To celebrate the upcoming Oscars, we are pleased to announce the Best of 2020 nominees and winners in fourteen categories. We selected the top five picks in the following categories: Best Picture, Best Director, Best Lead Actor, Best Lead Actress, Best Supporting Actor, Best Supporting Actress,  Best Original Screenplay, Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Cinematography, Best Editing, Best Documentary, Best Animated Feature, Best International Film, and Best Original Score. Noah Damron also did his own separate nominations and awards down below.

 

3rd Annual Defacto Film Awards (Robert Butler’s Picks) 

✓  Indicates Winner

BEST PICTURE

Check out this brand new trailer and poster for the acclaimed 'Nomadland'

  • Kajillionaire
  • Never Rarely Sometimes Always
  • ✓  Nomadland
  • Promising Young Woman
  • To the Ends of the Earth 

BEST DIRECTOR

Nomadland" Director Chloé Zhao to be Honored at Virginia Film Festival | VIMOOZ

  • Sean Durkin, The Nest  
  • Emerald Fennell, Promising Young Woman 
  • Eliza Hittman, Never Rarely Sometimes Always 
  • Kiyoshi Kurosawa, To the Ends of the Earth 
  • ✓  Chloé Zhao, Nomadland 

BEST LEAD ACTRESS

Carey Mulligan is ready to shock you with 'Promising Young Woman'

  • Carrie Coon, The Nest
  • Viola Davis, Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom
  • Sidney Flanigan, Never Rarely Sometimes Always
  • Frances McDormand, Nomadland
  • ✓  Carey Mulligan, Promising Young Woman 

BEST LEAD ACTOR

Sound Of Metal review: Riz Ahmed is terrific in Darius Marder film | Entertainment News,The Indian Express

  • ✓  Riz Ahmed, Sound of Metal 
  • Chadwick Boseman, Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom
  • Delroy Lindo, Da 5 Bloods
  • Luca Marinelli, Martin Eden
  • Gary Oldman, Mank

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS

Amanda Seyfried Is 'Mank's' Oscar Surprise Contender

  • Maria Bakalova, Borat Subsequent Moviefilm
  • Gina Rodriguez, Kajillionaire
  • Talia Ryder, Never Rarely Sometimes Always
  • ✓  Amanda Seyfried, Mank 
  • Youn Yuh-jung, Minari

Judas and the Black Messiah' Team on Honoring Fred Hampton's Legacy - Variety

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR

  • Sacha Baron Cohen, The Trial of the Chicago 7 
  • ✓  Daniel Kaluuya, Judas and the Black Messiah  
  • Bill Murray, On the Rocks 
  • Leslie Odom Jr. One Night in Miami 
  • Paul Raci, Sound of Metal 

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY 

Review: 'Promising Young Woman' Is A Showcase For Carey Mulligan : NPR

  • Kajillionaire, Miranda July
  • Never Rarely Sometimes Always, Eliza Hittman
  • The Nest, Sean Durkin
  • On the Rocks, Sofia Coppola
  • ✓  Promising Young Woman, Emerald Fennell 

BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY

Van Life isn't so Glamorous in 'Nomadland' - SF Weekly

  • I’m Thinking of Ending Things, Charlie Kaufman
  • The Father, Christopher Hamton and Florian Zellar
  • Martin Eden, Maurizio Braucci and Pietro Marcello
  • ✓  Nomadland, Chloé Zhao
  • One Night in Miami, Kemp Powers

BEST DOCUMENTARY

Collective' Review: Romanian Exposé Has Universal Resonance - Variety

  • City Hall  
  • ✓  Collective 
  • Feels Good Man
  • This Is Not a Movie 
  • Time

BEST ANIMATED FEATURE 

In 'Soul' on Disney+, Pixar Has Its First Black Lead Character - The New York Times

  • Onward
  • Over the Moon
  • ✓ Soul 
  • A Whisker Away
  • Wolfwalkers  

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY 

Nomadland - New Naturalism - Light as Nature - The American Society of Cinematographers

  • Ghost Tropic, Grimm Vandekerckhove
  • Mank, Erik Messerschmidt
  • Never Rarely Sometimes Always, Helene Louvart
  • Nomadland, Joshua James Richards 
  • To the Ends of the Earth, Akiko Ashizawa

Warner Bros. Moves 'Tenet' To August 12 – Deadline

BEST EDITING

  • Martin Eden, Aline Hervé and Fabrizio Federico
  • Never Rarely Sometimes Always, Scott Cummings
  • Possessor, Matthew Hannam
  • Promising Young Woman, Frédéric Thoraval
  • ✓  Tenet, Jennifer Lame 

To the Ends of the Earth review – dreamlike vision of clashing cultures | Drama films | The Guardian

BEST INTERNATIONAL FILM  

  • Bacurau (Brazil)
  • Ghost Tropic (Belgium)
  • Martin Eden (Italy)
  • A Sun (Taiwan)
  • ✓ To the Ends of the Earth (Japan) 

Kajillionaire - Catholic News Service

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE 

  • Da 5 Bloods, Terrence Blanchard
  • Mank, Trent Reznor & Atticus Ross
  • ✓  Kajillionaire, Emile Mosseri 
  • Minari, Emile Mosseri
  • Soul, Trent Reznor, Atticus Ross & Jon Batiste

 

3rd Annual Defacto Film Awards (Noah Damron’s Picks) 

 

BEST PICTURE

  • Judas and the Black Messiah
  • ✓  Nomadland
  • Possessor
  • Promising Young Woman
  • Sound of Metal

 

BEST DIRECTOR

  • Brandon Cronenberg, Possessor
  • Shaka King, Judas and the Black Messiah
  • Spike Lee, Da 5 Bloods
  • Darius Marder, Sound of Metal
  • ✓  Chloe Zhao, Nomadland

 

BEST LEAD ACTRESS

  • Haley Bennett, Swallow
  • Vanessa Kirby, Pieces of a Woman
  • ✓  Frances McDormand, Nomadland
  • Elisabeth Moss, The Invisible Man
  • Carey Mulligan, Promising Young Woman

 

BEST LEAD ACTOR

  • Riz Ahmed, Sound of Metal
  • Ben Affleck, The Way Back
  • Chadwick Boseman, Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom
  • ✓  Delroy Lindo, Da 5 Bloods
  • Mads Mikkelsen, Another Round

 

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS

  • ✓  Maria Bakalova, Borat Subsequent Moviefilm
  • Olivia Cooke, Sound of Metal
  • Gina Rodriguez, Kajillionaire
  • Amanda Seyfried, Mank
  • Youn Yuh-jung, Minari

 

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR

  • Sacha Baron Cohen, The Trial of the Chicago 7
  • Hugh Grant, The Gentlemen
  • ✓  Daniel Kaluuya, Judas and the Black Messiah
  • Leslie Odom Jr, One Night in Miami
  • Paul Raci, Sound of Metal

 

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY

  • Another Round, Tobias Lindholm & Thomas Vinterberg
  • Barb & Star Go to Vista Del Mar, Annie Mumolo & Kirsten Wiig
  • ✓  Judas and the Black Messiah, Keith Lucas, Kenny Lucas, Will Berson & Shaka King
  • Promising Young Woman, Emerald Fennell
  • Sound of Metal, Abraham Marder, Darius Marder & Derek Cianfrance

 

BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY

  • The Father, Christopher Hampton & Florian Zeller
  • The Invisible Man, Leigh Whannell
  • ✓  Nomadland, Chloe Zhao
  • One Night in Miami, Kemp Powers
  • Shirley, Sarah Gubbins

 

BEST DOCUMENTARY

  • Athlete A
  • Collective
  • Crip Camp
  • ✓  Feels Good Man
  • Time

 

BEST ANIMATED FEATURE

  • Onward
  • ✓  Soul
  • Weathering With You
  • The Wolf House
  • Wolfwalkers

 

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY

  • I’m Thinking of Ending Things, Lukasz Zal
  • Judas and the Black Messiah, Sean Bobbitt
  • Mank, Erik Messerschmidt
  • Nomadland, Joshua James Richards
  • ✓ Tenet, Hoyte Van Hoytema

 

BEST EDITING

  • Judas and the Black Messiah, Kristan Sprague
  • Nomadland, Chloe Zhao
  • Possessor, Matthew Hannam
  • Sound of Metal, Mikkel E.G. Nielsen
  • ✓  Tenet, Jennifer Lame

 

BEST INTERNATIONAL FILM

  • Another Round (Denmark)
  • ✓  Bacurau (Brazil)
  • Beanpole (Russia)
  • Collective (Romania)
  • La Llorona (Guatemala)

 

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE

  • The Invisible Man, Benjamin Wallfisch
  • Mank, Trent Reznor & Atticus Ross
  • Minari, Emile Mosseri
  • Soul, Trent Reznor, Atticus Ross & Jon Batiste
  • ✓  Tenet, Ludwig Goransson