Oscar Predictions

This has been a crazy awards season with no clear frontrunner dominating the pre-Oscar ceremonies like last year's Oppenheimer and the previous year's Everything Everywhere All at Once. Here are my predictions in this unpredictable Oscar race, culminating on March 2:

Best Picture:
Prediction: Anora
Preference: Nickel Boys

Best Actor:

Prediction/Preference: Adrien Brody, The Brutalist

Possible Spoiler: Timothee Chalamant, A Complete Unknown

Best Actress:

Prediction: Demi Moore, The Substance

Preference: Marianne Jean-Baptistie, Hard Truths (she was robbed of a nomination)

Best Supporting Actor:

Prediction/Prefrence: Kieran Culkin, A Real Pain

Best Supporting Actress:

Prediction: Zoe Saldana, Emilia Perez

Preference: Danielle Deadwyler, The Piano Lesson (Again, she was robbed of a nomination. Isabella Rossellini didn't do very much to merit a slot.)

Best Director: 

Prediction: Sean Baker, Anora

Preference: RaMell Ross, Nickel Boys (not nominated)

Best Original Screenplay

Prediction: Sean Baker, Anora

Preference: Jesse Eisenberg, A Real Pain

Best Adapted Screenplay:

Prediction: Conclave

Preference: Nickel Boys

Best International Film:

Prediction: I'm Still Here

Preference: Emilia Perez (this trans-positive film should not suffer because of Karla Sofia Gascon's racist tweets.)

Best Animated Feature:

Prediction: The Wild Robot

Preference: Flow

Best Animated Short:

Prediction: Beautiful Men

Preference: Magic Candies

Best Live-Action Short:

Prediction/Preference: A Lien

Best Doc. Feature: No Other Land (I predict the Gaza film will win over the Ukraine film Porcelain War)

Best Doc. Short Subject: I'm Ready Warden

Best Cinematography:

Prediction: The Brutalist

Preference: Nickel Boys (again not even nominated)

Best Production Design: Wicked

Best Costume Design: Wicked

Best Sound: Dune, Part 2

Best Visual Effects: Dune, Part 2

Best Editing: Conclave

Best Make-Up and Hairstyling: The Substance

Best Score: The Brutalist

Best Song: El Mar from Emilia Perez