Tag Archives: La La Land

Oscar 2017: ‘Moonlight’ Earns Eight Oscar Nominations, Including Best Picture, Best Director

The nominees for the 89th annual Academy Awards are finally in.

As expected, La La Land was the big story from the nominations announcement for the 89th Academy Awards, garnering 14 nominations, tying Titanic and All About Eve for the most of any movie.

But Moonlight, with its nine nominations, could still come away winning big at the show.

The film is up for eight awards, including best picture, director (Barry Jenkins) and supporting awards for Mahershala Ali and Naomie Harris.

Adapted from a play by Tarell Alvin McCraney, Moonlight follows Chiron, a boy growing up in Liberty City. The city of Miami is the backdrop as Chiron struggles with his fraught relationship with his drug-addicted mother; threats and fights with school bullies; and the secret of his sexuality.

The film has been praised by critics and LGBT community alike for its “exploration of gay black masculinity… managing to do so without ever diminishing the lives full of complex humanity that black gay men still manage to have in America while navigating that reality”.

In contrast to last year’s #OscarsSoWhite controversy – when the academy put forward all-white rosters of acting nominees – Oscar voters chose to foster and better recognize diversity in filmmaking.

That effort shows in the nominations, which went to a number of actors and directors of colour.

Denzel Washington, Viola Davis, Octavia Spencer, Dev Patel, and Ruth Negga also got nods for their performances.

Finally, Ava Duvernay’s 13th, Raoul Peck’s I Am Not Your Negro, and Ezra Edelman’s OJ: Made in America are all up for Best Documentary, and all deal with the spectre of racism in America.

This year’s effort is by no means perfect, but it’s a welcome start as the Academy improves going forward.


Here is the list of nominees.

Best Picture

Arrival

Fences

Hacksaw Ridge

Hell or High Water

Hidden Figures

La La Land

Lion

Manchester by the Sea

Moonlight

Best Director

Damien Chazelle, La La Land

Denis Villeneuve, Arrival

Mel Gibson, Hacksaw Ridge

Kenneth Lonergan, Manchester by the Sea

Barry Jenkins, Moonlight

Best Original Screenplay

Hell or High Water

La La Land

The Lobster

Manchester by the Sea

20th Century Women

Best Adapted Screenplay

Arrival

Fences

Hidden Figures

Lion

Moonlight

Best Actor

Casey Affleck, Manchester by the Sea

Ryan Gosling, La La Land

Denzel Washington, Fences

Viggo Mortensen, Captain Fantastic

Andrew Garfield, Hacksaw Ridge

Best Actress

Emma Stone, La La Land

Isabelle Huppert, Elle

Ruth Negga, Loving

Natalie Portman, Jackie

Meryl Streep, Florence Foster Jenkins

Best Supporting Actor

Mahershala Ali, Moonlight

Jeff Bridges, Hell or High Water

Michael Shannon, Nocturnal Animals

Lucas Hedges, Manchester by the Sea

Dev Patel, Lion

Best Supporting Actress

Nicole Kidman, Lion

Viola Davis, Fences

Naomie Harris, Moonlight

Octavia Spencer, Hidden Figures

Michelle Williams, Manchester by the Sea

Best Documentary

Fire at Sea

I Am Not Your Negro

Life Animated

OJ: Made in America

13th

Best Documentary Short Subject

The White Helmets

Extremis

Watani: My Homeland

4.1 Miles

Joe’s Violin

Best Live Action Short Film

Timecode

Sing (Mindenki)

Silent Nights

Ennemis Interieurs

La Femme et le TGV

Best Animated Film

Zootopia

Kubo and the Two Strings

Moana

My Life as a Zucchini

The Red Turtle

Best animated short film

Piper

Pearl

Borrowed Time

Pear Cider and Cigarettes

Blind Vaysha

Best Foreign Language Film

Land of Mine

A Man Called Ove

The Salesman

Tana

Toni Erdmann

Best Cinematography

Arrival

Silence

La La Land

Lion

Moonlight

Best Production Design

Arrival

Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them

Hail Caesar

La La Land

Passengers

Best Visual Effects

Deepwater Horizon

Doctor Strange

Jungle Book

Kubo and the Two Strings

Rogue One: A Star Wars Story

Best Film Editing

La La Land

Moonlight

Hacksaw Ridge

Arrival

Hell or High Water

Best Costume Design

Allied

Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them

Florence Foster Jenkins

Jackie

La La Land

Best Makeup and Hair

A Man Called Ove

Star Trek Beyond

Suicide Squad

Best Original Score

Jackie

La La Land

Lion

Moonlight

Passengers

Best Original Score

La La Land, Justin Hurwitz

Moonlight, Nicholas Britell

Lion, Dustin O’Halloran and Hauschka

Jackie, Mica Levi

Passengers, Thomas Newman

Best Original Song

“Audition,” La La Land

“Can’t Stop the Feeling,” Trolls

“City of Stars,” La La Land

“The Empty Chair,” Jim: The James Foley Story

“How Far I’ll Go,” Moana

Best sound editing

La La Land

Hacksaw Ridge

Arrival

Sully

Deepwater Horizon

Best Sound Mixing

La La Land

Hacksaw Ridge

Rogue One: A Star Wars Story

Arrival

13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi