Alfonso Cuaron

“Roma”

With his “Roma” standing as perhaps the most laurelled film of the year thus far, Cuaron has a chance to record several unusual Oscar milestones: He could become the first ever director of a foreign language film to win in the directing category, and he could well be the first person to ever be nominated for both best director and best cinematographer for the same film. Regardless, Cuaron is one of the safest bets in the category, with honors from the New York Film Critics Circle and the Toronto Film Critics Assn., the Golden Lion from Venice and a Golden Globe nom.