Oscars 2025: Shortlists announced for 97th Academy Awards

Take a look at the 2024 Oscars shortlists so you know what to expect when nominations are announced for the 97th Academy Awards.

With one month to go until Oscar nominations, The Academy has narrowed down the list of potential nominees for certain categories.

Preliminary voting for certain categories was held Dec. 9-13 by various branches of The Academy. This voting helped whittle down some of the 23 Academy Awards categories to shortlists, which were announced Tuesday. 

Nominations voting begins on Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2025, and concludes on Sunday, Jan. 12, 2025. 

Take a look below so you know what to expect come Friday, Jan. 17, 2025, when nominations are announced for the 97th Academy Awards. Stay tuned to The Gold Knight for full coverage.

Best Documentary Feature
Fifteen films advanced in the Documentary Feature category, out of 169 films submitted (up from 167 last year, 144 two years ago, and 138 three years ago). Members of the Documentary Branch vote to determine the shortlist and the nominees.

The films, listed in alphabetical order by title, are:

• “The Bibi Files”
• “Black Box Diaries”
• “Dahomey”
• “Daughters”
• “Eno”
• “Frida”
• “Hollywoodgate”
• “No Other Land”
• “Porcelain War”
• “Queendom”
• “The Remarkable Life of Ibelin”
• “Soundtrack to a Coup d’Etat”
• “Sugarcane”
• “Union”
• “Will & Harper”

Best Documentary Short Subject
Fifteen films advanced in the Documentary Short Subject category (up from 10 advancing four years ago), out of 104 films that qualified (down from 114 last year and up from 98 two years ago). Members of the Documentary Branch vote to determine the shortlist and the nominees.

The films, listed in alphabetical order by title, are:

• “Chasing Roo”
• “Death by Numbers”
• “Eternal Father”
• “I Am Ready, Warden”
• “Incident”
• “Instruments of a Beating Heart”
• “Keeper”
• “Makayla’s Voice: A Letter to the World”
• “Once upon a Time in Ukraine”
• “The Only Girl in the Orchestra”
• “Planetwalker”
• “The Quilters”
• “Seat 31: Zooey Zephyr”
• “A Swim Lesson”
• “Until He’s Back”

Best International Feature Film
Fifteen films advanced to the next round of voting in the International Feature Film category, from 85 countries and regions (down from 88 last year and 92 two years ago).

An international feature film is defined as a feature-length motion picture (more than 40 minutes) produced outside the United States with a predominantly (more than 50%) non-English dialogue track.

As part of a rule change in 2020, all eligible Academy members from all branches were invited to participate in the preliminary round of voting for this category and had to meet a minimum viewing requirement to be eligible to vote in the category. In previous years, the number of films on the shortlist was 10 and was augmented by the Academy’s International Feature Film Award Executive Committee.

In the nominations round, Academy members from all branches are invited to opt-in to participate and must view all 15 shortlisted films in order to cast a ballot.

The films, listed in alphabetical order by country, are:

• Brazil, “I’m Still Here”
• Canada, “Universal Language”
• Czech Republic, “Waves”
• Denmark, “The Girl with the Needle”
• France, “Emilia Pérez”
• Germany, “The Seed of the Sacred Fig”
• Iceland, “Touch”
• Ireland, “Kneecap”
• Italy, “Vermiglio”
• Latvia, “Flow”
• Norway, “Armand”
• Palestine, “From Ground Zero”
• Senegal, “Dahomey”
• Thailand, “How to Make Millions before Grandma Dies”
• United Kingdom, “Santosh”

Best Makeup and Hairstyling
Ten films advanced in the Makeup and Hairstyling category. All members of the Academy’s Makeup Artists and Hairstylists Branch will be invited to view excerpts and interviews with artists from each of the 10 shortlisted films on Saturday, Jan. 11. Branch members vote to nominate five films for final Oscar consideration.

The films, listed in alphabetical order by title, are:

• “The Apprentice”
• “Beetlejuice Beetlejuice”
• “A Different Man”
• “Dune: Part Two”
• “Emilia Pérez”
• “Maria”
• “Nosferatu”
• “The Substance”
• “Waltzing with Brando”
• “Wicked”

Best Music – Original Score
Twenty scores advanced in the Original Score category, out of 145 eligible (three less than last year). Members of the Music Branch vote to determine the shortlist and the nominees.

As part of a rule change for the 2025 Oscars, the shortlist increases from 15 to 20 titles.

The scores, listed in alphabetical order by film title, are:

• “Alien: Romulus”
• “Babygirl”
• “Beetlejuice Beetlejuice”
• “Blink Twice”
• “Blitz”
• “The Brutalist”
• “Challengers”
• “Conclave”
• “Emilia Pérez”
• “The Fire Inside”
• “Gladiator II”
• “Horizon: An American Saga Chapter 1”
• “Inside Out 2”
• “Nosferatu”
• “The Room Next Door”
• “Sing Sing”
• “The Six Triple Eight”
• “Wicked”
• “The Wild Robot”
• “Young Woman and the Sea”

Best Music – Original Song
Fifteen songs advanced in the Original Song category, out of 89 eligible songs (down from 94 last year and up from 81 two years ago). Members of the Music Branch vote to determine the shortlist and the nominees.

The original songs, along with the motion picture in which each song is featured, are listed below in alphabetical order by film title and song title:

• “Forbidden Road” from “Better Man”
• “Winter Coat” from “Blitz”
• “Compress/Repress” from “Challengers”
• “Never Too Late” from “Elton John: Never Too Late”
• “El Mal” from “Emilia Pérez”
• “Mi Camino” from “Emilia Pérez”
• “Sick In The Head” from “Kneecap”
• “Beyond” from “Moana 2”
• “Tell Me It’s You” from “Mufasa: The Lion King”
• “Piece By Piece” from “Piece by Piece”
• “Like A Bird” from “Sing Sing”
• “The Journey” from “The Six Triple Eight”
• “Out Of Oklahoma” from “Twisters”
• “Kiss The Sky” from “The Wild Robot”
• “Harper And Will Go West” from “Will & Harper”

Best Short Film – Animated
Fifteen films advanced in the Animated Short Film category (up from 10 three years ago), out of 88 films that qualified (down from 93 last year and up from 82 two years ago). Academy members from the Animation Branch and Short Films Branch were invited to participate in the preliminary round of voting and must have met a minimum viewing requirement to be eligible to vote in the category.

In the nominations round, Academy members from the Animation Branch and Short Films Branch are invited to opt in to participate and must view all 15 shortlisted films to vote.

The films, listed in alphabetical order by title, are:

• “Au Revoir Mon Monde”
• “A Bear Named Wojtek”
• “Beautiful Men”
• “Bottle George”
• “A Crab in the Pool”
• “In the Shadow of the Cypress”
• “Magic Candies”
• “Maybe Elephants”
• “Me”
• “Origami”
• “Percebes”
• “The 21”
• “Wander to Wonder”
• “The Wild-Tempered Clavier”
• “Yuck!”

Best Short Film – Live Action
Fifteen films advanced in the Live Action Short Film category (up from 10 three years ago), out of 180 films that qualified (down from 187 last year and 200 two years ago). Academy members from all branches were invited to participate in the preliminary round of voting and must have met a minimum viewing requirement to be eligible to vote in the category.

In the nominations round, Academy members from all branches are invited to opt in to participate and must view all 15 shortlisted films to vote.

The films, listed in alphabetical order by title, are:

• “Anuja”
• “Clodagh”
• “The Compatriot”
• “Crust”
• “Dovecote”
• “Edge of Space”
• “The Ice Cream Man”
• “I’m Not a Robot”
• “The Last Ranger”
• “A Lien”
• “The Man Who Could Not Remain Silent”
• “The Masterpiece”
• “An Orange from Jaffa”
• “Paris 70”
• “Room Taken”

Best Sound
Ten films advanced in the Sound category. This is the fourth year for the shortlist. Members of the Sound Branch determined the shortlist. Academy members will be invited to view excerpts from each of the shortlisted films beginning Thursday, Jan. 9, in the San Francisco Bay area, followed by London, Los Angeles and New York on Saturday, Jan. 11. Branch members will vote to nominate five films for final Oscar consideration.

The films, listed in alphabetical order by title, are:

• “Alien: Romulus”
• “Blitz”
• “A Complete Unknown”
• “Deadpool & Wolverine”
• “Dune: Part Two”
• “Emilia Pérez”
• “Gladiator II”
• “Joker: Folie à Deux”
• “Wicked”
• “The Wild Robot”

Best Visual Effects
Ten films remain in the running in the Visual Effects category. The Visual Effects Branch Executive Committee determined the shortlist. All members of the Visual Effects Branch will be invited to view excerpts and interviews with the artists from each of the shortlisted films on Saturday, Jan. 11.  Branch members will vote to nominate five films for final Oscar consideration.

The films, listed in alphabetical order by title, are:

• “Alien: Romulus”
• “Better Man”
• “Civil War”
• “Deadpool & Wolverine”
• “Dune: Part Two”
• “Gladiator II”
• “Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes”
• “Mufasa: The Lion King”
• “Twisters”
• “Wicked”

Nominations voting begins on Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2025, and concludes on Sunday, Jan. 12, 2025. Nominations for the 97th Academy Awards will be announced on Friday, Jan. 17, 2025.

The 97th Academy Awards, for outstanding film achievements of 2024, will be presented on Sunday, March 2, 2025, at the Dolby Theatre at Ovation Hollywood, and will be televised live on ABC and in more than 200 territories worldwide. The ceremony will also be streamed live on Hulu.