Oscar 2009 Predictions: Winners in Craft / Technical Categories
Oscar 2009: Predictions Best Actor/Actress
Oscar 2009: Predictions Best Film
Best cinematography
Anthony Dod Mantle, Slumdog Millionaire
The Slumdog Millionaire look is one of the film’s chief assets.
Best film editing
Chris Dickens, Slumdog Millionaire
Dickens’ editing has been crucial to the success of the film.
Best original score
A. R. Rahman, Slumdog Millionaire
Rahman has been winning best score awards everywhere you look.
Best song
"Jai Ho" from Slumdog Millionaire, Music by A. R. Rahman, Lyric by Gulzar
It’s popular, it’s unusual, Academy voters will believe themselves musically hip if they pick this one.
Best art direction
The Dark Knight, Art Direction: Nathan Crowley, Set Decoration: Peter Lando
Classy production levels all around, though the more conservative The Duchess is another possibility.
Best costume design
The Duchess, Michael O’Connor
The Duchess would also win for Best Candle-Lit Decor and Best Pompadour if there were such categories.
Best visual effects
The Dark Knight, Nick Davis, Chris Corbould, Tim Webber and Paul Franklin
The photo says it all. As a plus, The Dark Knight was a huge box-office hit, and it’s a well-respected film to boot — even if it failed to get a best picture nod.
Best sound editing
The Dark Knight, Richard King
Loud, complex, technically flawless. Can’t imagine another movie winning the sound awards.
Best sound mixing
The Dark Knight, Lora Hirschberg, Gary Rizzo and Ed Novick
See best sound editing.
Best makeup
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, Greg Cannom
I was told that the presentation of Cannom’s makeup job at the Academy was incredible. That’s my one predicted win for The Curious Case of Benjamin Button out of its 13 nominations.
Best documentary short subject
The Conscience of Nhem En, Steven Okazaki
The Academy likes Okazaki’s work. This is his fourth nomination, and may well turn out to be his second win. The Conscience of Nhem En focuses on a young soldier, Nhem En, who took ID photos of thousands of people before they were killed by Cambodia’s Khmer Rouge.
Best animated short film
Presto, Doug Sweetland
It’s Pixar — and it’s gotten some glowing notices.
Best live action short film
Spielzeugland (Toyland), Jochen Alexander Freydank
This is one, I admit, is a shot in the dark — but it has a little boy and loads of Academy voters love movies with little boys (or little old men, e.g., The Curious Case of Benjamin Button). Admittedly, Steph Green’s New Boy, about the new (black) kid at an Irish school, also has lots of little boys… Anyhow, we shall see.
Richard Attenborough Awards 2009
Oscar 2009: Predictions Best Actor/Actress
Oscar 2009: Predictions Best Film
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5 Responses to “Oscar 2009 Predictions: Winners in Craft / Technical Categories”
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the reader will win best cinematography. just because critics like anthony dod mantels’ work, that doesn’t mean that the academy voters will want to vote for it as well.
I agree that Thre Reader will win for best cinematography. It’s quite beautiful and at the same time more conventional than the work in Slumdog. The Academy usually goes for what’s more conventional, so I think it’s logical to assume that The Reader will win.
I also think that The Curious Case of BB has a good shot at the best visual effects Oscar. Subtle but impressive work by all involved.
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button will win Best Visual Effects. The creation of this movie is an revolutionary achievement (have you seen the making of?). I would be very surprised if The Dark Knight would be able to top that.
Also Wall-E has a real chance in the sound categories because the sound is so crucial in that movie.
Slumdog won sound awards this past weekend. It may win the sound oscars too.
“Slumdog Millionaire” may indeed win a sound award or two (or “WALL-E” may win one of the sound awards). My “The Dark Knight” predictions get shakier by the minute…
Also, “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” may take the visual effects Oscar as well. It did quite well at the Visual Effects Society Awards last night.