The Academy has published its 12 shortlists for the 98th awards cycle, unveiling a list that includes traditional categories like international feature film and documentary feature, as well as contenders for the inaugural casting Oscar and a first-time list for cinematography.
International feature film contenders include Jafar Panahi’s It Was Just An Accident flying the flag for France, Joachim Trier’s Sentimental Value for Norway, Kleber Mendonca Filho’s The Secret Agent for Brazil, Kaouther Ben Hania’s The Voice Of Hind Rajab for Tunisia, Park Chan-wook’s No Other Choice for South Korea, and Dolores Fonzi’s Belén for Argentina.
Among the documentary features are The Alabama Solution from Andrew Jarecki and Charlotte Kaufman, Cover-Up from Laura Poitras and Mark Obenhaus, Geeta Gandbhir’s The Perfect Neighbor, Mstyslav Chernov’s 2000 Meters To Andriivka, and Julia Loktev’s My Undesirable Friends: Part 1 – Last Air In Moscow, which has been winning critics awards.
The shortlisted films for the Academy’s first ever casting Oscar recognise Frankenstein, Hamnet, Marty Supreme, One Battle After Another, The Secret Agent, Sentimental Value, Sinners, Sirât, Weapons, and Wicked: For Good.
Besides One Battle After Another and Hamnet, the cinematography contenders include F1, Bugonia, Sound Of Falling, and Die, My Love.
Sinners and Wicked: For Good are up for every eligible category and garnered eight mentions apiece (including two each from the original song category).
The full lists appear below. The Academy will announce its nominations on January 22, 2026, ahead of the ceremony on March 15, 2026.
Animated short film
Fifteen films will advance in the category. One hundred and thirteen films qualified. 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 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:
Autokar
Butterfly
Cardboard
Éiru
Forevergreen
The Girl Who Cried Pearls
Hurikán
I Died in Irpin
The Night Boots
Playing God
The Quinta’s Ghost
Retirement Plan
The Shyness Of Trees
Snow Bear
The Three Sisters
Casting
Ten films will advance. Members of the casting directors branch vote to determine the shortlist and the nominees. Academy members will be invited to view excerpts from the shortlisted films and pre-recorded interviews with their casting directors on Friday, January 9, 2026, in Los Angeles and London, and in New York on Saturday, January 10, 2026.
The films, listed in alphabetical order by title, are:
Frankenstein
Hamnet
Marty Supreme
One Battle After Another
The Secret Agent
Sentimental Value
Sinners
Sirât
Weapons
Wicked: For Good
Cinematography
Sixteen films will advance. Members of the cinematographers branch vote to determine the shortlist and the nominees. Per the awards rules for the 98th Academy Awards, the preliminary round of voting will determine a shortlist of between 10 and 20 films.
The films, listed in alphabetical order by title, are:
Ballad Of A Small Player
Bugonia
Die My Love
F1
Frankenstein
Hamnet
Marty Supreme
Nouvelle Vague
One Battle After Another
Sentimental Value
Sinners
Sirât
Song Sung Blue
Sound Of Falling
Train Dreams
Wicked: For Good
Documentary Feature Film
Fifteen films will advance. Two hundred and one films were eligible in the category. Members of the documentary branch vote to determine the shortlist and the nominees.
The films, listed in alphabetical order by title, are:
The Alabama Solution
Apocalypse In The Tropics
Coexistence, My Ass!
Come See Me In The Good Light
Cover-Up
Cutting Through Rocks
Folktales
Holding Liat
Mr. Nobody Against Putin
Mistress Dispeller
My Undesirable Friends: Part 1 – Last Air In Moscow
The Perfect Neighbor
Seeds
2000 Meters To Andriivka
Yanuni
Documentary Short Film
Fifteen films will advance. One hundred and seventeen films qualified in the category. Members of the documentary branch vote to determine the shortlist and the nominees.
The films, listed in alphabetical order by title, are:
All The Empty Rooms
All The Walls Came Down
Armed Only With A Camera: The Life And Death Of Brent Renaud
Bad Hostage
Cashing Out
Chasing Time
Children No More: Were And Are Gone
Classroom 4
The Devil Is Busy
Heartbeat
Last Days On Lake Trinity
On Healing Land, Birds Perch
Perfectly A Strangeness
Rovina’s Choice
We Were The Scenery
International Feature Film
Fifteen films will advance. Films from 86 countries or regions were eligible in the category. 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 country, are:
Argentina, Belén
Brazil, The Secret Agent
France, It Was Just An Accident
Germany, Sound Of Falling
India, Homebound
Iraq, The President’s Cake
Japan, Kokuho
Jordan, All That’s Left Of You
Norway, Sentimental Value
Palestine, Palestine 36
South Korea, No Other Choice
Spain, Sirât
Switzerland, Late Shift
Taiwan, Left-Handed Girl
Tunisia, The Voice Of Hind Rajab
Live Action Short Film
Fifteen films will advance in the Live Action Short Film category for the 98th Academy Awards. Two hundred and seven films qualified in the category. 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:
Ado
Amarela
Beyond Silence
The Boy With White Skin
Butcher’s Stain
Butterfly On A Wheel
Dad’s Not Home
Extremist
A Friend Of Dorothy
Jane Austen’s Period Drama
Pantyhose
The Pearl Comb
Rock, Paper, Scissors
The Singers
Two People Exchanging Saliva
Makeup And Hairstyling
Ten films will advance. Members of the makeup artists and hairstylists branch vote to determine the shortlist and the nominees. Academy members will be invited to view excerpts and interviews with the artists from each of the shortlisted films on Saturday, January 10, 2026.
The films, listed in alphabetical order by title, are:
The Alto Knights
Frankenstein
Kokuho
Marty Supreme
Nuremberg
One Battle After Another
Sinners
The Smashing Machine
The Ugly Stepsister
Wicked: For Good
Music (Original Score)
Twenty scores will advance. One hundred and thirty-two scores were eligible in the category. Members of the music branch vote to determine the shortlist and the nominees.
The scores, listed in alphabetical order by film title, are:
Avatar: Fire And Ash
Bugonia
Captain America: Brave New World
Diane Warren: Relentless
F1
Frankenstein
Hamnet
Hedda
A House Of Dynamite
Jay Kelly
Marty Supreme
Nuremberg
One Battle After Another
Sinners
Sirât
Train Dreams
Tron: Ares
Truth And Treason
Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery
Wicked: For Good
Music (Original Song)
Fifteen songs will advance. Sixty-five songs were eligible in the category. 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:
As Alive As You Need Me To Be from Tron: Ares
Dear Me from Diane Warren: Relentless
Dream As One from Avatar: Fire And Ash
Drive from F1
Dying To Live from Billy Idol Should Be Dead
The Girl In The Bubble from Wicked: For Good
Golden from KPop Demon Hunters
Highest 2 Lowest from Highest 2 Lowest
I Lied To You from Sinners
Last Time (I Seen The Sun) from Sinners
No Place Like Home from Wicked: For Good
Our Love from The Ballad Of Wallis Island
Salt Then Sour Then Sweet from Come See Me In The Good Light
Sweet Dreams Of Joy from Viva Verdi!
Train Dreams from Train Dreams
Sound
Ten films will advance. All eligible members of the sound branch vote to determine the shortlist and the nominees. Academy members will be invited to view excerpts from each of the shortlisted films beginning Saturday, January 10, 2025, in the San Francisco Bay area, London and New York, followed by Los Angeles on Sunday, January 11, 2026.
The films, listed in alphabetical order by title, are:
Avatar: Fire And Ash
F1
Frankenstein
Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning
One Battle After Another
Sinners
Sirât
Springsteen: Deliver Me From Nowhere
Superman
Wicked: For Good
Visual Effects
Ten films remain in the running. The visual effects branch executive committee determined the shortlist. Academy members will be invited to view excerpts and interviews with the artists from each of the shortlisted films on Saturday, January 10, 2026. Visual effects branch members will vote to determine the nominees.
The films, listed in alphabetical order by title, are:
Avatar: Fire And Ash
The Electric State
F1
Frankenstein
Jurassic World Rebirth
The Lost Bus
Sinners
Superman
Tron: Ares
Wicked: For Good.
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