So a week ago I posted a segment suggesting the possibility that the 2020 Oscar season might already be locked in. My notion was that some possible players will ultimately end up missing the eligibility window as studios/distributors will opt to hold their release until later in 2021.
Then the past week happened and films began to disappear from the announced release schedule. It was a little surreal. Tenet...who knows? Mulan...same. Even The French Dispatch-which we suspect will be announced as a TFF #47 selection- has gone from an Oct. 16th release date to indeterminant.
I'm beginning to think my idle speculation about what the 2020 Oscar race ends up looking like might actually be what happens.
Here's how I laid out the Oscar race a week ago using the predictions from Clayton Davis' Awards Circuit and ignoring films that I thought might get scheduled outside the window of Oscar eligibility with probable TFF #47 films in Bold:
1) Nomadland
2) Mank
3) Ammonite
4) The Trial of the Chicago 7 (set to drop on Netflix on Oct. 16th)
5) Soul
6) The French Dispatch
7) Hillbilly Elegy
8) The White Tiger
9) Stillwater (???)
10) The Father
11) Da 5 Bloods
12) Minari
13) Greyhound
14) Palm Springs
15) Untitled Fred Hampton Project
16) The Glorias
17) I'm Thinking of Ending Things
18) Those Who Wish Me Dead
19) Respect
20) Onward
It seems to me that the slew of announcements from Warners, Paramount and Disney made the above scenario more likely.
Now, I will note here that I have seen some scuttlebutt on social media arguing that the Academy should, at this point, do a combined 2020-2021 Oscar season. Though that's possible, I don't see that as very likely. My guess...and it is just a guess, is that the Academy will stick to its guns having already extended Oscar season to two months and providing studios with the ability for a film to have Oscar eligibility even with its premiere occurring non-theatrically.
I have linked a number of re-scheduling stories from this past week below:
ShowBiz411
Hollywood Elsewhere
The Film Stage
NOMADLAND TO "PLAY TELLURIDE" AFTER ALL (AND OTHER PLACES)
Chloe Zhao's Nomadland will play Telluride...after a fashion. Indiewire reports that there will be a special drive-in presentation of the film under the banner of "Telluride from Los Angeles".
Thom Geier at The Wrap reports that the drive-in experience will happen on the evening of Sept. 11th-the same night it co-world premieres at both Venice and Toronto and that director Chloe Zhao and star Frances McDormand are scheduled to appear.
Other Nomadland news was revealed, however, as Indiewire's Zach Sharf reports that the film has been selected as the New York Film Fest's centerpiece and that it will also screen as apart of the official program for both Toronto and Venice.
The occurrence of a film playing all four fests is unusual but I suspect that we'll see more of that than this year because of the disruption created by the Covid-19 pandemic.
Nomadland as yet, no announced release date.
The Wrap's story can be found here.
The Indiewire story can be found here.
HERZOG'S FIREBALL HAS A HOME
Apple TV+ has acquired the Werner Herzog documentary Fireball according to Deadline.com. That acquisition means the film is still a possibility to be named as one of the 20 or so films that are expected to be announced as "TFF #47" choices any day.
And speaking of TFF #47 choices, I'm expecting that list any day now. With Venice announcing their lineup tomorrow and Toronto likely to name some of their lineup later this week, I wouldn't be stunned should we get that information before close of day on Friday.
EMAIL: mpgort@gmail.com
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