Unofficial Academy Awards Discussion Board

Posted: **Wed Jan 06, 2010 9:01 pm**

Avatar is a lock. For the nod and for the win.

Beyond it, I think Terminator: Salvation and Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince are probably out. I haven't seen the former. The latter is an incredibly stylish production that deserves a slew of technical nods, but Harry Potter movies have always had a difficult time getting nominated.

That Transformers lost the Oscar to The Golden Compass indicates a fatigue in frenetically-edited action sequences and although I have not seen Revenge of the Fallen (why would you?) I've heard it is not an improvement. I like that it's called Visual Effects and not Special Effects. There is nothing Special about the effects in Transformers. I seem to be in the minority in liking the effects in Star Trek. I don't mind the post-flares. They were a little endearing. I think Star Trek could very well be nominated for Best Picture but the more I think about it Visual Effects might unfortunately be a stretch. The Branch tends to favor two things: Creatures and Destruction.

The Creatures in District 9 were amazing and I'd be intensely disappointed if they weren't nominated. That leaves 2012, Star Trek, and Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen. I'm going to say 2012 for those chaotic landscapes.

Posted: **Wed Jan 06, 2010 2:53 pm**

I think the nominees from here will be:

-Avatar
-District 9
-Star Trek

With Transformers 2 being the possible upset for Star Trek (please, Academy, please don't let that happen), unless they decide to pull a Total Recall for Avatar and declare it a Special Achievement Award. Cause at this point, nothing else but Avatar is going to win, despite how realistic the effects in District 9 were.

Also, does anyone know if the Academy has announced the names of the people attached to these finalists? Back when the awards.fennec site was up, he was able to get the names of the visual effects/make-up/sound effects(when there used to be finalists in that category) people.

Posted: **Wed Jan 06, 2010 2:45 pm**

Haven't seen 2012 or Transformers and probably never will.

How many slots this year?

If three: District 9; Star Trek and Avatar.

If five, add Harry Potter and Terminator Salvation. The latter sucked, but the effects were decent.

Posted: **Wed Jan 06, 2010 2:33 pm**

District 9 is definitely the most deserved of the pack. The aliens and spacecraft are much more realistic than anything in Avatar, except maybe the vegetation. That was some damn good vegetation. The latter will still win.

Posted: **Wed Jan 06, 2010 2:32 pm**

The Original BJ wrote:The Terminator and Harry Potter series as of late seem to be perpetually shortlisted, never nominated.

Haven't seen Terminator, but I just watched the latest Harry over the weekend, and I think the effects in the series have vastly improved over this period during which they've been mostly ignored. Did the cheesiness of the work in the first two films permanently poison the branch against the franchise?

Posted: **Wed Jan 06, 2010 2:25 pm**

Really? I just heard complaints about the visual effects-added faux flares in Star Trek.

I think people are underestimating 2012. It has some stunning visual effects and whether you like the film or Roland Emmerich much, the effects really stand out in the film.

I'm happy to see District 9 here.

Posted: **Wed Jan 06, 2010 2:19 pm**

Shucks. No Wild Things.

Come on Art Direction, don't fail me now.

Posted: **Wed Jan 06, 2010 1:58 pm**

Avatar, District 9, and Star Trek seem -- as they have for a while -- to be the top contenders.

I guess the box-office success of 2012 makes it not totally-out-of-the-question either, though the above three were FAR more acclaimed, which always helps in this category.

The law-of-diminishing-sequels rule would seem to really hurt Transformers, though I guess, given the stratospheric box-office, it can't be entirely ruled out. (Dear Academy -- PLEASE spare us!)

The Terminator and Harry Potter series as of late seem to be perpetually shortlisted, never nominated.

Posted: **Wed Jan 06, 2010 1:49 pm**

Often there's something odd included and something that seemed obvious excluded, but not this year. Pretty much the ones you'd expect.

7 FEATURES CONTINUE IN VFX OSCAR® RACE

Beverly Hills, CA — The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences today announced that seven films remain in the running in the Visual Effects category for the 82nd Academy Awards®.

“Avatar”
“District 9”
“Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince”
“Star Trek”
“Terminator Salvation”
“Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen”
“2012”

On Thursday, January 21, all members of the Academy’s Visual Effects Branch will be invited to view 15-minute excerpts from each of the seven shortlisted films. Following the screenings, the members will vote to nominate three films for final Oscar consideration.

Unofficial Academy Awards Discussion Board

Visual Effects Final Seven Finalists