FINAL 2019 Oscar Predictions: PRODUCTION DESIGN and COSTUME DESIGN

I’ve sort of hammered away both in print and on podcasts that Production Design and Costume Design go hand in hand and in fact, they have 9 times since 2000 – for Best Picture winners and nominees alike as well as non-BP nominees. Although names don’t appear on the ballots for the technical awards, most people know who’s behind them.

This year is TOUGH. The pageantry of The Favourite is pure Oscar design porn and comes from the nomination leader. But Black Panther did something wholly different in both categories, giving us looks steeped in culture and science fiction in a way that was both new and familiar.

I think the home court advantage served The Favourite well with its BAFTA wins and Black Panther was only nominated for Visual Effects there (which it won). The two films each won their respective categories with the Art Directors Guild (ADG) and Costume Designers Guild (CDG) so those are no help either. Critics’ Choice opted to give both to Black Panther.

It boils down to if the Academy wants to recognize the type of things they’ve recognized before (period royalty dramas) or something adventurous like Black Panther, which will also find itself in the history books if Hannah Beachler and/or Ruth E. Carter wins. Not that creating history is the overriding impetus to award Black Panther but it will add a special note to the evening.

I’m going with a split this year, with very little chance of a surprise winner in either. We’ll see how that turns out.

PRODUCTION DESIGN

COSTUME DESIGN