Nominations

Also reaction to the news to the death of Alan Rickman.

So if you want to watch that now it's on the BBC News Channel.

Hello and a warm welcome to this ABC News special programme. I am Jane

Hill and we are just a few minutes away from learning who has been

nominated for the 2016 Oscars. Jason Solomons is with me for the next

half an hour with all his insight into what should and shouldn't be

short listed. Let's start by seeing the scene live in Hollywood. It is

of course very early in the morning, just coming up to 5:30am in

California. The announcements always made early because the Academy wants

to reach the American TV breakfast programmes. We will be hearing about

all 24 categories. The first includes a lot of the technical

nominations, which will be announced. And the main categories,

as we tend to think of them, they come a few minutes later, including

those important categories like Best film, Best actor and Best actor

this. They will be unveiled by the president of the Academy. The

Academy of motion picture arts and sciences. We will be back there for

that. We will not miss a moment. Also up early at the Samuel Goldwyn

theatre is Los Angeles correspondent, James Cook. Always an

exciting in Los Angeles? Yes, very good morning to you, a very early

good morning from the Academy here in Beverly Hills. People just

preparing and getting ready. It is packed with reporters, preparing to

hear the nominations for this year's Oscars, the 2016 Academy Awards. A

year when many people think the field is pretty much wide open.

Potential Oscar nominations for films including the revenant,

possibly spotlights, the Martian. But what everyone here is talking

about is the almost certainty that Leonardo DiCaprio will be nominated.

He has never one and Oscar and a lot of people talking about this is his

year. Thanks, James, we will be back with you in a while. The first

announcement is in a few minutes about dips as a chance to have a

think about what might be on the short list. We have to start with

what James alluded to. I know we shouldn't take the Golden globes as

gospel, but they didn't happen that long ago and the Reverend could do

well? Yes, it won best picture. Between the nominations and the

awards themselves, Leonardo DiCaprio is probably the most experienced

actor out there. He has been round the Mill five times. Finally I think

he will push through. This isn't his greatest performance, but it is a

different performance, playing of earth trapper who has been left for

dead in the forests of 1820s America, who comes back from the

dead to exact his revenge, but reviving himself from the dead and

hauling himself across the epic landscapes of America to avenge what

he sees as the death of his son. It is an epic performance from him.

viewers when we talk about things when the film has not yet hit the UK

box office yet. People might have seen some of these images, but

people cannot make up their own minds for another week or two

depending on where they live. Your thoughts, aside from The Revenant,

about what we might be looking out about what we might be looking

for here. One always wants to cheer one's favourites. Leonardo DiCaprio

on his horses one but there are modern films as well that UK

audiences may not know yet. The Big Short stars Steve Carell and

Christian Bale and is a satire of the economic swindle that was the

crash of 2008. Spotlight stars Michael Keaton and Mark Ruffalo

about the examination of child abuse about the examination of child

in the Catholic Church. Let's hear the first set of nominations. Let's

get started. For Best Original Song, the nominees are...

For achievement in cinematography the nominees are:

Congratulations. Stay tuned for the second part of our announcement with

the President Cheryl Boone Isaacs and John Krasinski. So those are the

first set of contenders and as we were listening to that, Jason, a

thought that went through my mind, a couple of nominations in sound

editing and sound mixing for Star editing and sound mixing for Star

Wars. I wonder what this says about the awards season, it was the only

thing people were talking about in the film world, and get those big,

money and everybody talks about big things that

money and everybody talks about don't necessarily get recognised at

awards time. It is the risk of a awards time. It is the risk of

film apartheid, the arthouse films that people do not go and see and

Wars out at the same time, hoovering Wars out at the same

up box office records, the bestselling film certainly in the

UK, the bestselling film of all time. When James Cameron did it with

Titanic and Avatar, you got nominated. It will be interesting to

see how Star Wars figures. It has a presence in the technical categories

but it is the film everybody's going but it is the film everybody's going

to see and talking about. It is saving sin are because people are

going to the cinema to see it and not watching it on their tablets. It

jumped out for you. We always have jumped out for you. We always have

our favourites but I know one of yours is there, Inside Out, and a

documentary we both loved, Amy. Congratulations to the director of

recognised in America for that. All recognised in America for that. All

this controversial film about her life. It almost breaks the mould of

documentary making. We also have What Happened With Simone. Biopic

documentaries of these tragic stars that really appeal. I think Amy

could go all the way with this and I am delighted to see the animation

Inside Out in there as well. I Inside Out in there as well. I

wonder if it will break out of the animated category and get nominated

for Best Picture as well. As far as I am concerned it is the best thing

I have ever seen. Well, not ever. This year! It is up there. We are

close to the second batch of nominations but we are discussing

the best films and just with in the the best films and just with

sad news of the death of Alan Rickman at just 69. Quite a shock to

stage actor but of course thanks to stage actor but of course thanks to

Harry Potter prolific on film as well. I cannot forget his wonderful

performance in lay Leos Dangereuses, on the London stage, terrific, but

Harry Potter opened him up to a Harry Potter opened him up to a

whole new audience. Also Anthony Minghella's Truly, Madly, Deeply.

And in die-hard as well and the Sheriff of Nottingham, where he

stole the movie from Kevin Costner's knows. A wonderful, witty actor. He

Sense and Sensibility, directed by also starred with Kate Winslet in

Sense and Sensibility, directed by Ang Lee, who we saw just there. This

stage, and he will be very sorely stage, and he will be very sorely

film. Very sad news on the day the film. Very sad news on the day the

Oscar nominations are announced. We go back to Los Angeles. Thank you

for kicking it off. John, let's continue.

And finally, we are pleased to announce the films selected for the

Best Picture nominees. For the complete list of all the

nominations, please visit Oscar .com. Join a Sunday night, Fabbri

the 20 -- February the 28th with our the 20 -- February the 28th with our

host Chris Rock. See you then. So it is. We have several weeks now to

speculate on what might happen at the end of February. Sun intakes of

breath from both of us at various points. Let's get the thoughts of

James Cook at the Samuel Goldwyn Theatre. Any intake of breath

gathered from all the journalists gathered in the theatre where you

are? I think what might be a surprise is the absence of Carol

from these nominations, certainly for Best Picture and Best Director,

for the British director Haynes. But plenty of British

interest in those top categories. Eddie Redmayne in The Danish Girl,

last year's winner for The Theory Of Everything. Mark Rylance in Bridge

Of Spies, well-known for his work on stage as much as on-screen. He will

be delighted with that. About to play the BFG as well this year.

Charlotte Rampling in Years. That is her first as an Oscar nominee. And

people missing. Nothing for Dame people missing.

Helen Mirren in her role in Trumbo and nothing for day Maggie Smith for

her performance this year either. Some intrigue there. Some facts to

give you. At the age of 25, the Oscar darling Jennifer Lawrence is

now on her fourth nomination. He is the youngest four time Academy

Awards nominee. Stephen Spielberg has set the record for the most Best

Picture nominations for an individual producer with nine

individual nominations. He was nominated of course for Bridge Of

Spies. Plenty happening this year and plenty of excitement. And also I

suppose a lot of focus on The Revenant and on Mad Max, which seems

to have found favour with the members, the 6000 members of the

academy as well. Yes, we noticed that. James Cook up bright and early

in Los Angeles and Hollywood. Jason Solomons is with me to dissect the

list. James mentioning the lack of Carol. That struck me as well. We

will come onto that. Let's start with a Best Actress category. It has

been a cracking year for female performances. I expect the brilliant

people have been left out. What struck you? Yes, no Maggie Smith for

The Lady In The Van. She does not really do the Oscars anyway. She has

a couple in the bedroom. What strikes me is that it is a fantastic

category. The performances here very difficult to separate.

Delighted to see Charlotte Rampling recognised for the British film 45

Years. She is terrific in it. And our own BAFTA academy neglected her,

so a shot across the chops for them. A film that we both love. Charlotte

Rampling, Cate Blanchett, always good, and a new generation of actors

that people might not know. Saoirse Ronan, so good in Brooklyn, and

delighted to see that get Best Picture nomination as well. She was

in Atonement and was nominated at the age of 13 as a supporting

actress. This film is about growing up as well and she is

this wonderful film, Brooklyn, who comes to America in the 1950s. And

also this nomination for Brie Larson, who I am sure many viewers

will not have heard of, who is extraordinary in the film Room,

again nominated for Best Picture and directed by Lenny Abrahamson. A

mother protecting a child even though he has been born in captivity

and they have been kept in a garden shed for seven years. It is a

British interest in this film baroque

because the novel on which it is based was written by a Brit, Emma

Donaghue. And she wrote the screenplay for the film as well.

Yes, the character is kidnapped at the age of 17. It is very harrowing.

And forced to give birth by her captain, who rates. The offspring

was unlucky not to be nominated as a supporting actor. That it is about

mother, her mother's love and what she will do to protect her son.

Delighted to see an Irish director getting nominated among the titans

of Hollywood as well. A little film of Hollywood

that is out in the UK this Friday. For me it is my favourite of that

but it is the tiniest one. Looking at the nominations, totting up as

much as I can, The Revenant is in the lead with 11 nominations, hardly

a category it is not nominated for. And Mad Max has eight or nine as

well, extraordinary for this apocalyptic tale. The Revenant and

world but one is that in the desert don't know what that says about

world but one is that in the desert and one in the snow and people

surviving the degradations of humanity and coming through. Very

interesting to me. For those interested in the statistics, I am

being told that The Revenant has had 12 nominations and Mad Max: Fury

Road has had ten. We were talking about best access. Saoirse Ronan,

which we both thought was wonderful in a delightful film, Brooklyn, and

the screenplay written by Nick Hornby, very well-known British

also wrote the screenplay for this author. Novelist of course

also wrote the screenplay for this and I am delighted to say that Nick

Hornby is on the line-up. Thank you so much and congratulations. Thank

very much. I am sure everybody asks you but what does it mean? The hard

work is over and your screenplay has been realised. What does the nod

from the academy mean? I feel when you are writing it means remarkably

little. I have been nominated before. The only way that you can

been nominated before is by telling been nominated before is

them and they seem very surprised because they have overlooked it. I

am sure it will be the same again. I am delighted for the film. This film

was incredibly hard to make. It took five years to get the money

To survive all the way through the together. Nobody wanted to fund us.

To survive all the way through the awards season and get to this point

is amazing. We have a central performance that is as good as

anything I have seen, so I am so proud of Saoirse. Jason here. When

you were writing it and adapting it, did you know that Saoirse Ronan was

you write the part for her? When I you write the part for her? When I

started this, she was 14! So no, I did not think of her at all. It is

wonderful in a way that it took so long to finance that eventually she

was old enough and now I cannot imagine anybody else doing it. That

is how a lot of the audience felt as well actually. There are strong

supporting cast, Julie Walters, but supporting cast, Julie

Saoirse Ronan just held it together. And before we go and celebrate, Nick

Hornby, talk to us again about the difficulty, if it is a difficulty,

of taking a novel that was so loved by so many people. Hugely well

received, that novel, and doing it justice and making the best of it on

the big screen. Is there an element of that being nerve wracking? Well,

actually, there are so many hurdles actually, there are so many hurdles

to jump over, that if you do not do it right, nobody will make the film.

If you are able to attract in the end money and a good director and an

amazing cast, then that takes some of the nerves away because you

think, well, they like it so there must be something in there that is

OK. If I was just going to publish the screenplay, then of course it

would be enormously nerve wracking. But you get votes of confidence

along the way. Well we are delighted it got made in the end even though

congratulations again. Nick Hornby it took a few

congratulations again. Nick Hornby nominated for Best Adapted

Screenplay for Brooklyn. Jason, let's talk about actors again. Eddie

Redmayne is in that list. Of course, he was the winner last year. I

suppose he is the reigning champion, if you like. And Inarritu returns as

well. That amazing performance with Stephen Hawking in The Theory Of

Everything, he does it again, transforming into a totally

different character, in The Danish Girl. It is a very physical

portrayal, very different to his role as Stephen Hawking, and this is

a very young British actor who has been nominated again. I think he

went from brandishing that Oscar and went

two days later he was on set playing Lile in The Danish Girl. An

extraordinary run of form and he needs to be congratulated for

carrying it through. When you become Best Actor, your next choice is

crucial and you could make a misstep and he has not done that and it is

amazing to still be talking about him when you later. I am not sure he

will win. He is up against Leonardo DiCaprio again. I think he will take

his revenge this year! Is it a Leonardo's year? A lot of people

voting in the academy. They fair to say, a slightly older

membership. Will they be of the mindset where they think he has been

nominated so many times, Paul Lamb, it is his turn? Not to downplay his

performance but that factors in. Yes, he is known as Martin

Scorsese's collaborator and he was nominated about five times before he

won for The Departed, which starred Leonardo DiCaprio of course. He has

been overlooked. It is the most physical, most dominating

performance in that category. Michael Fassbender is fantastic as

Steve jobs. But for showiness and an anchoring performance, The Revenant

is two and a half hours, and he is with us every step of the way,

eating raw fish and raw bison liver. eating raw fish

Not to go on about his diet, that is just acting, but an epic performance

on an epic movie. And to close we have Asif on the phone, nominated

for Amy. Congratulations. They took a long time to get Brooklyn made but

having seen Amy, it was a remarkable work of journalism but remind us how

long it took. It took about three years for us to make actually. And

It is amazing. There are many slog to be nominated for an

It is amazing. There are many moments during the making of the

film that you think things might not happen. People did not want to talk

to us because it was so harrowing but it has been like therapy. People

have opened up to us. It started off in Cannes last May and it has kept

going. It is incredible. Sorry to cut you off. Many congratulations.

They with us and we will continue our coverage of the Oscars and the

Oscars themselves at the end of February. Jason and I will be back

British awards, the BAFTAs, on together on the red carpet for the

British awards, the BAFTAs, on Sunday the 14th. For now, goodbye.