For many viewers, Best Sound Mixing is often overlooked by all of the other categories at the Oscars. But it is a highly technical craft that is also incredibly creative. Mixing is the process of matching audio levels of every single sound in order to make the film sound seamless, realistic, and sharp. Sound mixers add their touch to the story. Movies that require a ton of sounds in a single scene, (music, explosions, even unique ways to capture silence), demand a kind of precision and artistry not always appreciated by the typical movie-goer. This post ranks the Academy…
The Academy Award for Best International Feature Film is one of the most prestigious awards in the entire Oscars ceremony. While international films are eligible for other categories and do sometimes win, the Best International Feature Film category is often the only spotlight for films produced in countries outside of the United States and outside of the English language. Which can be a shame considering many of the best films made in any given year come from all around the world. After we run down the entire list of winners, we've ranked our personal favorites. Bon voyage!Continue reading Academy Award…
There is a saying: the best film editing is the editing that nobody notices. Though there are exceptions, this is pretty widely accepted as truth for the most part. So if good editing purposely avoids standing out, how are the nominees and winners of the Best Film Editing Oscar picked out and decided?The editing style of a particular film is at the behest of the story being told and the style of the director telling it. Large-scale films that are grand in scope and full of flashy, complex sequences are sure to impress, which is why war films tend to…
We’ve talked quite a bit about the amount of thought that goes into Costume Design. We’ve talked about how costumes instantly convey information about the story’s setting, and about who the characters are. The Academy Award for Best Costume Design winners add their own flavor and style to the film, in some cases even a style that audiences wanted to emulate. In this post, we’re going to take a look at the 21st century Best Costume Design winners and see “who wore it best.” One thing you’ll notice immediately is that the films on this list are mostly period pieces, but…
The Academy Award for Best Makeup and Hairstyling was a late edition to the ceremony. And the addition of hairstyling to the category came even later. After an outpouring of criticism towards the Academy for not honoring the makeup work done in David Lynch’s The Elephant Man, the Academy instituted the “Best Makeup” category the very next year at the 54th annual award ceremony. It wasn’t until 2012 that the title of the award was altered to the “Academy Award for Best Makeup and Hairstyling.” In this post, we'll not only give you a complete list of every Best…
The Best Supporting Actor category at the Oscars is often one of the most crowded and competitive fields in the entire Academy Award ceremony. Supporting actor roles tend to be some of the juiciest parts penned by screenwriters and often provide the perfect opportunities for talented actors to sink their teeth in and disappear into character. Join us in taking a look at 20 of the greatest Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor winners of all time, but first, let’s take a look at the complete list of winners over the years.Continue reading Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor —…
Strong supporting actress roles have led to some of cinema's greatest performances. The Best Supporting Actress category is sometimes overlooked in favor of the flashier Lead Performance categories but the importance of a role is not in any way diminished by a lesser amount of screen-time. Join us in celebrating 20 of the greatest winners of the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress. Continue reading Academy Award For Best Supporting Actress — Winners Ranked
Production design is everything that goes into making the world of a film – sets, props and more. But despite its importance, production design is a facet of filmmaking that I think many people take for granted. We often ascribe credit to the writers, directors and stars of a picture rather than the artists working in the shadows. But today, we’re going to honor the great production designers of Hollywood by looking at every Academy Award for Best Production Design winner – then we’ll rank some of the best production designs of all-time. Before we rank the “best” Best Production…
The Academy Award for Best Original Score is one of the most prestigious honors a composer can be given. Over the years, some of the world’s most acclaimed composers, like John Williams and Max Steiner, have won the award. We’re going to list every Academy Award for Best Original Score winner, then rank some of the best. By the end, you’ll know the Best Original Score category better than ever before. Continue reading Academy Award for Best Original Score: Top Winners Ranked
One of the most prestigious honors a screenwriter can be given is the Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay. Over the years, we’ve seen sweeping stories of romanticism like the original Titanic, as well as stories of war like The Hurt Locker, win the award. We’re going to list all the scripts that have won the Academy Award for Best Original screenplay, then we’re going to rank some of the greatest.Continue reading Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay — Top 20 Ranked