2021 Oscar Predictions: INTERNATIONAL FEATURE FILM (December)

We won’t have the official list of eligible submissions until some time in January but if all hold we’ll end up with 91 entries, just shy of the all time record and impressive in an upside down year.

Two countries had their films disqualified this year: Canada and Portugal. Canada pulled the Ava DuVernay-backed Funny Boy after it didn’t meet the non-English language requirements and submitted 14 Days, 12 Nights from Jean-Philippe Duval as its replacement. Portugal replaced Listen with Vitalina Varela from Pedro Costa.

Two films make big debuts from November’s chart: A Sun from Taiwan (currently on Netflix) and Quo Vadis, Aida? from Bosnia-Herzegovina. As I mentioned last month, I do wonder how Euro-centric the shortlist will be this season and what other continents can and will be represented, especially after South Korea’s historic win with Parasite. Africa has great potential this year but central and south America plus south and east Asia seem like they will have a tough fight.

Here are my ranked 2021 Oscar predictions for International Feature Film for December.

Green – moves up; Red – moves down; Blue – new entry this month

1. Another Round (Denmark)

2. Night of the Kings (Ivory Coast)

3. Collective (Romania)

4. A Sun (Taiwan)

5. Quo Vadis, Aida? (Bosnia-Herzegovina)

6. The Auschwitz Report (Slovakia)

7. I’m No Longer Here (Mexico)

8. Charlatan (Czechia)

9. Two of Us (France)

10. This is Not a Burial, it’s a Resurrection (Lesotho)

Other contenders: And Tomorrow the Entire World (Germany), Apples (Greece), Asia (Israel), Buladó (Netherlands), Dear Comrades! (Russia), The Endless Trench (Spain), 14 Days, 12 Nights (Canada), Gaza mon amour (Palestine), Hope (Norway), The Letter (Kenya), La Llorona (Guatemala), Never Gonna Snow Again (Poland), Notturno (Italy), True Mothers (Japan), Vitalina Varela (Portugal), You Will Die at 20 (Sudan)

Taiwan entry A Sun image courtesy of the Tokyo Film Festival