It’s awards season, which means the time is drawing closer for when all eyes turn to Hollywood to see who receives that coveted golden man – the Oscar, formally known as the Academy Award.
This year, the 96th Academy Awards, presented by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, will honor the best films of 2023 on March 10. This year of films, in particular, has been highly contentious, beginning with the “Barbenheimer” showdown and now ending with Barbie being “snubbed” out of Best Picture and Best Director, as well as a surprising release of a new Studio Ghibli film from director Hayao Miyazaki (it is up for Best Animated Film against the popular Spider-Man: Across the Spiderverse). A full list of nominated films can be found here.
For those who are trying to keep up with the Oscar nominations, prepare for a friend’s Oscar party, or simply want to understand what the buzz about these films is about, the Jane Pickens Theater in Newport is screening the best of the best.
In the past year, Jane Pickens has shown (or will be showing) 30 of the Academy Award-nominated films, including every Best Picture nominee. Now, through February, the theater is rescreening award season favorites and showing more recent releases so film connoisseurs can make informed Oscar ballots.
The Jane Pickens’ awards season screenings start this afternoon (February 7) with a showing of the French film Anatomy of a Fall (four nominations). Also on the docket are Poor Things (eleven nominations), American Fiction (five nominations), The Boy and the Heron (one nomination), and Zone of Interest (five nominations).
Award season preparation at the local theater also includes two special events: a Barbie pink party and screenings of all the Oscar-nominated short films. For Barbie’s special encore (nominated for eight Academy Awards), arrive decked out in your most stylish pink outfits; the theater will also be decorated with pink – perfect for photo ops! – and the concessions include 3 pink alcoholic drinks.
The nominated short films are screened by category: live-action, animation, and documentary. Each screening will play all five nominated short films consecutively, with runtimes varying between 80 minutes (animation) and 140 minutes (documentary), so be sure to grab a bucket of popcorn because there are no intermissions!
Filmgoers won’t need to bring a pen and paper to keep track of their opinions and craft an Oscar ballot while watching these films. The Jane Pickens will have official Oscar ballots from Focus Features to give to patrons in mid-February.
Make sure to check the Jane Pickens Theater’s website (here) for a detailed calendar of dates and times for all film screenings.
