European Film Award nominations for 2021

by Nathaniel R

There's no true leader at the European Film Awards this year with three films (Titane, The Father, and Compartment No 6) tied for the most nominations but there is a leader if you look at individual nominations: Italian master Paolo Sorrentino is up for three prizes himself for Italy's Oscar submission The Hand of God (Film, Director, and Screenplay) so consider that a force going into the Oscar finalist selections. The European Film Awards also have juries that decide on craft awards like Cinematography, Production Design, and the like but they don't have traditional nominations so we won't know the winners for a while yet. 

The nomination list and commentary after the jump...

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International Contenders: Egypt, Lebanon, Thailand, Venezuela, etc..

by Nathaniel R

Time to check in again with the International Oscar submissions as eight more countries join the fray which include teen girl dramas from North Macedonia and Egypt and a Thai horror film that's currently streaming on Shudder...

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Interview: Director Eran Kolirin on Israel’s Oscar Submission "Let It Be Morning"

By Abe Friedtanzer

The winner of Israel’s Oscars, the Ophir Awards, automatically goes on to become the country’s Oscar submission for Best International Feature. This year, that film is Let It Be Morning, which made headlines at Cannes because its Palestinian cast refused to attend, objecting to it being labeled an Israeli film. Those who have seen the film will surely appreciate that this attitude is expected and and very much in the spirit of the film’s content. I had the chance to speak with the film's Israeli director, Eran Kolirin (pictured left) who is best known for writing and directing The Band’s Visit. His new film premieres this week in New York City at the Other Israel Film Festival… 

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Portugal chooses "The Metamorphosis of Birds" for Oscar

by Cláudio Alves

When reading the list of films shortlisted for the Portuguese Oscar submission, I confess I was a tad disheartened. Only two of the six films had even been released when the finalists were announced, and I only had watched one of them. The other happens to be a project that reeks of exploitation, which I wasn't enthusiastic about promoting. At least, the film I did see, Catarina Vasconcelos' The Metamorphosis of Birds, was one I loved, going so far as voting for it as one of the best unreleased films on last year's Team Experience Awards. As luck would have it, the voting body responsible for the submission fell for it too…

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"Flee", "Worst Person...", and more join the Best International Feature Film Oscar competition

by Nathaniel R

It's official. Finally. Two truly excellent Scandinavian films are joining the Oscar competition. Norway's Cannes sensation Worst Person in the World, a romantic dramedy from the great Joachim Trier (Reprise, Oslo August 31st, Thelma), and the animated documentary Flee about a gay Afghan refugee who made his home in Denmark are now officially in the hunt for Oscar glory. The Best International Feature Film category is always hugely competitive and the voting system is complex so there are never any "locks" but both films have a headstart at making the 15 wide finalist list; they're already widely seen and wildly acclaimed from their multiple festival outings. Flee will actually be gunning for multiple nominations as it could theoretically compete for the two other specialty feature categories:  Documentary and Animated Feature.

Norway and Denmark aren't the only countries to announce over the past few days. After the jump twelve other Oscar hopefuls from around the Globe...

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