:00:00. > :00:00.Also reaction to the news to the death of Alan Rickman.
:00:00. > :00:24.So if you want to watch that now it's on the BBC News Channel.
:00:25. > :00:32.Hello and a warm welcome to this ABC News special programme. I am Jane
:00:33. > :00:37.Hill and we are just a few minutes away from learning who has been
:00:38. > :00:43.nominated for the 2016 Oscars. Jason Solomons is with me for the next
:00:44. > :00:45.half an hour with all his insight into what should and shouldn't be
:00:46. > :00:50.short listed. Let's start by seeing the scene live in Hollywood. It is
:00:51. > :00:56.of course very early in the morning, just coming up to 5:30am in
:00:57. > :00:59.California. The announcements always made early because the Academy wants
:01:00. > :01:05.to reach the American TV breakfast programmes. We will be hearing about
:01:06. > :01:11.all 24 categories. The first includes a lot of the technical
:01:12. > :01:16.nominations, which will be announced. And the main categories,
:01:17. > :01:21.as we tend to think of them, they come a few minutes later, including
:01:22. > :01:25.those important categories like Best film, Best actor and Best actor
:01:26. > :01:31.this. They will be unveiled by the president of the Academy. The
:01:32. > :01:36.Academy of motion picture arts and sciences. We will be back there for
:01:37. > :01:46.that. We will not miss a moment. Also up early at the Samuel Goldwyn
:01:47. > :01:52.theatre is Los Angeles correspondent, James Cook. Always an
:01:53. > :01:58.exciting in Los Angeles? Yes, very good morning to you, a very early
:01:59. > :02:07.good morning from the Academy here in Beverly Hills. People just
:02:08. > :02:09.preparing and getting ready. It is packed with reporters, preparing to
:02:10. > :02:14.hear the nominations for this year's Oscars, the 2016 Academy Awards. A
:02:15. > :02:17.year when many people think the field is pretty much wide open.
:02:18. > :02:22.Potential Oscar nominations for films including the revenant,
:02:23. > :02:30.possibly spotlights, the Martian. But what everyone here is talking
:02:31. > :02:35.about is the almost certainty that Leonardo DiCaprio will be nominated.
:02:36. > :02:42.He has never one and Oscar and a lot of people talking about this is his
:02:43. > :02:45.year. Thanks, James, we will be back with you in a while. The first
:02:46. > :02:50.announcement is in a few minutes about dips as a chance to have a
:02:51. > :02:53.think about what might be on the short list. We have to start with
:02:54. > :02:59.what James alluded to. I know we shouldn't take the Golden globes as
:03:00. > :03:12.gospel, but they didn't happen that long ago and the Reverend could do
:03:13. > :03:15.well? Yes, it won best picture. Between the nominations and the
:03:16. > :03:22.awards themselves, Leonardo DiCaprio is probably the most experienced
:03:23. > :03:28.actor out there. He has been round the Mill five times. Finally I think
:03:29. > :03:31.he will push through. This isn't his greatest performance, but it is a
:03:32. > :03:37.different performance, playing of earth trapper who has been left for
:03:38. > :03:42.dead in the forests of 1820s America, who comes back from the
:03:43. > :03:46.dead to exact his revenge, but reviving himself from the dead and
:03:47. > :03:52.hauling himself across the epic landscapes of America to avenge what
:03:53. > :03:59.he sees as the death of his son. It is an epic performance from him.
:04:00. > :04:08.viewers when we talk about things when the film has not yet hit the UK
:04:09. > :04:12.box office yet. People might have seen some of these images, but
:04:13. > :04:17.people cannot make up their own minds for another week or two
:04:18. > :04:20.depending on where they live. Your thoughts, aside from The Revenant,
:04:21. > :04:27.about what we might be looking out about what we might be looking
:04:28. > :04:29.for here. One always wants to cheer one's favourites. Leonardo DiCaprio
:04:30. > :04:35.on his horses one but there are modern films as well that UK
:04:36. > :04:41.audiences may not know yet. The Big Short stars Steve Carell and
:04:42. > :04:44.Christian Bale and is a satire of the economic swindle that was the
:04:45. > :04:49.crash of 2008. Spotlight stars Michael Keaton and Mark Ruffalo
:04:50. > :04:54.about the examination of child abuse about the examination of child
:04:55. > :05:01.in the Catholic Church. Let's hear the first set of nominations. Let's
:05:02. > :05:27.get started. For Best Original Song, the nominees are...
:05:28. > :09:21.For achievement in cinematography the nominees are:
:09:22. > :09:29.Congratulations. Stay tuned for the second part of our announcement with
:09:30. > :09:36.the President Cheryl Boone Isaacs and John Krasinski. So those are the
:09:37. > :09:39.first set of contenders and as we were listening to that, Jason, a
:09:40. > :09:39.thought that went through my mind, a couple of nominations in sound
:09:40. > :09:50.editing and sound mixing for Star editing and sound mixing for Star
:09:51. > :09:51.Wars. I wonder what this says about the awards season, it was the only
:09:52. > :09:56.thing people were talking about in the film world, and get those big,
:09:57. > :09:57.money and everybody talks about big things that
:09:58. > :09:58.money and everybody talks about don't necessarily get recognised at
:09:59. > :10:04.awards time. It is the risk of a awards time. It is the risk of
:10:05. > :10:07.film apartheid, the arthouse films that people do not go and see and
:10:08. > :10:12.Wars out at the same time, hoovering Wars out at the same
:10:13. > :10:15.up box office records, the bestselling film certainly in the
:10:16. > :10:20.UK, the bestselling film of all time. When James Cameron did it with
:10:21. > :10:26.Titanic and Avatar, you got nominated. It will be interesting to
:10:27. > :10:27.see how Star Wars figures. It has a presence in the technical categories
:10:28. > :10:32.but it is the film everybody's going but it is the film everybody's going
:10:33. > :10:34.to see and talking about. It is saving sin are because people are
:10:35. > :10:46.going to the cinema to see it and not watching it on their tablets. It
:10:47. > :10:47.jumped out for you. We always have jumped out for you. We always have
:10:48. > :10:55.our favourites but I know one of yours is there, Inside Out, and a
:10:56. > :10:59.documentary we both loved, Amy. Congratulations to the director of
:11:00. > :11:03.recognised in America for that. All recognised in America for that. All
:11:04. > :11:10.this controversial film about her life. It almost breaks the mould of
:11:11. > :11:19.documentary making. We also have What Happened With Simone. Biopic
:11:20. > :11:19.documentaries of these tragic stars that really appeal. I think Amy
:11:20. > :11:21.could go all the way with this and I am delighted to see the animation
:11:22. > :11:26.Inside Out in there as well. I Inside Out in there as well. I
:11:27. > :11:29.wonder if it will break out of the animated category and get nominated
:11:30. > :11:34.for Best Picture as well. As far as I am concerned it is the best thing
:11:35. > :11:42.I have ever seen. Well, not ever. This year! It is up there. We are
:11:43. > :11:45.close to the second batch of nominations but we are discussing
:11:46. > :11:49.the best films and just with in the the best films and just with
:11:50. > :11:56.sad news of the death of Alan Rickman at just 69. Quite a shock to
:11:57. > :11:57.stage actor but of course thanks to stage actor but of course thanks to
:11:58. > :12:03.Harry Potter prolific on film as well. I cannot forget his wonderful
:12:04. > :12:04.performance in lay Leos Dangereuses, on the London stage, terrific, but
:12:05. > :12:11.Harry Potter opened him up to a Harry Potter opened him up to a
:12:12. > :12:18.whole new audience. Also Anthony Minghella's Truly, Madly, Deeply.
:12:19. > :12:23.And in die-hard as well and the Sheriff of Nottingham, where he
:12:24. > :12:24.stole the movie from Kevin Costner's knows. A wonderful, witty actor. He
:12:25. > :12:31.Sense and Sensibility, directed by also starred with Kate Winslet in
:12:32. > :12:35.Sense and Sensibility, directed by Ang Lee, who we saw just there. This
:12:36. > :12:40.stage, and he will be very sorely stage, and he will be very sorely
:12:41. > :12:47.film. Very sad news on the day the film. Very sad news on the day the
:12:48. > :12:54.Oscar nominations are announced. We go back to Los Angeles. Thank you
:12:55. > :17:37.for kicking it off. John, let's continue.
:17:38. > :17:42.And finally, we are pleased to announce the films selected for the
:17:43. > :18:45.Best Picture nominees. For the complete list of all the
:18:46. > :18:52.nominations, please visit Oscar .com. Join a Sunday night, Fabbri
:18:53. > :19:01.the 20 -- February the 28th with our the 20 -- February the 28th with our
:19:02. > :19:05.host Chris Rock. See you then. So it is. We have several weeks now to
:19:06. > :19:09.speculate on what might happen at the end of February. Sun intakes of
:19:10. > :19:14.breath from both of us at various points. Let's get the thoughts of
:19:15. > :19:18.James Cook at the Samuel Goldwyn Theatre. Any intake of breath
:19:19. > :19:26.gathered from all the journalists gathered in the theatre where you
:19:27. > :19:29.are? I think what might be a surprise is the absence of Carol
:19:30. > :19:33.from these nominations, certainly for Best Picture and Best Director,
:19:34. > :19:38.for the British director Haynes. But plenty of British
:19:39. > :19:42.interest in those top categories. Eddie Redmayne in The Danish Girl,
:19:43. > :19:47.last year's winner for The Theory Of Everything. Mark Rylance in Bridge
:19:48. > :19:51.Of Spies, well-known for his work on stage as much as on-screen. He will
:19:52. > :19:57.be delighted with that. About to play the BFG as well this year.
:19:58. > :20:13.Charlotte Rampling in Years. That is her first as an Oscar nominee. And
:20:14. > :20:18.people missing. Nothing for Dame people missing.
:20:19. > :20:22.Helen Mirren in her role in Trumbo and nothing for day Maggie Smith for
:20:23. > :20:28.her performance this year either. Some intrigue there. Some facts to
:20:29. > :20:33.give you. At the age of 25, the Oscar darling Jennifer Lawrence is
:20:34. > :20:37.now on her fourth nomination. He is the youngest four time Academy
:20:38. > :20:41.Awards nominee. Stephen Spielberg has set the record for the most Best
:20:42. > :20:44.Picture nominations for an individual producer with nine
:20:45. > :20:50.individual nominations. He was nominated of course for Bridge Of
:20:51. > :20:53.Spies. Plenty happening this year and plenty of excitement. And also I
:20:54. > :20:59.suppose a lot of focus on The Revenant and on Mad Max, which seems
:21:00. > :21:05.to have found favour with the members, the 6000 members of the
:21:06. > :21:12.academy as well. Yes, we noticed that. James Cook up bright and early
:21:13. > :21:16.in Los Angeles and Hollywood. Jason Solomons is with me to dissect the
:21:17. > :21:21.list. James mentioning the lack of Carol. That struck me as well. We
:21:22. > :21:25.will come onto that. Let's start with a Best Actress category. It has
:21:26. > :21:30.been a cracking year for female performances. I expect the brilliant
:21:31. > :21:35.people have been left out. What struck you? Yes, no Maggie Smith for
:21:36. > :21:39.The Lady In The Van. She does not really do the Oscars anyway. She has
:21:40. > :21:42.a couple in the bedroom. What strikes me is that it is a fantastic
:21:43. > :21:48.category. The performances here very difficult to separate.
:21:49. > :21:54.Delighted to see Charlotte Rampling recognised for the British film 45
:21:55. > :21:59.Years. She is terrific in it. And our own BAFTA academy neglected her,
:22:00. > :22:06.so a shot across the chops for them. A film that we both love. Charlotte
:22:07. > :22:10.Rampling, Cate Blanchett, always good, and a new generation of actors
:22:11. > :22:14.that people might not know. Saoirse Ronan, so good in Brooklyn, and
:22:15. > :22:18.delighted to see that get Best Picture nomination as well. She was
:22:19. > :22:22.in Atonement and was nominated at the age of 13 as a supporting
:22:23. > :22:28.actress. This film is about growing up as well and she is
:22:29. > :22:32.this wonderful film, Brooklyn, who comes to America in the 1950s. And
:22:33. > :22:36.also this nomination for Brie Larson, who I am sure many viewers
:22:37. > :22:42.will not have heard of, who is extraordinary in the film Room,
:22:43. > :22:45.again nominated for Best Picture and directed by Lenny Abrahamson. A
:22:46. > :22:50.mother protecting a child even though he has been born in captivity
:22:51. > :22:55.and they have been kept in a garden shed for seven years. It is a
:22:56. > :22:59.British interest in this film baroque
:23:00. > :23:03.because the novel on which it is based was written by a Brit, Emma
:23:04. > :23:10.Donaghue. And she wrote the screenplay for the film as well.
:23:11. > :23:15.Yes, the character is kidnapped at the age of 17. It is very harrowing.
:23:16. > :23:21.And forced to give birth by her captain, who rates. The offspring
:23:22. > :23:25.was unlucky not to be nominated as a supporting actor. That it is about
:23:26. > :23:33.mother, her mother's love and what she will do to protect her son.
:23:34. > :23:35.Delighted to see an Irish director getting nominated among the titans
:23:36. > :23:39.of Hollywood as well. A little film of Hollywood
:23:40. > :23:44.that is out in the UK this Friday. For me it is my favourite of that
:23:45. > :23:49.but it is the tiniest one. Looking at the nominations, totting up as
:23:50. > :23:54.much as I can, The Revenant is in the lead with 11 nominations, hardly
:23:55. > :23:59.a category it is not nominated for. And Mad Max has eight or nine as
:24:00. > :24:03.well, extraordinary for this apocalyptic tale. The Revenant and
:24:04. > :24:07.world but one is that in the desert don't know what that says about
:24:08. > :24:11.world but one is that in the desert and one in the snow and people
:24:12. > :24:16.surviving the degradations of humanity and coming through. Very
:24:17. > :24:19.interesting to me. For those interested in the statistics, I am
:24:20. > :24:23.being told that The Revenant has had 12 nominations and Mad Max: Fury
:24:24. > :24:31.Road has had ten. We were talking about best access. Saoirse Ronan,
:24:32. > :24:36.which we both thought was wonderful in a delightful film, Brooklyn, and
:24:37. > :24:37.the screenplay written by Nick Hornby, very well-known British
:24:38. > :24:42.also wrote the screenplay for this author. Novelist of course
:24:43. > :24:45.also wrote the screenplay for this and I am delighted to say that Nick
:24:46. > :24:52.Hornby is on the line-up. Thank you so much and congratulations. Thank
:24:53. > :24:57.very much. I am sure everybody asks you but what does it mean? The hard
:24:58. > :25:03.work is over and your screenplay has been realised. What does the nod
:25:04. > :25:09.from the academy mean? I feel when you are writing it means remarkably
:25:10. > :25:13.little. I have been nominated before. The only way that you can
:25:14. > :25:18.been nominated before is by telling been nominated before is
:25:19. > :25:20.them and they seem very surprised because they have overlooked it. I
:25:21. > :25:25.am sure it will be the same again. I am delighted for the film. This film
:25:26. > :25:27.was incredibly hard to make. It took five years to get the money
:25:28. > :25:34.To survive all the way through the together. Nobody wanted to fund us.
:25:35. > :25:39.To survive all the way through the awards season and get to this point
:25:40. > :25:43.is amazing. We have a central performance that is as good as
:25:44. > :25:49.anything I have seen, so I am so proud of Saoirse. Jason here. When
:25:50. > :25:53.you were writing it and adapting it, did you know that Saoirse Ronan was
:25:54. > :26:00.you write the part for her? When I you write the part for her? When I
:26:01. > :26:09.started this, she was 14! So no, I did not think of her at all. It is
:26:10. > :26:12.wonderful in a way that it took so long to finance that eventually she
:26:13. > :26:18.was old enough and now I cannot imagine anybody else doing it. That
:26:19. > :26:22.is how a lot of the audience felt as well actually. There are strong
:26:23. > :26:28.supporting cast, Julie Walters, but supporting cast, Julie
:26:29. > :26:32.Saoirse Ronan just held it together. And before we go and celebrate, Nick
:26:33. > :26:38.Hornby, talk to us again about the difficulty, if it is a difficulty,
:26:39. > :26:43.of taking a novel that was so loved by so many people. Hugely well
:26:44. > :26:48.received, that novel, and doing it justice and making the best of it on
:26:49. > :26:52.the big screen. Is there an element of that being nerve wracking? Well,
:26:53. > :26:57.actually, there are so many hurdles actually, there are so many hurdles
:26:58. > :27:02.to jump over, that if you do not do it right, nobody will make the film.
:27:03. > :27:07.If you are able to attract in the end money and a good director and an
:27:08. > :27:10.amazing cast, then that takes some of the nerves away because you
:27:11. > :27:15.think, well, they like it so there must be something in there that is
:27:16. > :27:19.OK. If I was just going to publish the screenplay, then of course it
:27:20. > :27:24.would be enormously nerve wracking. But you get votes of confidence
:27:25. > :27:26.along the way. Well we are delighted it got made in the end even though
:27:27. > :27:31.congratulations again. Nick Hornby it took a few
:27:32. > :27:34.congratulations again. Nick Hornby nominated for Best Adapted
:27:35. > :27:40.Screenplay for Brooklyn. Jason, let's talk about actors again. Eddie
:27:41. > :27:44.Redmayne is in that list. Of course, he was the winner last year. I
:27:45. > :27:55.suppose he is the reigning champion, if you like. And Inarritu returns as
:27:56. > :28:01.well. That amazing performance with Stephen Hawking in The Theory Of
:28:02. > :28:08.Everything, he does it again, transforming into a totally
:28:09. > :28:12.different character, in The Danish Girl. It is a very physical
:28:13. > :28:18.portrayal, very different to his role as Stephen Hawking, and this is
:28:19. > :28:21.a very young British actor who has been nominated again. I think he
:28:22. > :28:26.went from brandishing that Oscar and went
:28:27. > :28:29.two days later he was on set playing Lile in The Danish Girl. An
:28:30. > :28:33.extraordinary run of form and he needs to be congratulated for
:28:34. > :28:37.carrying it through. When you become Best Actor, your next choice is
:28:38. > :28:41.crucial and you could make a misstep and he has not done that and it is
:28:42. > :28:45.amazing to still be talking about him when you later. I am not sure he
:28:46. > :28:53.will win. He is up against Leonardo DiCaprio again. I think he will take
:28:54. > :28:56.his revenge this year! Is it a Leonardo's year? A lot of people
:28:57. > :29:04.voting in the academy. They fair to say, a slightly older
:29:05. > :29:08.membership. Will they be of the mindset where they think he has been
:29:09. > :29:15.nominated so many times, Paul Lamb, it is his turn? Not to downplay his
:29:16. > :29:19.performance but that factors in. Yes, he is known as Martin
:29:20. > :29:25.Scorsese's collaborator and he was nominated about five times before he
:29:26. > :29:29.won for The Departed, which starred Leonardo DiCaprio of course. He has
:29:30. > :29:32.been overlooked. It is the most physical, most dominating
:29:33. > :29:36.performance in that category. Michael Fassbender is fantastic as
:29:37. > :29:42.Steve jobs. But for showiness and an anchoring performance, The Revenant
:29:43. > :29:44.is two and a half hours, and he is with us every step of the way,
:29:45. > :29:49.eating raw fish and raw bison liver. eating raw fish
:29:50. > :30:00.Not to go on about his diet, that is just acting, but an epic performance
:30:01. > :30:04.on an epic movie. And to close we have Asif on the phone, nominated
:30:05. > :30:09.for Amy. Congratulations. They took a long time to get Brooklyn made but
:30:10. > :30:15.having seen Amy, it was a remarkable work of journalism but remind us how
:30:16. > :30:20.long it took. It took about three years for us to make actually. And
:30:21. > :30:26.It is amazing. There are many slog to be nominated for an
:30:27. > :30:31.It is amazing. There are many moments during the making of the
:30:32. > :30:35.film that you think things might not happen. People did not want to talk
:30:36. > :30:40.to us because it was so harrowing but it has been like therapy. People
:30:41. > :30:47.have opened up to us. It started off in Cannes last May and it has kept
:30:48. > :30:52.going. It is incredible. Sorry to cut you off. Many congratulations.
:30:53. > :30:56.They with us and we will continue our coverage of the Oscars and the
:30:57. > :30:58.Oscars themselves at the end of February. Jason and I will be back
:30:59. > :31:04.British awards, the BAFTAs, on together on the red carpet for the
:31:05. > :31:08.British awards, the BAFTAs, on Sunday the 14th. For now, goodbye.