REACH
THE BIG SHORT
BIG STONE GAP
BLACK MASS
BLACKBIRD
BLACKHAT
BONE TOMAHAWK
A BORROWED IDENTITY
THE BOY AND THE BEAST
BOY AND THE WORLD
THE BOY NEXT DOOR
BOYCHOIR
BRAND: A SECOND COMING BRIDGE OF SPIES
BRIDGE OF SPIES
A BRILLIANT YOUNG MIND
BROOKLYN
BUEN DÍA, RAMÓN
BURNT
BY THE SEA
CAPTIVE
CAPTURE THE FLAG
CARE OF FOOTPATH 2
CARL(A)
CAROL
CARTEL LAND
CARTER HIGH
CENSORED VOICES
CHAMPS
CHAPPIE
CHI-RAQ
CHILD 44
A CHRISTMAS STAR
CINDERELLA
CLOUDS OF SILS MARIA
COMING HOME
CONCUSSION
COP CAR
CREED
CRIMINAL ACTIVITIES
CRIMSON PEAK
THE CUT
THE D TRAIN
DADDY’S HOME
THE DANISH GIRL
DANNY COLLINS
DELKA: STAND-UP TALL OR FALL
THE DIARY OF A TEENAGE GIRL
THE DIVERGENT SERIES: INSURGENT
DIXIELAND
DOPE
THE DUKE OF BURGUNDY
DUKHTAR
EDEN
EFFIE GRAY
THE END OF THE TOUR
ENTOURAGE
ESCOBAR: PARADISE LOST
EVEREST
EVERY THING WILL BE FINE
EX MACHINA
EXPERIMENTER
FANTASTIC FOUR
FAR FROM THE MADDING CROWD
FELT
FIFTY SHADES OF GREY
5 FLIGHTS UP
5 TO 7
FOCUS
45 YEARS
FRAME BY FRAME
FREAKS OF NATURE
FREEDOM
FREEHELD
FURIOUS SEVEN
FUTURO BEACH
THE GALLOWS
GEMMA BOVERY
GET HARD
THE GIFT
GIRLHOOD
GLORIA
GODSPEED: THE STORY OF PAGE JONES
THE GOOD DINOSAUR
GOOD KILL
GOODNIGHT MOMMY
GOOSEBUMPS
GRANDMA
GUIDANCE
HAMLET’S GHOST
THE HATEFUL EIGHT
HE NAMED ME MALALA
HEAVEN KNOWS WHAT
HEMALKASA
HITMAN: AGENT 47
HOME
HOT PURSUIT
HOT TUB TIME MACHINE 2
HOTEL TRANSYLVANIA 2
THE HUNGER GAMES: MOCKINGJAY – PART 2
THE HUNTING GROUND
I SMILE BACK
I’LL SEE YOU IN MY DREAMS
IN THE HEART OF THE SEA
INFINITELY POLAR BEAR
INGRID BERGMAN – IN HER OWN WORDS
INSIDE OUT
THE INTERN
IRRATIONAL MAN
IT FOLLOWS
JALAM
JAMES WHITE
JEM AND THE HOLOGRAMS
JENNY’S WEDDING
JIMMY’S HALL
JOY
JUPITER ASCENDING
JURASSIC WORLD
JUST BEFORE I GO
KAHLIL GIBRAN‘S THE PROPHET
KILLING THEM SAFELY
KINGSMAN: THE SECRET SERVICE
KRAMPUS
KUMIKO, THE TREASURE HUNTER
KURT COBAIN: MONTAGE OF HECK
LA JAULA DE ORO
LABYRINTH OF LIES
THE LADY IN THE VAN
LAMBERT & STAMP
THE LAST FIVE YEARS
THE LAST WITCH HUNTER
THE LAWS OF THE UNIVERSE – PART 0
LEARNING TO DRIVE
LEGEND
A LEGO BRICKUMENTARY
THE LETTERS
LILA AND EVE
LITTLE ACCIDENTS
THE LONGEST RIDE
THE LOOK OF SILENCE
LOST BIRDS
LOST RIVER
LOVE & MERCY
LOVE AT FIRST FIGHT
MACBETH
MAD MAX: FURY ROAD
MAGGIE
MAGIC MIKE XXL
THE MAN FROM U.N.C.L.E.
MANGLEHORN
THE MARTIAN
MATCH
MAX
MAZE RUNNER: THE SCORCH TRIALS
MCFARLAND, USA
ME AND EARL AND THE DYING GIRL
MEADOWLAND
MEDITERRANEA
MERU
MINIONS
MISERY LOVES COMEDY
MISS YOU ALREADY
MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE – ROGUE NATION
MISSISSIPPI GRIND
MR. HOLMES
MISTRESS AMERICA
MOOMINS ON THE RIVIERA
MORTDECAI
MUHAMMAD: THE MESSENGER OF GOD
MUSTANG
MY ALL AMERICAN
NACHOM-IA KUMPASAR
THE NIGHT BEFORE
99 HOMES
NO ESCAPE
THE 100-YEAR-OLD MAN WHO CLIMBED OUT THE WINDOW AND DISAPPEARED
OUR BRAND IS CRISIS
PAN
PAPER TOWNS
PARANOID GIRLS
PARANORMAL ACTIVITY: THE GHOST DIMENSION
PAUL BLART: MALL COP 2
PAULO COELHO’S BEST STORY
PAWN SACRIFICE
THE PEANUTS MOVIE
THE PERFECT GUY
PINK & BLUE: COLORS OF HEREDITARY CANCER
PITCH PERFECT 2
PIXELS
POACHED
POD
POINT BREAK
POLTERGEIST
PROJECT ALMANAC
QUEEN AND COUNTRY
RACING EXTINCTION
RANGITARANGA
REGULAR SHOW: THE MOVIE
REMEMBER
A REUNION
THE REVENANT
RICKI AND THE FLASH
RIDE THE THUNDER – A VIETNAM WAR STORY OF VICTORY & BETRAYAL
THE ROAD WITHIN
ROCK THE KASBAH
ROOM
THE RUMPERBUTTS
RUN ALL NIGHT
SAINT LAURENT
SALT BRIDGE
THE SALVATION
SAMBA
SAN ANDREAS
SCOUTS GUIDE TO THE ZOMBIE APOCALYPSE
THE SECOND BEST EXOTIC MARIGOLD HOTEL
SECRET IN THEIR EYES
SERENA
SET FIRE TO THE STARS
SEVENTH SON
71
SEYMOUR: AN INTRODUCTION
SHARKSKIN
SHAUN THE SHEEP MOVIE
SHELTER
SICARIO
SISTERS
SLEEPING WITH OTHER PEOPLE
SON OF SAUL
SOUTHPAW
SPECTRE
THE SPONGEBOB MOVIE: SPONGE OUT OF WATER
SPOTLIGHT
SPY
THE STANFORD PRISON EXPERIMENT
STAR WARS: THE FORCE AWAKENS
STEVE JOBS
STEVE MCQUEEN: THE MAN & LE MANS
STONEWALL
STRAIGHT OUTTA COMPTON
STRANGE MAGIC
SUFFRAGETTE
THE SUMMER OF SANGAILE
SWEET MICKY FOR PRESIDENT
TAKEN 3
TANGERINE
TED 2
10,000 KM
TERMINATOR GENISYS
TESTAMENT OF YOUTH
THESE FINAL HOURS
THE 33
TIME OUT OF MIND
TINKER BELL AND THE LEGEND OF THE NEVERBEAST
TOM AT THE FARM
TOMORROWLAND
TRAINWRECK
THE TRIBE
TRUE STORY
TRUMBO
TRUTH
TWINSTERS
TWO MEN IN TOWN
UNCLE JOHN
UNFINISHED BUSINESS
UNFRIENDED
VACATION
VICTOR FRANKENSTEIN
VICTORIA
THE VISIT
THE WALK
A WALK IN THE WOODS
WAR ROOM
THE WATER DIVINER
WE ARE YOUR FRIENDS
THE WEDDING RINGER
WELCOME TO ME
WHEN MARNIE WAS THERE
WHERE TO INVADE NEXT
WHILE WE’RE YOUNG
WHITE GOD
THE WIDOWMAKER
WOLF TOTEM
THE WOLFPACK
WOMAN IN GOLD
XENIA
YOU CARRY ME
YOUTH
Z FOR ZACHARIAH