YOUR OSCAR BALLOT
See the nominees for every category, with expert picks from our Gold Standard columnist, Glenn Whipp.
Picture
❑ “Arrival” ❑ “Fences” ❑ “Hacksaw Ridge” ❑ “Hell or High Water” ❑ “Hidden Figures” ❑ “La La Land” ❑ “Lion” ❑ “Manchester by the Sea” ❑ “Moonlight”
And the winner is: No way “La La Land” earns a record-tying 14 nominations and doesn’t win best picture. It’s going to be a lovely night — and then some — for Damien Chazelle’s bold musical.
Director
❑ Denis Villeneuve, “Arrival” ❑ Mel Gibson, “Hacksaw Ridge” ❑ Damien Chazelle, “La La Land” ❑ Barry Jenkins, “Moonlight” ❑ Kenneth Lonergan, “Manchester by the Sea”
And the winner is: Chazelle. Voters will want to reward the creative force behind the best picture winner.
Lead actor
❑ Casey Affleck, “Manchester by the Sea” ❑ Andrew Garfield, “Hacksaw Ridge” ❑ Ryan Gosling, “La La Land” ❑ Viggo Mortensen, “Captain Fantastic” ❑ Denzel Washington, “Fences”
And the winner is: Washington. The SAG Awards were seen as a momentum-shifter, but Washington might have always been the favorite for his towering, dialogue-devouring turn.
Lead actress
❑ Emma Stone, “La La Land” ❑ Natalie Portman, “Jackie” ❑ Ruth Negga, “Loving” ❑ Meryl Streep, “Florence Foster Jenkins” ❑ Isabelle Huppert, “Elle” And the winner is: Stone. She nailed the audition.
Supporting actor
❑ Mahershala Ali, “Moonlight” ❑ Jeff Bridges, “Hell or High Water” ❑ Lucas Hedges, “Manchester by the Sea” ❑ Dev Patel, “Lion” ❑ Michael Shannon, “Nocturnal Animals”
And the winner is: Ali must be considered the front-runner for his tender turn in “Moonlight,” as well as for all the eloquent speeches he’s made leading up to the Oscars.
Supporting actress
❑ Viola Davis, “Fences” ❑ Naomie Harris, “Moonlight” ❑ Nicole Kidman, “Lion” ❑ Octavia Spencer, “Hidden Figures” ❑ Michelle Williams, “Manchester by the Sea”
And the winner is: Davis. She pretty much won this from the moment she signed on to reprise her Broadway turn.
Adapted screenplay
❑ “Arrival,” Eric Heisserer ❑ “Fences,” August Wilson ❑ “Hidden Figures,” Theodore Melfi and Allison Schroeder ❑ “Lion,” Luke Davis ❑ “Moonlight,” Barry Jenkins And the winner is:
“Moonlight” wins for the poetic way Jenkins told a deeply personal story through the prism of harsh societal realities.
Original screenplay
❑ “20th Century Women,” Mike Mills ❑ “Hell or High Water,” Taylor Sheridan ❑ “La La Land,” Damien Chazelle ❑ “The Lobster,” Efthymis Filippou and Yorgos Lanthimos ❑ “Manchester by the Sea,” Kenneth Lonergan
And the winner is: Voters will want to tip their hats to “Manchester” somewhere, and what better place than Lonergan’s nimble, nuanced writing.
Cinematography
❑ “Arrival,” Bradford Young ❑ “La La Land,” Linus Sandgren ❑ “Lion,” Greig Fraser ❑ “Moonlight,” James Laxton ❑ “Silence,” Rodrigo Prieto
And the winner is: “La La Land” for the way Sandgren made Los Angeles look like a place where magic hour lasts the entire day.
Documentary feature
❑ “13th” ❑ “Fire at Sea” ❑ “I Am Not Your Negro” ❑ “Life, Animated” ❑ “O.J.: Made in America” And the winner is:
No bad choices here. The ambitious, essential “O.J.” from Ezra Edelman will likely prevail, though Ava DuVernay’s shattering “13th” is a strong possibility too.
Documentary short
❑ “4.1 Miles” ❑ “Extremis” ❑ “Joe’s Violin” ❑ “Watani: My Homeland” ❑ “The White Helmets”
And the winner is:
Three of the five nominees address the Syrian civil war and refugee crisis, most notably Netflix’s “White Helmets.” Then there’s “Joe’s Violin,” a heartwarming look at a Holocaust survivor who
donated his violin to a Bronx public school. With Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert in its corner, “Joe’s” high-profile friends give it an edge.
Foreign-language feature
❑ “Toni Erdmann,” Germany ❑ “The Salesman,” Iran ❑ “A Man Called Ove,” Sweden ❑ “Tanna,” Australia ❑ “Land of Mine,” Denmark
And the winner is: “The Salesman.” A vote for the latest film from Iranian director Asghar Farhadi has a two-fold purpose — rewarding excellence and showing solidarity with immigrants. Academy members will respond accordingly.
Sound editing
❑ “Arrival” ❑ “Deepwater Horizon” ❑ “Hacksaw Ridge” ❑ “La La Land” ❑ “Sully”
And the winner is: “Hacksaw Ridge” for the rockets’ red glare, the bombs bursting in air …
Sound mixing
❑ “Arrival” ❑ “Hacksaw Ridge” ❑ “La La Land” ❑ “Rogue One: A Star Wars Story” ❑ “13 Hours”
And the winner is: “La La Land.” Musicals have historically fared well here.
Original score
❑ “La La Land,” Justin Hurwitz ❑ “Jackie,” Mica Levi ❑ “Moonlight,” Nicholas Britell ❑ “Lion,” Volker Bertelmann and Dustin O’Halloran ❑ “Passengers,” Thomas Newman
And the winner is: “La La Land.” C’mon. Don’t make me have to explain jazz. Original song ❑ “City of Stars,” from “La La Land” ❑ “How Far I’ll Go,” from “Moana” ❑ “Audition (The Fools Who Dream),” from “La La Land”
❑ “The Empty Chair,” from “Jim: The James Foley Story” ❑ “Can’t Stop the Feeling!” from “Trolls”
And the winner is: “City of Stars.” Fess up. You’re humming it right now, aren’t you?
Production design
❑ “Arrival” ❑ “Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them” ❑ “Hail, Caesar!” ❑ “La La Land” ❑ “Passengers”
And the winner is: “La La Land’s” blend of vintage and modern-day Hollywood should prove irresistible.
Visual effects
❑ “Deepwater Horizon” ❑ “Doctor Strange” ❑ “The Jungle Book” ❑ “Kubo and the Two Strings” ❑ “Rogue One: A Star Wars Story”
And the winner is: Robert Legato has won previously for “Hugo” and “Titanic.” Look for him to pull off the hat trick for the innovative “Jungle Book.”
Makeup and hairstyling
❑ “A Man Called Ove” ❑ “Star Trek Beyond” ❑ “Suicide Squad” And the winner is:
“Star Trek” won in 2010 and, with the category absent of any work from best picture nominees, the franchise should return to the winner’s circle.
Costume design ❑ “La La Land,” Mary Zophres ❑ “Jackie,” Madeline Fontaine ❑ “Florence Foster Jenkins,” Consolata Boyle
❑ “Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them,” Colleen Atwood
❑ “Allied,” Joanna Johnston
And the winner is: “Jackie” could prevail for rising to the challenge of re-creating the wardrobe of a fashion icon. But “La La Land” made canary yellow dresses a thing. Go with the fashion trendsetter.
Film editing
❑ “Arrival” ❑ “Hell or High Water” ❑ “Hacksaw Ridge” ❑ “La La Land” ❑ “Moonlight”
And the winner is: Time was, this Oscar almost always lined up with the best picture winner, but that’s happened just once so far this decade. Make it 2 for 7 with “La La Land.”
Live-action short
❑ “Ennemis intérieurs” ❑ “La femme et le TGV” ❑ “Silent Nights” ❑ “Sing” ❑ “Timecode”
And the winner is: Producer Kim Magnusson already had five noms and two wins in this category and is up for another Oscar with the immigration story “Silent Nights.” Consider it the favorite.
Animated short
❑ “Blind Vaysha” ❑ “Borrowed Time” ❑ “Pear Cider and Cigarettes” ❑ “Pearl” ❑ “Piper”
And the winner is: It’s either Pixar’s sweet rite-of-passage story “Piper” or “Pearl,” a beautifully told tale of a father and daughter bonding on a road trip. Pixar hasn’t won in 15 years, so let’s lean toward “Piper.”
Animated feature f ilm
❑ “Kubo and the Two Strings” ❑ “Moana” ❑ “My Life as a Zucchini” ❑ “The Red Turtle” ❑ “Zootopia”
And the winner is: “Zootopia” for its funny and thought-provoking take on tolerance.