And, just like this years race, their choices are all over the map.
There is, of course, some major consensus just hand Leonardo DiCaprio his statue already.
But others might surprise you.
Kerry Hayes
And best of all, they explain the choices they made.
We wonder if you will agree.
For me, it had everything.
Kerry Hayes
The Actress: Mad Max: Fury Road.
This movie was the most engaging on every level.
And I loved that there were so many women in the movie.
BEST DIRECTORDirector of: Mad Max: Fury Road Age: 70Oscar Past: 4 Noms, 1 Win Nothing is accidental. Not the chrome spray in Nux’s mouth, nor the wire skull that adorns Furiosa’s steering wheel. When George Miller decided to return to the franchise that launched his career, with Mad Max: Fury Road, he left no detail to chance. “You talk to him about any of the tribes involved, or the vehicles, and they are all characters to him, and they all mean something,” says titular star Tom Hardy. “He doesn’t bang on about any of it, but it is a meditation on all of his imagery and iconography and symbolism.” And it has earned him his first Oscar nod for directing.Miller prefers to run his sets like a partnership with his cast and crew. “It all felt very collaborative,” says costar Charlize Theron. “It’s not ‘Oh, I’ve got to listen to her, and I guess I’ve got to light that scene to make her happy.’ It was very authentic and organic.” And the film provided Miller the opportunity to match his decades of experience with today’s technology, reinvigorating the action genre he helped reinvent more than three decades ago. “I’ve always been fascinated by any work that has an optimum medium on which to experience it,” says Miller. “Fury Road has to be seen in a cinema; the experience would be diminished at home. In many ways, it’s got to be there, with the congregation of people in the dark.” — Nicole Sperling.Jun Sato/WireImage
It was quite amazing.
The Screenwriter:Brooklyn.
It will never win, but its a sound film with a nicely complex emotional tone.
Kimberley French
The Director:I found the inventiveness ofThe Big Shortimmeasurable.
Im always fascinated when a movie can be something youve never seen before.
The Publicist:Spotlight.
George Kraychyk
I loved the relevance of both films, but my vote goes toSpotlight.
The Producer:Spotlight.
But in the end,Spotlighttook a Who would want to see a movie about that?
Barry Wetcher
subject and made it emotionally resonant with subtle and beautiful performances.
BEST DIRECTOR
The Actor:Alejandro G. Inarritu.
He made a film that warranted the big screen.
Francois Duhamel
The Actress:Lenny Abrahamson.
The Director:Alejandro G. Inarritu.
He introduced us to a visual world that weve never seen before.
He did it with his director of photography, but the idea germinated with Alejandro.
Plus, its quite a smorgasbord of realistic acting, and that comes from a very strong director.
The Publicist:Tom McCarthy.
I loved his storytelling, and I found the flow of the movie amazing.
I like the way he slowly revealed the information.
The Producer:George Miller.
BEST ACTOR
The Actor:Leonardo DiCaprio.
It cost him, and the audience is the beneficiary of that cost.
It was an elemental performance.
The Actress:Leonardo DiCaprio.
This isnt a vote for a career achievement.
He did a great job.
I could relate to working in extremely cold conditions.
Sometimes its so cold its hard to even act.
I felt for his character and for what he was going through.
The Screenwriter:Eddie Redmayne.
No one was inspiring this year.
But if I had to pick one performance, it would be Eddie, because hes always good.
The Director:Leonardo DiCaprio.
Any vegetarian who will eat a raw bison liver for art has my vote.
The Publicist:Leonardo DiCaprio.
His performance deserves to be recognized.
Leo is always challenging himself, and he gets better and better with each job.
I think his moment has finally come.
It was grueling to watch, but it was an amazing performance.
The Producer:Leonardo DiCaprio.
Without his performance,The Revenantis a beautiful but unemotional movie.
BEST ACTRESS
The Actor:Brie Larson.
The sheer amount of emotion she was able to convey was admirable.
No other performance had that degree of depth.
The Actress:Brie Larson.
I was blown away by her performance.
She was so nuanced and complicated and layered.
The intimacy and detail were breathtaking.
The Screenwriter:Saoirse Ronan.
Authenticity goes a long way with me, and her performance was about as real as they come.
The Director:Charlotte Rampling.
I love the beautiful realism of Ramplings performance.
Its courageous to put your age out there like that.
And I really loved her inThe Verdict.
The Publicist:Saoirse Ronan.
I thought her performance was amazing.
The Producer:Brie Larson.
The first hour ofRoomwas the most emotionally wrenching experience Ive had in the cinema in quite a while.
I literally couldnt breathe.
The second hour became a little soapy for me, but Brie Larson was subtle throughout.
It was a masterful performance.
BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
The Actor:Sylvester Stallone.
The Actress:Sylvester Stallone.
It was a great performance.
The Screenwriter:Mark Rylance.
He just owned it.
It seemed like he wasnt hiding behind a mask.
Plus, hes due.
The Director:Sylvester Stallone.
In the absence of Idris Elba, this category is a fraud.
But like 95 percent of the other people here, I vote for Sly based on nostalgia.
The Publicist:Sylvester Stallone.
Its so great to come back to a role almost 40 years after playing him the first time.
Im genuinely so happy for him.
The Producer:Sylvester Stallone.
BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
The Actor:Kate Winslet.
It was a transformative performance.
The Actress:Jennifer Jason Leigh.
Here she was in a movie with seven men.
She was the only female, and she was able to steal the show.
Her portrayal was so spirited.
It made such an impact in a sea of strongly-drawn male characters.
The Screenwriter:Kate Winslet.
Id give Kate an award for ordering pizza, so…
The Director:Rooney Mara.
I was entranced by this movie, and I thought her performance was utterly sincere.
It absolutely tore at me.
The Publicist: Alicia Vikander.
She was absolutely extraordinary.
The performance is amazing, and she was the best thing in the movie.
I couldnt take my eyes off of her.
The Producer:Alicia Vikander.
Im voting for her because I thoughtEx Machinawas the best female performance this year.
