Travelin’ Thru the Transamerica way. Kevin Zegers and Felicity Huffman star in Duncan Tucker’s “family values” road movie Transamerica, which follows a pre-op male-to-female transsexual (Huffman) who becomes acquainted with her gay-porn-star-to-be son (Zegers) as they travel from New York City to Los Angeles. Dolly Parton’s “Travelin’ Thru” is one of the dozens of highly eclectic contenders for a Best Song Academy Award nomination.
Oscar Best Song longlist: From Dolly Parton’s ‘Travelin’ Thru’ to ‘Nobody Jesus But You’
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has announced that 42 original songs are vying for the 2006 Best Song Academy Award. Titles on the eclectic list include Transamerica‘s “Travelin’ Thru,” Ice Princess’ “Reachin’ for Heaven,” Palindromes’ “Nobody Jesus But You,” and Hustle & Flow‘s “It’s Hard Out Here for a Pimp.”
As per the Academy’s press release, in order to be eligible for Oscar consideration, a song must consist of original lyrics and music written specifically for the film.
The release adds that in mid-January 2006 three-minute clips of each song, in random order, will be shown to Music Branch voting members who will then vote to nominate three to five songs.
“Travelin’ Thru” composer/singer Dolly Parton, by the way, has one previous Oscar nomination: for the title song of Colin Higgins’ 1980 comedy 9 to 5, starring Parton, Jane Fonda, and Lily Tomlin.
The ditties and their films are listed below in alphabetical order.
Best Song Oscar eclectic longlist: ‘Travelin’ Thru’ & ‘Have a Little Faith’
“Along the River,” End of the Spear.
“Angels Talk,” Angels with Angels.
“Butterfly,” Because of Winn-Dixie.
“Can’t Take It In,” The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe.
“Closer Every Day,” Freezerburn.
“Dicholo,” The Constant Gardener.
“Do the Hippogriff,” Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire.
“Dreamer,” Dreamer: Inspired by a True Story.
“Face of Faith,” Rumor Has It.
“Fight for the Children,” Palindromes.
“Finding Home,” Finding Home.
“Great Big World,” Hoodwinked!.
“Have a Little Faith,” The Theory of Everything.
“Hustle & Flow (It Ain’t Over),” Hustle & Flow.
“(I’d Have It All) If I Had Drew,” My Date with Drew.
“If I Apologize,” Mirrormask.
“I’ll Be Near You,” Bee Season.
“I’ll Whip Ya Head Boy,” Get Rich or Die Tryin’.
“In the Deep,” Crash.
“It Ain’t Over Yet,” Racing Stripes.
“It’s Hard Out Here for a Pimp,” Hustle & Flow.
“I’ve Gotta See You Smile,” Because of Winn-Dixie.
“Mad Hot Ballroom,” Mad Hot Ballroom.
“Move Away and Shine,” Thumbsucker.
“My Brother, My People,” Blues by the Beach.
“Nobody Jesus But You,” Palindromes.
“One Blood,” Green Street Hooligans.
“One Little Slip,” Chicken Little.
“One Safe Place,” The Upside of Anger.
“Reachin’ for Heaven,” Ice Princess.
“Remains of the Day,” Tim Burton’s Corpse Bride.
“Same in Any Language,” Elizabethtown.
“Shine,” Robots.
“Shoulder to Shoulder,” Pooh’s Heffalump Movie.
“So Long and Thanks for All the Fish,” The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy.
“Taking the Inside Rail,” Racing Stripes.
“Tell Me What You Already Did,” Robots.
“There’s Nothing Like a Show on Broadway,” The Producers.
“These Days,” Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants.
“This Is the Way,” Palindromes.
“Travelin’ Thru,” Transamerica.
“You’re Gonna Die Soon,” Sarah Silverman: Jesus is Magic.
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory with Johnny Depp. It should be no surprise that this year’s Best Visual Effects Academy Award semifinalists are all big-budget Hollywood (or part-Hollywood) productions geared to the teenage-and-under crowd. Really, no matter how serious-minded Christopher Nolan’s Batman Begins may be, it got made and seen because it was a Batman flick. Tim Burton’s fantasy Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, starring Johnny Depp in the old Gene Wilder role, and Peter Jackson’s ape flick King Kong, starring Naomi Watts in the old Fay Wray role, are two other potential Oscar contenders.
‘Charlie and the Chocolate Factory’ & ‘War of the Worlds’ among Best Visual Effects Oscar semifinalists
In other late December 2005 Oscar news, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has announced the seven films still in contention for the 2006 Best Visual Effects Academy Award. They are (director in parentheses):
- Batman Begins (Christopher Nolan).
- Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (Tim Burton).
- The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (Andrew Adamson).
- Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (Mike Newell).
- King Kong (Peter Jackson).
- Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith (George Lucas).
- War of the Worlds (Steven Spielberg).
Out of the seven movies, three will receive Best Visual Effects nominations. Last year’s nominees were Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban; I, Robot; and the eventual winner, Spider-Man 2.
Premiere time at the Slamdance Film Festival, with numerous World, North American, and U.S. movie debuts. Bob Hercules and Cheri Pugh’s Forgiving Dr. Mengele chronicles the reaction to Auschwitz concentration camp survivor Eva Mozes Kor’s decision to forgive Nazi doctor Josef Mengele. As an aside, Mengele, who died in the state of São Paulo, Brazil, in Feb. 1979, was brought to life on the big screen by Gregory Peck in Franklin J. Schaffner’s 1978 “what if” thriller The Boys from Brazil and, in fictionalized shape, by Laurence Olivier (curiously, a Nazi hunter in The Boys from Brazil) in John Schlesinger’s Marathon Man.
Slamdance Film Festival line-up: From Nazi butcher to North Korean abductors
Travelin’ thru Utah: The 2006 Slamdance Film Festival will be held between Jan. 19–27 in Park City, Utah.
Among the narrative features in competition are:
- Erica Dunton’s Find Love, about two strangers who unexpectedly find, what else, love.
- Todd Rohal’s The Guatemalan Handshake, the story of a mysterious disappearance following a massive power outage.
- Elliott Lester’s Love Is the Drug, which revolves around a deadly adolescent love triangle.
Among the documentary features in competition are:
- Bob Hercules and Cheri Pugh’s Forgiving Dr. Mengele, about the controversy surrounding Auschwitz concentration camp survivor Eva Mozes Kor’s decision to forgive murderous Nazi doctor Josef Mengele.
- Chris Sheridan and Patty Kim’s Abduction, the tale of a 13-year-old Japanese girl kidnapped by North Korean spies.
- Sam Wainwright Douglas and Paul Lovelace’s The Holy Modal Rounders: Bound to Lose, about the psychedelic folk rock group Holy Modal Rounders.
Below is a partial list of this year’s Slamdance Film Festival line-up.
Feature Films
Narrative Feature Competition
The Call of Cthulhu (USA). Director: Andrew Leman.
HP Lovecraft’s celebrated tale of supernatural horror brought to life as a 1920s silent film.Find Love (USA). Dir./Scr.: Erica Dunton.
Two strangers find love when looking for it was the last thing on their minds.The Guatemalan Handshake (USA). Dir./Scr.: Todd Rohal.
In the confusion following a massive power outage, an awkward demolition derby driver vanishes – leaving behind his friends, family and pregnant girlfriend to solve the mystery.Liebeskind (Germany). Dir./Scr.: Jeanette Wagner.
After five years a father and daughter reunite, only to find that their new-found relationship is less than perfect.Love Is the Drug (USA). Director: Elliott Lester.
A love triangle among recent high school graduates proves deadly.The Other Side (USA). Dir./Scr.: Greg Bishop.
Samuel North escapes from Hell to track down the person who murdered him, but the Netherworld sends a team of Reapers to bring him back.We Go Way Back (USA). Dir./Scr.: Lynn Shelton.
Adolescence has left 23-year-old actress Kate robbed of her bearings and her boundaries. Can a surreal confrontation with her 13-year-old self redeem her? A sly and tender depiction of one young woman’s journey of self-rediscovery.
Documentary Feature Competition
Abduction (USA). Director: Chris Sheridan & Patty Kim, written by Patty Kim. Produced by Jane Campion.
The haunting story of a 13-year-old Japanese girl kidnapped by North Korean spies.Do You Remember Me? (Germany). Dir./Scr.: Alexander Heuken & Michaela Liechtenstein.
The story of a Thai mother who is forced to choose between keeping her youngest daughter, or giving her away to save the child’s life.Forgiving Dr. Mengele (USA). Director: Bob Hercules & Cheri Pugh.
The story of Auschwitz concentration camp survivor Eva Mozes Kor whose controversial decision to forgive notorious Nazi Josef Mengele doctor who performed cruel genetic experiments on her and her sister, caused a firestorm of criticism.The Holy Modal Rounders: Bound to Lose (USA). Director: Sam Wainwright Douglas & Paul Lovelace.
After 40 years of unpredictable live shows, drug addictions & breakdowns, psychedelic folk rock legends, the Holy Modal Rounders survived one of the strangest careers in music. With appearances by former Rounders drummer, playwright/actor Sam Shepard; Dennis Hopper, John Sebastian of The Lovin Spoonfuls; Peter Tork of The Monkees and others.
Special Screenings
Neo Ned (USA). Director: Van Fischer.
An Aryan Brother (Jeremy Renner) falls in love with a black girl (Gabrielle Union) who claims the soul of Hitler is trapped inside her. Also with Sally Kirkland, Cary Elwes, Steve Railsback.Wassup Rockers (USA). Director: Larry Clark.
A group of East Los Angeles Latino Rocker Skateboarder teens skate through the wilds of Beverly Hills on a journey that changes their lives forever. Opening Night Film.
Short Films
Documentary Short Competition
Do You Want the Elephant Music (USA). Director: Leslie Dektor.
Rising Tide (USA). Director: Robert Todd & Michael Dwyer.
Outsider: The Life and Art of Judith Scott (USA). Director: Betsy Bayha.
Animated Short Competition
The Book of Visions (USA). Director: Annie Poon.
The Boy With No Name (USA). Director: Adam Smith.
Vaudeville (USA/South Korea). Director: Chansoo Kim.
Live Action Short Competition
California (Cuba). Director: Irene Borrego.
The Devil (Poland). Director: Tomasz Szafranski.
I Ran with a Grey Ghost (USA). Director: Levi Abrino.
Monster (Australia). Director: Jennifer Kent.
No Exit (USA). Director: Etienne Kallos.
Phone Sex Grandma (USA). Director: Jack Truman.
Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences website.
Slamdance Film Festival website.
Image of Kevin Zegers and Felicity Huffman in the potential Best Song Oscar (“Travelin’ Thru”) contender Transamerica: IFC Films.
Johnny Depp Charlie and the Chocolate Factory image: Warner Bros.
Forgiving Dr. Mengele image: Media Process Group.
“’Travelin’ Thru’ & ‘Nobody Jesus But You’: Eclectic Best Song Oscar List” last updated in January 2019.