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Variety Awards Circuit section is the home for all awards news and related content throughout the year, featuring the following: the official predictions for the upcoming Oscars, Emmys, Grammys and Tony Awards ceremonies, curated by Variety senior awards editor Clayton Davis. The prediction pages reflect the current standings in the race and do not reflect personal preferences for any individual contender. As other formal (and informal) polls suggest, competitions are fluid and subject to change based on buzz and events. Predictions are updated every Thursday.

Visit the prediction pages for the respective ceremonies via the links below:

Oscars | Emmys | Grammys | Tonys

2023 Oscars Predictions:

Best Animated Feature

Weekly Commentary: Hayao Miyazaki’s “The Boy and the Heron” has garnered both the Golden Globes and BAFTA Awards, solidifying its status as a strong contender in the animated feature category. However, what’s intriguing is the absence of Miyazaki and his producer Toshio Suzuki at the award ceremonies,...

The official Twitter account of The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced on Jan 23, 2024, that Hayao Miyazaki’s The Boy And The Heron has been nominated under Best Animated Feature Film category for Oscars 2024.

Suzume No Tojimari, Blue Giant, The First Slam Dunk, Lonely Castle in the Mirror, all of which had also gotten the eligibility nod for the Oscars along with The Boy And The Heron, failed to make it to the nominations.

The Boy And The Heron will be competing with Elemental, Nimona, Robot Dreams, and Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse for the Best Animated Feature Film category.

The award ceremony is scheduled to take place at Dolby Theatre in Hollywood on March 10, 2024.

The Academy Awards, commonly known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the film industry. They are presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences in recognition...

Having run for over twenty years, the UK’s largest festival of Japanese cinema, the Japan Foundation Touring Film Programme (JFTFP24), returns with its biggest showcase ever for 2024.

Memories play a powerful role in the mind. Shaped fluidly by individuals or time, they have been a source of inspiration for many filmmakers, fuelling their creativity to craft colourful stories. Under the theme ‘Unforgettable: Memories, Times and Reflections in Japanese Cinema’ the JFTFP24 delves into Japanese cinema to explore how memories are employed in the cinematic voices of Japanese filmmakers, from films where memories are a focal point to works where they play a subliminal role in driving or affecting people’s minds and behaviour. With an incredibly diverse range of films all based on memories, time, and reflections, this year’s programme is set to provide UK audiences with memorable stories and unforgettable moments.

Under this theme the packed programme...

The Japan Foundation Touring Film Programme, the U.K.’s largest festival of Japanese cinema, will take to the road in February and March. Its 2024 selection is the event’s largest ever with much of it attuned to the theme of memories, times and reflections.

“The JFTFP24 delves into Japanese cinema to explore how memories are employed in the cinematic voices of Japanese filmmakers, from films where memories are a focal point to works where they play a subliminal role in driving or affecting people’s minds and behavior,” said organizers.

The festival will run Feb. 2 – Mar. 31 and take in 30 U.K. cities including Edinburgh, Manchester, Oxford, Orkney, Exeter and York.

Program highlights include: the U.K. premiere of “Shadow of Fire,” directed by festival favorite Shinya Tsukamoto (Tetsuo: The Iron Man); a new entry in Nikkatsu’s Roman Porno genre, “Hand”; visually stunning anime “Lonely Castle in the Mirror,...

On one hand, while a number of animators and staff members from the anime industry have sternly spoken against the use of AI, anime directors Keiichi Hara and Tomohisa Taguchi, who are veterans in their own right, had an entirely different opinion regarding it.

As reported by Full Frontal, both Hara and Taguchi, who were talking at a panel at this year’s Annecy Festival, believed that AI, which doesn’t complain, get tired or sleep, could be a good tool to replace “lazy animators” and do the work in their place.

This opinion has stirred various sections of fandom, who believed that the directors shouldn’t have made such a comment in light of the recent developments.

Hara was talking about the difficulties of making animated feature films, when the topic shifted to lazy animators “who are being paid without putting in the work that’s expected of them.

The Academy has revealed the list of eligible films for consideration in best animated, documentary and international feature of the year, encompassing a broad range of blockbusters and critically acclaimed titles.

GKids’ “The Boy and the Heron,” Pixar’s “Elemental,” Sony’s “Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse” and Illumination’s “The Super Mario Bros. Movie” are among the 33 animated films in the running. This is up from 27 in 2023, when “Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio” took home the prize.

The eventual five nominees are determined by members of the shorts and animation branch, and any Academy members outside the branch who wish to participate. The number of outside members who opt in is unknown. All films submitted for animated feature also qualify for the Academy Awards in other categories, including best picture.

Read: Variety’s Awards Circuit for the latest Oscars predictions in all categories.

There are 88 films representing their countries for the international feature Oscar,...

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences on Thursday unveiled the films eligible for consideration for the 2024 Oscars in the categories of Documentary Feature Film and International Feature Film and Animated Feature Film.

A total of 167 documentaries have made the cut for the 96th Academy Awards, while 88 countries are eligible for the International Feature. Shortlists of 15 films in both categories will be revealed December 21.

In the Animated Feature race, 33 films are eligible for the 2024 race.

Final Oscar nominations will be revealed January 23, 2024, with the 96th Oscars to air Sunday, March 10 on ABC hosted by Jimmy Kimmel.

Here are the film lists revealed today, with AMPAS noting that not all have had their qualifying release yet, a requirement to advance in the voting process.

Animated Feature

The Amazing Maurice

Blue Giant

The Boy and the Heron

Chang’an

Chicken Run: Dawn of the Nugget

Deep Sea

Elemental

Ernest & Celestine: A...

“When they come, someone dies…” After a quiet boy named Kaname joins the class, Mio reaches out to him, hoping to help the odd boy settle into his new environment. Kaname takes to her a little too well, however, asking to come to her house and then showing up all the time. Frightened, Mio seeks help from an upperclassman she admires…but the nameless wickedness is already coming. It's close. It's growing. A horror-mystery novel by famed author Mizuki Tsujimura. (Yen Press)

on Amazon by clicking on the image below

Yami-hara: an abbreviation of “yami harassment.”

Yami Harassment: A compound of Yami (“darkness) and harassment; unwelcome conduct toward a person stemming from darkness in one's own mind or heart. Applies to any action that threatens or violates the dignity of another person, regardless of intent or awareness.

Tapping into the horror of everyday micro-transgressions, Mizuki Tsujimura...

Playing games can be educational and otherwise beneficial. It is not necessarily about winning, whatever and however it might be, but more of something more long-term, even permanent, such as lessons learnt and friends made. And some, maybe even most of the in-game stuff, could be translated to the outer, real world that tends to be more cruel than the usual product of human imagination. That could serve as the point of Mizuki Tsujimura's novel and Keiichi Hara's animated feature “Lonely Castle in the Mirror”. The source novel achieved bestseller status in Japan, while the film entered distribution in the East Asian cinemas before its festival showing.

Lonely Castle in the Mirror is screening at Nippon Connection

Our protagonist Kokori lives a life of the middle school's outsider and bottom-feeder. She is bullied by the clique of the school's popular “alpha-bitch”, she does not have many friends and...

Leading animation festival will open with Benoît Chieux’s Sirocco And The Kingdom Of The Winds.

French director Benoît Chieux’s Sirocco And The Kingdom Of The Wind is to open the Annecy International Animation Film Festival which runs from June 11-17.

The film – about two young sisters who discover a passage between this world and the extraordinary universe of The Kingdom of the Winds - is one of 11 titles selected for the festival’s official competition, where it will compete for the Crystal award.

Scroll down for full list

Neil Boyle and Kirk Hendry’s Kensuke’s Kingdom – which is...

Celebrating six decades as the animation industry’s premier international showcase and cementing a growing position as Hollywood’s preferred French getaway, the Annecy Intl. Animation Festival revealed its 2023 program in Paris on Thursday, unveiling a formidable selection of world premieres and industry debuts.

If only for the breadth of this year’s official selection, Annecy looks set to for its most fulsome and abundant edition.

Among the 11 titles competing for this year’s Cristal – Annecy’s top prize – Jérémie Périn’s sci-fi drama “Mars Express” and Jim Capobianco & Pierre-Luc Granjon stop-motion Leonardo da Vinci epic “The Inventor” will make their world premieres. Other eagerly anticipated titles include “Chicken for Linda!” from Chiara Malta and Sébastien Laudenbach, “Four Souls of Coyote” from by Áron Gauder, and “The Inseparables” by Jérémie Degruson.

Titles like Liu Jian’s “Art College 1994” and Sepideh Farsi’s “The Siren” will arrive in the idyllic French...

The Annecy International Animation Film Festival has unveiled the line-up for its 2023 edition, running from June 11 to 17.

More than 13,000 animation professionals are set to descend on the French festival’s lakeside setting for its traditional mix of screenings programs across all formats, Work-in-Progress and First-Look sneak peeks, and presentations going behind the scenes of upcoming animation productions.

Competition title Sirocco And The Kingdom Of The Winds by French director Benoît Chieux opens the festival. The fantasy follows the adventures of two young sisters as they try to make their way home after getting trapped in the world of their favorite book.

A Cat In Paris and Phantom Boy director Alain Gagnol co-wrote the screenplay for the feature lead produced by Paris-based Sacrebleu Productions.

The film, which world premieres in Annecy, is among 11 titles competing for the festival’s Crystal award.

Another three French productions debut in Competition: Chiara Malta and...

“John Wick: Chapter 4” easily outgunned Japanese animation film Suzume to claim top spot at the South Korean box office over the latest weekend.

The American action title earned $4.05 million between Friday and Sunday, according to data from Kobis, the tracking service operated by the Korean Film Council (Kofic). That represented a nearly 50% market share, continuing a polarization or clustering around a single title that has become familiar of late in Korea, a market that formerly had greater diversity and width.

Over the five days since its Wednesday opening, “John Wick 4” earned $5.87 million.

“Suzume,” which enjoyed five weeks as the top title, slipped in to second place with $1.92 million, a figure that still represented 23% of the total weekend box office market. Since releasing on March 8, the title has earned $36.9 million, a total which makes it the top film released in 2023 in Korea, overtaking another Japanese animation “The First Slam Dunk.

"Maybe we're supposed to help each other." GKids has revealed an official US trailer for a Japanese anime film titled Lonely Castle in the Mirror, set to play in US theaters this summer. More and more Japanese films are getting a proper theatrical release, as they're noticed there is a good audience for this and they can actually bring people out to the cinema. From acclaimed director Keiichi Hara and based on the bestselling novel by Mizuki Tsujimura, Lonely Castle in the Mirror is a heartfelt drama about the pains of growing up and the unlikely bonds that can bring people together. Seven teens wake to find their bedroom mirrors are shining. They are pulled from their lonely lives to a wondrous castle. In this new sanctuary, they are confronted with a set of clues leading to a hidden room where one of them will be granted a wish. But...

Summer theatrical release lined up.

GKids has acquired all North American rights to Keiichi Hara’s Rotterdam selection Lonely Castle In The Mirror.

The film was the first Japanese animation to premiere at Rotterdam International Film Festival and recently received its US premiere at New York International Children’s Film Festival.

Lonely Castle In The Mirror follows shy school student Kokoro who enters a castle through a portal in her bedroom mirror where she and six other students must accept a challenge by a girl wearing a wolf mask.

The youngsters work together to uncover the mysterious connection that unites them,...

Government Support

A new report looking at the success of the U.K. government’s Covid production scheme found it supported over 1,200 productions since its launch in July 2020.

The scheme was set up to assist productions struggling to get Covid-related insurance before it was eventually shut down last spring.

The report by Nordicity & Saffery Champness found over two years the scheme had created 37,100 cast roles and 63,500 crew positions as well as sustaining 48,500 full-time jobs. Among the productions benefitting from the scheme were “Good Luck To You, Leo Grande” as well as “Peaky Blinders.”

The report estimated the scheme contributed £2.25 billion to the U.K. economy while the cost to the government was £19.6 million. 58% of productions helped by the scheme were based outside of London.

“Our screen industries are an economic powerhouse and we should be proud that the U.K. is firmly established as one of the best places in the world to create blockbuster content,...

Gkids has picked up the North American distribution rights to the Lonely Castle in the Mirror anime pic from Japanese director Keiichi Hara.

The film, adapted from the novel of the same name by Mizuki Tsujimura, is set for a summer release theatrically in its original Japanese language and a new English-dubbed version.

Lonely Castle in the Mirror portrays a shy outcast teen, voiced by Ami Touma, who is avoiding school when she discovers a portal in her bedroom mirror. She reaches through and is transported to an enchanting castle with six other students who are together invited by a girl in a wolf mask to play a game to uncover the mysterious connection that unites them — and anyone breaking the rules will be eaten by a wolf.

The film, with animation from the A-1 Pictures, has a Japanese voice cast that includes Takumi Kitamura, Sakura Kiryu, Rihito Itagaki, Naho Yokomizo,...

Gkids has snapped up North American rights to Keiichi Hara’s Lonely Castle in the Mirror, after serving as the distributor in the territory for his past animated features Summer Days with Coo and Miss Hokusai. The film based on the bestselling novel of the same name by Mizuki Tsujimura, featuring animation from A-1 Pictures, is slated for a theatrical release in both its original Japanese language and an all-new English dub this summer.

Reuniting Hara with collaborators including screenwriter Miho Maruo, composer Harumi Fuuki and artist Ilya Kuvshinov, Lonely Castle in the Mirror follows shy outcast Kokoro, who has been avoiding school for weeks when she discovers a portal in her bedroom mirror. She reaches through and finds herself transported to an enchanting castle where she is joined by six other students. And when a girl in a wolf mask explains that they have been invited to play a game,...

The Japan Academy Film Prize Association held the 46th edition of its awards ceremony on March 10, 2023. The nominees are selected by industry professionals from the pool of film releases between January 1 and December 31, 2022 which must have screened in Tokyo cinemas. Award categories are modelled after Hollywood's Academy Awards®.

Following its success at the recent Blue Ribbon Awards, and leading with 13 nominations in 12 categories, Kei Ishikawa's “A Man” walks away with 8 Japan Academy Awards including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Screenplay, Best Actor, Best Supporting Actor and Best Supporting Actress. The full list of winners is described below.

Picture of the Year

A Man

Shin Ultraman

Phases of the Moon

Anime Supremacy!

Wandering

Team from A Man Animation of the Year

Inu-Oh

Lonely Castle in the Mirror

Suzume

One Piece Film Red

The First Slam Dunk

Director of the Year

Kei Ishikawa – A Man

Takashi Koizumi – The Pass: Last...