The /Film Crew's 2016 Oscars Predictions

The /Film Crew’s 2016 Oscars Predictions

The88th annual Academy Awardsare this Sunday and this looks to be one of the most contentious ceremonies in years. There are no clear frontrunners in more than a few categories and many of the major nominees have as many detractors as they do boosters. For those who take an interest in awards season, it’s a rollercoaster. A glorious, insane, and frequently infuriating rollercoaster.

And while we here at /Film are not professional awards prognosticators, we are going to dive into this race head-on like the spirited amateurs that we are. We have put aside what wewantto win and and have started focusing on what we thinkwillwin (which is easier said than done,because we’re teamMad Mad: Fury Roadaround these parts). We’re going to predict this year’s winners – and whoever gets the most right is going to win a shiny non-prize.

Here’s how the process works. Every participating member of the team (Ethan Anderton, David Chen, Jack Giroux, Jacob Hall, Angie Han) was given 100 points per category to distribute as they saw fit. This means they could put all of their points on a single nominee if they feel confident about a victory or they could split it up between several nominees if they were unsure who was going to win. This flexible system allows for degrees of uncertainty. You don’t have to put all of your eggs in one basket if you think a category will prove contentious or if you suspect an upset. Plus, it’s a lot more fun than just picking a single category.

Once ballots were submitted (and you can see everyone’s personal ballots at the very end of this article), points were tallied up for each category and each nominee. The results can be found below. When all is said and done, we’ll be able to tally up all of the points we placed on the ultimate victors and see how well the overall /Film team fared.

But as we mentioned above, this is a competition! We will ultimately compare the final results at the Oscars this Sunday to everyone’s personal ballots. Each member of the /Film team will receive the points they wagered on a winner and whoever earns the most points wins. And what do they win? Bragging rights for a year! The greatest Non-Prize of them all! The results of this contest will go live on Monday.

But for now, here are our overall predictions. Please feel free to play along at home!

Best Original Song

“Earned It” fromFifty Shades of Grey– 50 points

“Manta Ray” fromRacing Extinction– 70 points

“Simple Song #3” fromYouth– 20 points

“Til It Happens to You” fromThe Hunting Ground– 310 points

“Writing’s on the Wall” fromSpectre– 50 points

In a category filled with songs that nobody seems to truly love, the social importance of “Til It Happens to You” gave it an edge over the competition (although most of the team split their votes to hedge their bets because this is one funky category this year).

Best Cinematography

Ed Lachman,Carol– 20 points

Robert Richardson,The Hateful Eight

John Seale,Mad Max: Fury Road– 45 points

Emmanuel Lubezki,The Revenant– 380 points

Roger Deakins,Sicario– 55 points

Although the greatRoger Deakinsand theJohn Sealereceived some love, the team seems to be in total agreement  –Emmanuel Lubezkiis about to win his third Academy Award in a row.

Best Documentary FeatureAmy– 255 pointsCartel Land– 50 pointsThe Look of Silence– 195 pointsWhat Happened, Miss Simone?Winter on Fire: Ukraine’s Fight for FreedomAmywas the ultimate favorite to win, butThe Look of Silencepulled a strong second place showing. Interestingly, this showdown mirrors the documentary race from 2014, whenThe Act of Killing(The Look of Silence’s predecessor) was defeated by the musically-themed20 Feet From Stardom.Best Costume Design

Sandy Powell,Carol– 60 points

Sandy Powell,Cinderella– 10 points

Paco Delgado,The Danish Girl– 100 points

Jenny Beavan,Mad Max: Fury Road– 130 points

Jacqueline West,The Revenant– 200 points

Every nominee received some attention from the team, but the overall favorite ended up beingThe Revenant. But don’t completely count out the fantastical outfits ofMad Max: Fury Roador the historical costumes ofThe Danish Girl.

Best Sound EditingMad Max: Fury Road– 315 pointsThe MartianThe Revenant– 185 pointsSicarioStar Wars: The Force Awakens

Since it is has the most volume per minute of any nominee,Mad Maxwalked away with the most points here (but almost everyone prepared for a potentialThe Revenantupset).

Best Sound MixingBridge of SpiesMad Max: Fury Road– 290 pointsThe MartianThe Revenant– 210 pointsStar Wars: The Force Awakens

See sound editing.

Best Makeup and HairstylingMad Max: Fury Road– 250 pointsThe 100-Year Old Man Who Climbed Out the Window and DisappearedThe Revenant– 250 points

With the vote equally split betweenThe RevenantandMad Max, your guess is as good as ours. Meanwhile,The 100-Year Old Man Who Climbed Out the Window and Disappearedis just happy to be here.

Best Animated FeatureAnomalisa– 80 pointsBoy and the WorldInside Out– 420 pointsShaun the Sheep MovieWhen Marnie Was There

Although a few members of the team set aside some points just in caseAnomalisapulls an upset, everyone mostly agreed thatInside Outhas this one completely locked down.

Best Supporting Actor

Christian Bale,The Big Short

Tom Hardy,The Revenant

Mark Ruffalo,Spotlight– 70 points

Mark Rylance,Bridge of Spies– 20 points

Sylvester Stallone,Creed– 410 points

Sylvester Stalloneis the sentimental favorite in a fairly contentious category, which gives him an edge overMark RuffaloandMark Rylance.Best Supporting Actress

Jennifer Jason Leigh,The Hateful Eight– 50 points

Rooney Mara,Carol– 60 points

Rachel McAdams,Spotlight

Alicia Vikander,The Danish Girl– 230 points

Kate Winslet,Steve Jobs– 160 points

This is probably the most contentious major category at this year’s Academy Awards  – you put all of your points behind one nominee at your own peril. The only nominee to receive no points wasRachel McAdams(her part is the least flashy and therefore, least likely to win) whileAlicia Vikanderpulled ahead ofKate Winsletto become our favorite to win…although we’re going to pretend that her eventual victory is forEx Machinainstead.

Best Visual EffectsEx MachinaMad Max: Fury Road– 230 pointsThe MartianThe Revenant– 130 pointsStar Wars: The Force Awakens– 140 points

This was another fairly split vote, withMad Max’s celebrated blend of practical and digital effects ultimately gaining the edge over the competition. But if members of the the Academy want to giveStar Wars: The Force Awakenssomething, it could steal a victory here. IfThe Revenantends up sweeping technical categories (which is a strong possibility), it may snatch this trophy away as well.

Best Film EditingThe Big Short– 30 pointsMad Max: Fury Road– 300 pointsThe Revenant– 140 pointsSpotlight– 30 pointsStar Wars: The Force Awakens

With its thousands of cuts and beautifully paced action scenes,Mad Maxwas the definite favorite here. But once again,The Revenantlurks over the category like a specter.

Best Production DesignBridge of Spies– 10 pointsThe Danish Girl– 70 pointsMad Max: Fury Road– 130 pointsThe MartianThe Revenant– 290 points

Historical films tend to have the edge in this category, soThe Revenantgarnered the most points, but don’t count outMad Maxquite yet…

Best Adapted Screenplay

Charles Randolph and Adam McKay,The Big Short– 300 points

Nick Hornby,Brooklyn– 100 points

Phyllis Nagy,Carol

Drew Goddard,The Martian– 50 points

Emma Donoghue,Room– 50 points

The Big Shortis the big favorite here – the way in which it transforms complex information into something completely watchable and understandable gives it a serious edge.Best Original Screenplay

Matt Charman, Joel Coen, and Ethan Coen,Bridge of Spies

Alex Garland,Ex Machina– 45 points

Pete Docter, Megg LeFauve, and Josh Cooley,Inside Out

Josh Singer and Tom McCarthy,Spotlight– 425 points

Jonathan Herman and Andrea Berloff,Straight Outta Compton– 30 points

Spotlightmay be a little too subtle and low-key to win big in other categories, so everyone reached the same conclusion – it’s probably going to take home Best Original Screenplay, if nothing else.Best Original Score

Thomas Newman,Bridge of Spies

Carter Burwell,Carol

Ennio Morricone,The Hateful Eight– 405 points

Jóhann Jóhansson,Sicario– 20 points

John Williams,Star Wars: The Force Awakens– 75 points

Ennio Morriconeis one of the great geniuses of film music and the Academy would surely love to give him another statuette. And yet, you could say the same thing about John Williams…Best Foreign Language Film

Colombia:Embrace of the Serpent

France:Mustang

Hungary:Son of Saul– 500 points

Jordan:Theeb

Denmark:A War

This was one of only two categories where every member of the team put all of their points on a single film.Son of Saullooks unstoppable right now, but anything can happen in this category.

Best Director

Adam McKay,The Big Short– 40 points

George Miller,Mad Max: Fury Road– 110 points

Alejandro González Iñárritu,The Revenant– 350 points

Lenny Abrahamson,Room

Tom McCarthy,Spotlight

WillAlejandro González Iñárritu win Best Director for the second year in a row? We certainly think so, although this could beGeorge Miller’s to upset.

Best Actress

Cate Blanchett,Carol– 10 points

Brie Larson,Room– 455 points

Jennifer Lawrence,Joy

Charlotte Rampling,45 Years– 35 points

Saoirse Ronan,Brooklyn

Don’t let the points thrown atCate BlanchettandCharlotte Ramplingfool you –Brie Larsonhas got this one in the bag.

Best Actor

Bryan Cranston,Trumbo

Matt Damon,The Martian

Leonardo DiCaprio,The Revenant– 500 points

Michael Fassbender,Steve Jobs

Eddie Redmayne,The Danish Girl

Did you hear thatLeonardo DiCaprioate raw bison liver and suffered terribly on the set ofThe Revenant? Of course you did. Whether you like the performance or not, the narrative surrounding his work here has made him total lock.

Best PictureThe Big Short– 100 pointsBridge of SpiesBrooklynMad Max: Fury Road– 50 pointsThe MartianThe Revenant– 185 pointsRoomSpotlight– 165 points

Although the tallied points ultimately gaveThe Revenantthe edge in our predictions, this is one of the craziest and most contentious Best Picture races of all time. Do not be surprised ifSpotlightorThe Big Shortsnatches this one out from under it.

And here are our personal ballots, which show how each member of the team utilized their personal points. In addition to what we thinkwillwin, we haveboldedthe nominee that we actuallywantto win.

Ethan Anderton

“Earned It” fromFifty Shades of Grey

“Manta Ray” fromRacing Extinction

“Simple Song #3” fromYouth

“Til It Happens to You” fromThe Hunting Ground– 100 points

“Writing’s on the Wall” fromSpectre

Ed Lachman,Carol

John Seale,Mad Max: Fury Road

Emmanuel Lubezki,The Revenant– 100 points

Roger Deakins,Sicario

Best Documentary FeatureAmy– 80 pointsCartel LandThe Look of Silence– 20 pointsWhat Happened, Miss Simone?Winter on Fire: Ukraine’s Fight for FreedomBest Costume Design

Sandy Powell,Carol– 10 points

Sandy Powell,Cinderella– 10 points

Paco Delgado,The Danish Girl

Jenny Beavan,Mad Max: Fury Road– 80 points

Jacqueline West,The Revenant

Best Sound EditingMad Max: Fury Road– 100 pointsThe MartianThe RevenantSicarioStar Wars: The Force AwakensBest Sound MixingBridge of SpiesMad Max: Fury Road– 100 pointsThe MartianThe RevenantStar Wars: The Force AwakensBest Makeup and HairstylingMad Max: Fury Road– 100 pointsThe 100-Year Old Man Who Climbed Out the Window and DisappearedThe RevenantBest Animated FeatureAnomalisaBoy and the WorldInside Out– 100 pointsShaun the Sheep MovieWhen Marnie Was ThereBest Supporting Actor

Mark Ruffalo,Spotlight

Mark Rylance,Bridge of Spies

Sylvester Stallone,Creed– 100 pointsBest Supporting Actress

Jennifer Jason Leigh,The Hateful Eight

Rooney Mara,Carol

Alicia Vikander,The Danish Girl– 100 points

Kate Winslet,Steve Jobs

Best Visual EffectsEx MachinaMad Max: Fury RoadThe MartianThe RevenantStar Wars: The Force Awakens– 100 pointsBest Film EditingThe Big ShortMad Max: Fury Road– 100 pointsThe RevenantSpotlightStar Wars: The Force AwakensBest Production DesignBridge of SpiesThe Danish GirlMad Max: Fury Road– 100 pointsThe MartianThe RevenantBest Adapted ScreenplayCharles Randolph and Adam McKay,The Big Short– 100 points

Nick Hornby,Brooklyn

Drew Goddard,The Martian

Emma Donoghue,Room

Best Original Screenplay

Alex Garland,Ex Machina

Josh Singer and Tom McCarthy,Spotlight– 100 points

Jonathan Herman and Andrea Berloff,Straight Outta Compton

Best Original Score

Ennio Morricone,The Hateful Eight– 100 points

Jóhann Jóhansson,Sicario

John Williams,Star Wars: The Force Awakens

Best Foreign Language Film

Hungary:Son of Saul– 100 points

Adam McKay,The Big Short– 20 points

George Miller,Mad Max: Fury Road

Alejandro González Iñárritu,The Revenant– 80 points

Cate Blanchett,Carol

Brie Larson,Room– 100 points

Charlotte Rampling,45 Years

Leonardo DiCaprio,The Revenant– 100 points

Best PictureThe Big Short– 20 pointsBridge of SpiesBrooklynMad Max: Fury RoadThe MartianThe Revenant– 40 pointsRoomSpotlight– 40 points

David Chen

Best Original Song"Earned It" fromFifty Shades of Grey– 20 points

“Manta Ray” fromRacing Extinction– 20 points

“Simple Song #3” fromYouth– 20 points

“Til It Happens to You” fromThe Hunting Ground– 20 points

“Writing’s on the Wall” fromSpectre– 20 points

Ed Lachman,Carol– 20 points

Emmanuel Lubezki,The Revenant– 75 points

Roger Deakins,Sicario– 5 pointsBest Documentary FeatureAmy– 50 pointsCartel Land– 50 pointsThe Look of SilenceWhat Happened, Miss Simone?Winter on Fire: Ukraine’s Fight for FreedomBest Costume Design

Sandy Powell,Carol

Sandy Powell,Cinderella

Jenny Beavan,Mad Max: Fury Road

Jacqueline West,The Revenant– 100 pointsBest Sound EditingMad Max: Fury Road– 25 pointsThe MartianThe Revenant– 75 pointsSicarioStar Wars: The Force AwakensBest Sound MixingBridge of SpiesMad Max: Fury RoadThe MartianThe Revenant– 100 pointsStar Wars: The Force AwakensBest Makeup and HairstylingMad Max: Fury RoadThe 100-Year Old Man Who Climbed Out the Window and DisappearedThe Revenant– 100 pointsBest Animated FeatureAnomalisaBoy and the WorldInside Out– 100 pointsShaun the Sheep MovieWhen Marnie Was ThereBest Supporting Actor

Mark Ruffalo,Spotlight– 50 points

Sylvester Stallone,Creed– 50 points

Best Supporting Actress

Jennifer Jason Leigh,The Hateful Eight– 50 points

Rooney Mara,Carol– 50 points

Alicia Vikander,The Danish Girl

Best Visual EffectsEx MachinaMad Max: Fury Road– 50 pointsThe MartianThe Revenant– 50 pointsStar Wars: The Force AwakensBest Film EditingThe Big ShortMad Max: Fury Road– 50 pointsThe Revenant– 50 pointsSpotlightStar Wars: The Force AwakensBest Production DesignBridge of SpiesThe Danish GirlMad Max: Fury RoadThe MartianThe Revenant– 100 pointsBest Adapted Screenplay

Charles Randolph and Adam McKay,The Big Short

Drew Goddard,The Martian– 50 points

Emma Donoghue,Room– 50 pointsBest Original Screenplay

Alex Garland,Ex Machina– 20 points

Josh Singer and Tom McCarthy,Spotlight– 50 points

Ennio Morricone,The Hateful Eight– 25 points

John Williams,Star Wars: The Force Awakens– 75 pointsBest Foreign Language Film

Adam McKay,The Big Short

George Miller,Mad Max: Fury Road– 50 points

Alejandro González Iñárritu,The Revenant– 50 points

Brie Larson,Room– 75 points

Charlotte Rampling,45 Years– 25 points

Best PictureThe Big ShortBridge of SpiesBrooklynMad Max: Fury Road– 50 pointsThe MartianThe Revenant– 50 pointsRoomSpotlight

Jack Giroux

Best Original Song"Earned It" fromFifty Shades of Grey

“Manta Ray” fromRacing Extinction– 50 points

“Til It Happens to You” fromThe Hunting Ground– 50 points

Emmanuel Lubezki,The Revenant– 50 points

Roger Deakins,Sicario– 50 points

Best Documentary FeatureAmyCartel LandThe Look of Silence– 100 pointsWhat Happened, Miss Simone?Winter on Fire: Ukraine’s Fight for FreedomBest Costume Design

Sandy Powell,Carol– 50 points

Jacqueline West,The Revenant– 50 points

Best Sound EditingMad Max: Fury Road– 100 pointsThe MartianThe RevenantSicarioStar Wars: The Force AwakensBest Sound MixingBridge of SpiesMad Max: Fury Road– 100 pointsThe MartianThe RevenantStar Wars: The Force AwakensBest Makeup and HairstylingMad Max: Fury RoadThe 100-Year Old Man Who Climbed Out the Window and DisappearedThe Revenant– 100 pointsBest Animated FeatureAnomalisa– 30 pointsBoy and the WorldInside Out– 70 pointsShaun the Sheep MovieWhen Marnie Was ThereBest Supporting Actor

Sylvester Stallone,Creed– 100 pointsBest Supporting ActressJennifer Jason Leigh,The Hateful Eight

Kate Winslet,Steve Jobs– 100 points

Best Visual EffectsEx MachinaMad Max: Fury Road– 100 pointsThe MartianThe RevenantStar Wars: The Force AwakensBest Film EditingThe Big ShortMad Max: Fury Road– 50 pointsThe Revenant– 50 pointsSpotlightStar Wars: The Force AwakensBest Production DesignBridge of SpiesThe Danish GirlMad Max: Fury RoadThe MartianThe Revenant– 100 pointsBest Adapted ScreenplayCharles Randolph and Adam McKay,The Big Short– 50 points

Nick Hornby,Brooklyn– 50 points

Ennio Morricone,The Hateful Eight– 80 points

Alejandro González Iñárritu,The Revenant– 100 points

Best ActressCate Blanchett,Carol

Best PictureThe Big ShortBridge of SpiesBrooklynMad Max: Fury RoadThe MartianThe RevenantRoomSpotlight– 100 points

Jacob Hall

“Til It Happens to You” fromThe Hunting Ground– 100

John Seale,Mad Max: Fury Road– 25

Emmanuel Lubezki,The Revenant– 75

Best Documentary FeatureAmy– 75Cartel LandThe Look of Silence– 25What Happened, Miss Simone?Winter on Fire: Ukraine’s Fight for FreedomBest Costume DesignSandy Powell,Carol

Paco Delgado,The Danish Girl– 50 points

Jenny Beavan,Mad Max: Fury Road– 50 points

Best Sound EditingMad Max: Fury Road– 50 pointsThe MartianThe Revenant– 50 pointsSicarioStar Wars: The Force AwakensBest Sound MixingBridge of SpiesMad Max: Fury Road– 50 pointsThe MartianThe Revenant– 50 pointsStar Wars: The Force AwakensBest Makeup and HairstylingMad Max: Fury Road– 100 pointsThe 100-Year Old Man Who Climbed Out the Window and DisappearedThe RevenantBest Animated FeatureAnomalisaBoy and the WorldInside Out– 100 pointsShaun the Sheep MovieWhen Marnie Was ThereBest Supporting Actor

Alicia Vikander,The Danish Girl– 50 points

Kate Winslet,Steve Jobs– 50 points

Best Visual EffectsEx MachinaMad Max: Fury Road– 50 pointsThe MartianThe Revenant– 50 pointsStar Wars: The Force AwakensBest Film EditingThe Big ShortMad Max: Fury Road– 100 pointsThe RevenantSpotlightStar Wars: The Force AwakensBest Production DesignBridge of Spies– 10 pointsThe Danish Girl –30 pointsMad Max: Fury Road–30 pointsThe MartianThe Revenant– 30 pointsBest Adapted Screenplay

Charles Randolph and Adam McKay,The Big Short– 100 points

Alex Garland,Ex Machina– 25 points

Josh Singer and Tom McCarthy,Spotlight– 75 points

George Miller,Mad Max: Fury Road– 50 points

Alejandro González Iñárritu,The Revenant– 50 points

Best PictureThe Big Short– 50 pointsBridge of SpiesBrooklynMad Max: Fury RoadThe MartianThe Revenant– 25 pointsRoomSpotlight– 25 points

“Earned It” fromFifty Shades of Grey– 30 points

“Til It Happens to You” fromThe Hunting Ground– 40 points

“Writing’s on the Wall” fromSpectre– 30 points

Best CinematographyEd Lachman,Carol

John Seale,Mad Max: Fury Road– 20 points

Emmanuel Lubezki,The Revenant– 80 points

Best Documentary FeatureAmy– 50 pointsCartel LandThe Look of Silence– 50 pointsWhat Happened, Miss Simone?Winter on Fire: Ukraine’s Fight for FreedomBest Costume DesignSandy Powell,Carol

Paco Delgado,The Danish Girl– 50 points

Best Sound EditingMad Max: Fury Road– 40 pointsThe MartianThe Revenant– 60 pointsSicarioStar Wars: The Force AwakensBest Sound MixingBridge of SpiesMad Max: Fury Road– 40 pointsThe MartianThe Revenant– 60 pointsStar Wars: The Force AwakensBest Makeup and HairstylingMad Max: Fury Road– 50 pointsThe 100-Year Old Man Who Climbed Out the Window and DisappearedThe Revenant– 50 pointsBest Animated FeatureAnomalisa– 50 pointsBoy and the WorldInside Out– 50 pointsShaun the Sheep MovieWhen Marnie Was ThereBest Supporting Actor

Mark Ruffalo,Spotlight– 20 points

Sylvester Stallone,Creed– 60 pointsBest Supporting Actress

Rooney Mara,Carol– 10 points

Alicia Vikander,The Danish Girl– 80 points

Kate Winslet,Steve Jobs– 10 points

Best Visual EffectsEx MachinaMad Max: Fury Road– 30 pointsThe MartianThe Revenant– 30 pointsStar Wars: The Force Awakens– 40 pointsBest Film EditingThe Big Short– 30 pointsMad Max: Fury RoadThe Revenant– 40 pointsSpotlight– 30 pointsStar Wars: The Force AwakensBest Production DesignBridge of SpiesThe Danish Girl– 40 pointsMad Max: Fury RoadThe MartianThe Revenant– 60 pointsBest Adapted Screenplay

Charles Randolph and Adam McKay,The Big Short– 50 points

Adam McKay,The Big Short– 20 points

George Miller,Mad Max: Fury Road– 10 points

Alejandro González Iñárritu,The Revenant– 70 points

Brie Larson,Room– 80 points

Saoirse Ronan,Brooklyn– 10 pointsBest Actor

Best PictureThe Big Short– 30 pointsBridge of SpiesBrooklynMad Max: Fury RoadThe MartianThe Revenant– 70 pointsRoomSpotlight