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Nominations for the 86th Academy Awards

2015 Oscar Predictions: Who'll Win Tonights Big Awards?

JamesArthurArmstrong JamesArthurArmstrong The 87th Annual Academy Awards take place tonight at 7pm ET/4pm PT on ABC, hosted by Neil Patrick Harris. It's the most anticipated night in Hollywood, where careers are made and stars are born, and below the writers at Cultjer have predicted who'll be tonights big winners.

Best picture

Best Picture Nominations
Best Picture Nominations

• American Sniper

• Birdman

• Boyhood

• The Grand Budapest Hotel

• Whiplash

• Selma

• The Theory of Everything

• The Imitation Game

James Armstrong: Birdman — If the rumours are true, Birdman is likely to sweep just in-front of Linklater’s Boyhood.

Anishka Syafrani: Birdman — Much like Argo, the Academy highly appreciates films that use Hollywood satire to communicate. Birdman, with its superb and unique technicality, solid script and great cast performance is ten times better than Argo.

Podestrians Filmcast: Birdman — Americans love an under-dog/comeback story.

Mark Hicks: Boyhood — it is a critical darling and with its daring new approach to narrative, it is almost a sure lock for winning the category.

best actor in a leading role

Best Actor Nominations
Best Actor Nominations

• Steve Carell (Foxcatcher)

• Bradley Cooper (American Sniper)

• Benedict Cumberbatch (The Imitation Game)

• Michael Keaton (Birdman)

• Eddie Redmayne (The Theory of Everything)

James: Eddie Redmayne — Although whispers are saying Keaton is on course to nab the award, how can you overlook such a fine performance from Redmayne?

Anishka: Eddie Redmayne — His portrayal of Stephen Hawking has every ingredient to make an Oscar winning performance.

Podestrians: Michael Keaton, because Hollywood.

Mark: Michael Keaton — Keaton did such a number on Birdman, it’s hard to imagine he doesn’t win. Great year for performances. It seems like Keaton is the standout.

best Actress in a leading role

Best Supporting Actress Nominations
Best Supporting Actress Nominations

• Marion Cotillard (Two Days, One Night)

• Felicity Jones (The Theory of Everything)

• Julianne Moore (Still Alice)

• Rosamund Pike (Gone Girl)

• Reese Witherspoon (Wild)

James: Julianne Moore, complete no brainer.

Anishka: Julianne Moore for Still Alice — She’s has been waiting for too long to earn her first Oscar.

Podestrians: Julianne Moore — We are of the opinion that this won’t be judged purely on Moore’s raw acting talent, but will also leverage the film’s subject matter.

Mark: Felicity Jones — Her performance in The Theory of Everything has been gaining a lot of traction. I could easily see her winning the category.

best actress in a supporting role

Best Supporting Actress Nominations
Best Supporting Actress Nominations

• Patricia Arquette (Boyhood)

• Laura Dern (Wild)

• Keira Knightley (The Imitation Game)

• Emma Stone (Birdman)

• Meryl Streep (Into the Woods)

James: Patricia Arquette for Boyhood — Is it worth the other nominees turning up? Well, maybe for their free gift bags.

Anishka: Patricia Arquette — She is definitely the strongest actress in this line-up.

Podestrians: Patricia Arquette — A very ordinary but powerful performance.

Mark: Patricia Arquette — Boyhood’s strongest scene involved Arquette. She will win this category. I would put a lot of money on it if I was a betting man.

best actor in a supporting role

Best Supporting Actor Nominations
Best Supporting Actor Nominations

• Robert Duvall (The Judge)

• Ethan Hawke (Boyhood)

• J.K. Simmons (Whiplash)

• Mark Ruffalo (Foxcatcher)

• Edward Norton (Birdman)

James: J.K. Simmons for Whiplash.

Anishka: J.K Simmons — Sign, sealed, delivered, the Oscar belongs to him.

Podestrians: J.K. Simmons — Pulled off one of the most convincing and nuanced characters of 2014. Terrence Felcther is both terrifying and likable, something we haven’t really seen since Christoph Waltz’s Col. Hans Landa in Inglourious Basterds.

Mark: J.K. Simmons — His character in Whiplash is one of the best teacher roles in cinema history. It would be a shock if he didn’t win the category.

best director

Best Director Nominations
Best Director Nominations

• Richard Linklater (Boyhood)

• Wes Anderson (The Grand Budapest Hotel)

• Alejandro G. Iñárritu (Birdman)

• Bennett Miller (Foxcatcher)

• Morten Tyldum (The Imitation Game)

James: Tough one to call. Awards show so far have been split between Richard Linklater and Alejandro G. Iñárritu. I say Linklater pips it.

Anishka: Richard Linklater for Boyhood — The Academy loves celebrating a success story, and Linklater’s 12 year dedication seems like a triumph worth celebrating.

Podestrians: Alejandro G. Iñárritu for Birdman.

Mark: Aljandro G. Iñárritu— Birdman is a spectacle of filmmaking. The direction of the film helps its message. If you have not read about how they made the film, I highly recommend it.

best adapted screenplay

Best Adapted Screenplay Nominations
Best Adapted Screenplay Nominations

• American Sniper

• The Imitation Game

• Inherent Vice

• The Theory of Everything

• Whiplash

James: Graham Moore for The Imitation Game.

Anishka: Graham Moore for The Imitation Game. Moore delivered a solid structure to the script with some of the most powerful lines.

Podestrians: Graham Moore for The Imitation Game.

Mark: The Imitation Game — A strong script that made it possible to imagine what it would have been like to be Alan Turing at that time in his life.

best original screenplay

Best Original Screenplay Nominations
Best Original Screenplay Nominations

• Birdman

• Boyhood

• Foxcatcher

• The Grand Budapest Hotel

• Nightcrawler

James: The Grand Budapest Hotel. How much more original can you get!

Anishka: Wes Anderson and Hugo Guinnes for The Grand Budapest Hotel.

Podestrians: The Grand Budapest Hotel.

Mark: The Grand Budapest Hotel — Wes Anderson writes great original scripts. With Budapest Hotel it is no different. As the film will most likely be shut out of most categories, I could see a win here.

best animated feature film

Best Animated Feature Nominations
Best Animated Feature Nominations

• How to Train Your Dragon 2

• Big Hero 6

• The Boxtrolls

• Song of the Sea

• The Tale of the Princess Kaguya

James: How to Train Your Dragon 2 — This will be a hollow victory for whoever wins, we all know The LEGO Movie is the best animated movie of the year.

Mark: How to Train Your Dragon 2 – While this is the category I’ve seen the least amount of films in, it’s hard to gauge what will win. I feel like the academy has always had a soft spot for this franchise.

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