AwardsWatch Oscar Podcast #81: Fall festivals, Oscar predictions and the ‘House of Gucci’ trailer
We’re baaaack!
After six long months, the AwardsWatch Oscar Podcast is back with the first of the 2021/2022 season with very special guest Ryan McQuade from InSession Film and, as of today, a new staff writer for AwardsWatch.
In this podcast, recorded October 28, Ryan and I talk about the fall film festivals we attended – Telluride, Middleburg and Mill Valley – and how our conversations with fellow pundits, directors, actors, Academy voters and general attendees help shape the race and give us some of the puzzle pieces we use for predicting. We go into detail of Oscar predictions in most top categories, discuss who we think are the frontrunners and make our cases as to why. Can anything stop Belfast, Will Smith and Kristen Stewart or is it too early to call? Will the Telluride ‘rule’ hold this year once again or will there be a Green Book surprise?
Then, of course, we had to talk about the sheer pageantry and camp of the new House of Gucci trailer (the hair, the dialogue, those accents!) and where that stands in the race.
Let’s get into it.
This podcast runs 1h 24m including the opening and closing House of Gucci trailer.
- ‘Jay Kelly,’ ‘Hamnet,’ ‘Pluribus,’ ‘Task’ and More on AFI’s Top 10 Films and Television of 2025 Lists - December 4, 2025
- ‘Frankenstein’ to Receive Visionary Honor from Palm Springs International Film Awards - December 4, 2025
- Robert Yeoman to be Honored with American Society of Cinematographers’ Lifetime Achievement Award - December 3, 2025

‘Jay Kelly,’ ‘Hamnet,’ ‘Pluribus,’ ‘Task’ and More on AFI’s Top 10 Films and Television of 2025 Lists
‘Frankenstein’ to Receive Visionary Honor from Palm Springs International Film Awards
Robert Yeoman to be Honored with American Society of Cinematographers’ Lifetime Achievement Award
National Board of Review: ‘One Battle After Another’ Tops in Film, Director, Actor, Supporting Actor; Netflix Lands Four in Top 10