FINAL 2025 Oscar Nomination Predictions: FILM EDITING, CINEMATOGRAPHY, COSTUME DESIGN, PRODUCTION DESIGN

Despite being a top frontrunner in Best Picture, The Brutalist has had a tough road with precursor nominations in key technical categories that could bode for its overall potential come Oscar nomination morning and the night of the Oscars themselves. The 3 hour 35 minute period epic was blanked by the American Cinema Editors (ACE) and BAFTA for film editing, earning just a Critics Choice nod in a field of six, putting it below Anora, Conclave, and Dune: Part Two, which earned all three, and Emilia Pérez and Challengers, each of which earned a combination of two. Now, that could change completely as the film editing branch votes, which is currently underway, but caution does rear itself when you put everything up against itself as the charts below highlight. Challengers is the most vulnerable here but I think the branch will respect that film’s high energy sports editing. Something I am thinking about…is Sean Baker potentially at risk as the big snub here acting as his own editor? In 2018, Roma was a 10-time Oscar-nominated film and won three, including two for director Alfonso Cuarón – in directing and cinematography – but they snubbed him as his film’s editor. Just makes me think.

Costume Design is even more bleak for The Brutalist, where it’s earned no precursor love from BAFTA, the Costume Designers Guild or Critics Choice. With Conclave, A Complete Unknown, Gladiator II, Maria, Nosferatu and Wicked eating up all of the nominations it could be very tough for Kate Forbes’ costumes to find a way in.

Two areas the film won’t have any trouble in are Cinematography and Production Design. Digging up an archaic film format in VistaVision and displayed in gorgeous 70mm across the country, it’s been celebrated by critics and industry alike. But this is also an unwieldy character with solid footing for The Brutalist, Conclave and Nosferatu, all receiving ASC, BAFTA, BSC and Critics Choice nods. Then there’s the curious case of Dune: Part Two, which also received all of those precursors but, there’s this strange thing that happens when a film wins the cinematography Oscar (as the first Dune did) then its immediately sequel(s) find themselves snubbed, most recently with the Avatar sequel, but maybe the most glaring with both the second and third film in the Lord of the Rings trilogy. That could leave cinematographer Greig Fraser just on the outside, especially for a middle film of a trilogy. That opens the door for ASC nominees Edward Lachman (Maria) and Phedon Papamichael (A Complete Unknown, the biggest late-breaker success with guilds so far) and what is now an outside shot for Jomo Fray and his first-person POV perspective use in the film Nickel Boys (an ASC Spotlight nominee).

Detailing the fictional life of architect László Tóth (played by Adrien Brody), the very foundation of the film is design and it stands side by side with fellow precursor champs Conclave, Dune: Part Two, Nosferatu and Wicked as films that haven’t missed.

Oscar nominations are now set to be announced on January 23, barring any further postponements. Here are my final 2025 Oscar predictions in Film Editing, Cinematography, Costume Design and Production Design.

FILM EDITING

CINEMATOGRAPHY

COSTUME DESIGN

PRODUCTION DESIGN