Ryan Gosling

LA La Land has been earning enough recognition at this year’s awards season that it’s almost a no-brainer to predict it would get more than a couple of Oscar nominations when they are announced next week. Already, Ryan Gosling has won his first Golden Globe award for his performance in the magical musical, which should guarantee him a spot in the Oscar’s Best Actor list. In the film, Gosling plays a struggling jazz pianist, who meets – and later falls in love with – an aspiring actress (Emma Stone). For the role, the 36-year-old Canadian did a lot of preparation – learning to play the keyboard, singing as well as dancing. Apparently, he spent two hours a day practising on the piano, six days a week for three months. He also worked with a choreographer on a daily basis for three months, learning three types of dance. In a behind-the-scenes featurette, Gosling said: “It was a secret wish of mine to make a film in the style of the musicals from the 30s and 40s ... just getting to play music every day and dance every day is a real once-in-alifetime opportunity.” Here’s hoping Gosling gets to burst into song and dance on the big screen more often, because seriously who doesn’t want to see that. –