2022 Oscar shortlists announced: ‘Flee’ makes history plus Marvel’s big showing and surprising snubs
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences today announced shortlists in 10 categories for the 94th Academy Awards: Documentary Feature, Documentary Short Subject, International Feature Film, Makeup and Hairstyling, Music (Original Score), Music (Original Song), Animated Short Film, Live Action Short Film, Sound and Visual Effects.
Marvel had a marvelous day with showings in sound and no less than four of the ten spots in Visual Effects. Netflix landed three spots on the Original Score list with Don’t Look Up, The Harder They Fall and The Power of the Dog. Jonny Greenwood, composer of The Power of the Dog, also found himself in the running for his score for Spencer. Hans Zimmer is another double contender with Dune and No Time to Die. 12-time Oscar nominee Diane Warren is back in contention again this year with “Somehow You Do” from Four Good Days where she’ll compete against Beyoncé and Billie Eilish.
Speaking of No Time to Die, the final turn for Daniel Craig as James Bond showed up on every shortlist it was eligible for: Makeup and Hairstyling, Score, Song, Sound and Visual Effects. Not long ago, Skyfall made it very close to a Best Picture nomination. Can it finally happen for the franchise?
Jonas Poher Rasmussen’s Flee made Oscar history by showing up on both shortlists it was eligible for today: Documentary Feature and International Feature Film representing Denmark. It will make Oscar history once again if it’s nominated on February in all those categories plus animated feature.
Some surprise inclusions to the International Feature Film lineup include Bhutan’s Lunana: A Yak in the Classroom and Panama’s Plaza Catedral. For Bhutan, an interesting bit of history is involved. The country submitted the film last year but didn’t establish an Academy-approved selection committee at the time and it was disqualified. The re-submitted the film this year and made the shortlist with only their 2nd (well, 3rd) submission ever.
Robert Aiki Aubrey Lowe’s score for remake of Candyman was included on the Original Score list where the Academy also included the full name of The French Dispatch (The French Dispatch of the Liberty, Kansas Evening Sun).
Noticeable snubs included Cyrano not making the cut in Score or Song but landing a spot in Makeup and Hairstyling. Titane, a longshot for makeup missed there but the big snub was the Palme d’Or winner missing the International Feature Film list. King Richard made the cut in song and score but also found itself snubbed in two categories for which it was a possible contender: Sound and Makeup.
DOCUMENTARY FEATURE
Fifteen films will advance in the Documentary Feature category for the 94th Academy Awards.
One hundred thirty-eight films were eligible in the category. Members of the Documentary
Branch vote to determine the shortlist and the nominees.
“Ascension”
“Attica”
“Billie Eilish: The World’s a Little Blurry”
“Faya Dayi”
“The First Wave”
“Flee”
“In the Same Breath”
“Julia”
“President”
“Procession”
“The Rescue”
“Simple as Water”
“Summer of Soul (…Or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised)”
“The Velvet Underground”
“Writing with Fire”
DOCUMENTARY SHORT SUBJECT
Fifteen films will advance in the Documentary Short Subject category for the 94th Academy
Awards. Eighty-two films qualified in the category. Members of the Documentary Branch vote
to determine the shortlist and the nominees.
“Águilas”
“Audible”
“A Broken House”
“Camp Confidential: America’s Secret Nazis”
“Coded: The Hidden Love of J. C. Leyendecker”
“Day of Rage”
“The Facility”
“Lead Me Home”
“Lynching Postcards: “Token of a Great Day””
“The Queen of Basketball”
“Sophie & the Baron”
“Takeover”
“Terror Contagion”
“Three Songs for Benazir”
“When We Were Bullies”
INTERNATIONAL FEATURE FILM
Fifteen films will advance to the next round of voting in the International Feature Film category
for the 94th Academy Awards. Films from 92 countries 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.
Austria, “Great Freedom”
Belgium, “Playground”
Bhutan, “Lunana: A Yak in the Classroom”
Denmark, “Flee”
Finland, “Compartment No. 6”
Germany, “I’m Your Man”
Iceland, “Lamb”
Iran, “A Hero”
Italy, “The Hand of God”
Japan, “Drive My Car”
Kosovo, “Hive”
Mexico, “Prayers for the Stolen”
Norway, “The Worst Person in the World”
Panama, “Plaza Catedral”
Spain, “The Good Boss”
MAKEUP AND HAIRSTYLING
Ten films will advance in the Makeup and Hairstyling category for the 94th Academy Awards.
All members of the Academy’s Makeup Artists and Hairstylists Branch will be invited to view
seven-minute excerpts and interviews with the artists from each of the shortlisted films on
Sunday, January 30, 2022. Branch members will vote to nominate five films for final Oscar
consideration.
“Coming 2 America”
“Cruella”
“Cyrano”
“Dune”
“The Eyes of Tammy Faye”
“House of Gucci”
“Nightmare Alley”
“No Time to Die”
“The Suicide Squad”
“West Side Story”
MUSIC (ORIGINAL SCORE)
Fifteen scores will advance in the Original Score category for the 94th Academy Awards. One
hundred thirty-six scores were eligible in the category. Members of the Music Branch vote to
determine the shortlist and the nominees.
“Being the Ricardos”
“Candyman”
“Don’t Look Up”
“Dune”
“Encanto”
“The French Dispatch of the Liberty, Kansas Evening Sun”
“The Green Knight”
“The Harder They Fall”
“King Richard”
“The Last Duel”
“No Time to Die”
“Parallel Mothers”
“The Power of the Dog”
“Spencer”
“The Tragedy of Macbeth”
MUSIC (ORIGINAL SONG)
Fifteen songs will advance in the Original Song category for the 94th Academy Awards. Eighty-four songs were eligible in the category. Members of the Music Branch vote to determine the
shortlist and the nominees.
“So May We Start?” from “Annette”
“Down To Joy” from “Belfast”
“Right Where I Belong” from “Brian Wilson: Long Promised Road”
“Automatic Woman” from “Bruised”
“Dream Girl” from “Cinderella”
“Beyond The Shore” from “CODA”
“The Anonymous Ones” from “Dear Evan Hansen”
“Just Look Up” from “Don’t Look Up”
“Dos Oruguitas” from “Encanto”
“Somehow You Do” from “Four Good Days”
“Guns Go Bang” from “The Harder They Fall”
“Be Alive” from “King Richard”
“No Time To Die” from “No Time to Die”
“Here I Am (Singing My Way Home)” from “Respect”
“Your Song Saved My Life” from “Sing 2”
ANIMATED SHORT FILM
Fifteen films will advance in the Animated Short Film category for the 94th Academy Awards.
Eighty-two films qualified in the category. Members of the Short Films and Feature Animation
Branch vote to determine the shortlist and the nominees.
“Affairs of the Art”
“Angakusajaujuq: The Shaman’s Apprentice”
“Bad Seeds”
“Bestia”
“Boxballet”
“Flowing Home”
“Mum Is Pouring Rain”
“The Musician”
“Namoo”
“Only a Child”
“Robin Robin”
“Souvenir Souvenir”
“Step into the River”
“Us Again”
“The Windshield Wiper”
LIVE ACTION SHORT FILM
Fifteen films will advance in the Live Action Short Film category for the 94th Academy Awards.
One hundred forty-five films qualified in the category. Members of the Short Films and Feature
Animation, Directors, Producers and Writers Branches vote to determine the shortlist and the
nominees.
“Ala Kachuu – Take and Run”
“Censor of Dreams”
“The Criminals”
“Distances”
“The Dress”
“Frimas”
“Les Grandes Claques”
“The Long Goodbye”
“On My Mind”
“Please Hold”
“Stenofonen”
“Tala’vision”
“Under the Heavens”
“When the Sun Sets”
“You’re Dead Helen”
SOUND
Ten films will advance in the Sound category for the 94th Academy Awards. Members of the
Sound Branch vote to determine the shortlist and the nominees. All members of the Sound
Branch will be invited to view eight-minute excerpts and interviews with the artists from each of
the shortlisted films beginning Friday, January 28, 2022. Branch members will vote to nominate
five films for final Oscar consideration.
“Belfast”
“Dune”
“Last Night in Soho”
“The Matrix Resurrections”
“No Time to Die”
“The Power of the Dog”
“A Quiet Place Part II”
“Spider-Man: No Way Home”
“tick, tick…BOOM!”
“West Side Story”
VISUAL EFFECTS
Ten films remain in the running in the Visual Effects category for the 94th Academy Awards.
The Visual Effects Branch Executive Committee determined the shortlist. All members of the
Visual Effects Branch will be invited to view 10-minute excerpts and interviews with the artists
from each of the shortlisted films on Saturday, January 29, 2022. Branch members will vote to
nominate five films for final Oscar consideration.
“Black Widow”
“Dune”
“Eternals”
“Free Guy”
“Ghostbusters: Afterlife”
“Godzilla vs. Kong”
“The Matrix Resurrections”
“No Time to Die”
“Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings”
“Spider-Man: No Way Home”
Nominations voting begins on Thursday, January 27, 2022, and concludes on Tuesday,
February 1, 2022.
Nominations for the 94th Academy Awards will be announced on Tuesday, February 8, 2022.
The 94th Oscars® will be held on Sunday, March 27, 2022, at the Dolby® Theatre at Hollywood
& Highland® in Hollywood and will be televised live on ABC and in more than 200 territories
worldwide.
He is a Rotten Tomatoes-approved critic, accredited by the Cannes Film Festival, Telluride Film Festival, Toronto International Film Festival and more, is a member of the International Cinephile Society (ICS), The Society of LGBTQ Entertainment Critics (GALECA), Hollywood Critics Association (HCA) and the International Press Academy. Among his many achieved goals with AwardsWatch, he has given a platform to underrepresented writers and critics and supplied them with access to film festivals and the industry and calls the Bay Area his home where he lives with his husband and son.
- 2025 BAFTA Longlist Predictions: Expect Big Numbers for ‘The Brutalist,’ ‘Emilia Pérez,’ ‘Kneecap’ and More - December 26, 2024
- 2024 North Texas Film Critics Association (NTFCA) Nominations - December 24, 2024
- 2024 Online Association of Female Film Critics (OAFFC) Winners: ‘The Substance” Dominates - December 23, 2024
2025 BAFTA Longlist Predictions: Expect Big Numbers for ‘The Brutalist,’ ‘Emilia Pérez,’ ‘Kneecap’ and More 
‘Squid Game’ Season 2 Review: It’s Big Bucks, All Whammies in Failed Follow Up to One of TV’s Best First Seasons [C-] 
2024 North Texas Film Critics Association (NTFCA) Nominations 
Director Watch Podcast Ep. 78 – ‘The Holiday’ (Nancy Meyers, 2006)