The Academy has announced the complete list of 2015 Foreign Language Oscar contenders for the 2015 Oscar awards and again its a new record, topping last year’s record 76 submissions, this year the list reaches 83 total submissions. Kosovo, Malta, Mauritania and Panama are first-time entrants.
I’ve seen a few more on the list than I did last year and I actually have to assume with the buzz from those I’ve seen they may end up being major players. I’m particularly happy to see Xavier Dolan‘s Mommy in the field from Canada and it’s great seeing the hilarious Wild Tales submitted by Argentina.
The Russian submission of Leviathan (Leviafan) came, I think, as a bit of a surprise to everyone considering its subject matter, which could be looked at as critical of its native country.
The Dardennes’ Two Days, One Night has received a lot of acclaim everywhere it has played and we also have Cannes Palme d’Or winner Winter Sleep from Nuri Bilge Ceylan to consider.
I’ve included the complete list directly below and will continue to track the contenders along the way right here as we can expect the shortlist of eligible titles near the end of December.
The 2015 Oscars will be held on Sunday, February 22, 2015, at the Dolby Theatre® at Hollywood & Highland Center® in Hollywood, and will be televised live by ABC.
- Afghanistan, A Few Cubic Meters of Love (dir. Jamshid Mahmoudi)
- Argentina, Wild Tales (dir. Damián Szifrón)
- Australia, Charlie’s Country (dir. Rolf de Heer)
- Austria, The Dark Valley (dir. Andreas Prochaska)
- Azerbaijan, Nabat (dir. Elchin Musaoglu)
- Bangladesh, Glow of the Firefly (dir. Khalid Mahmud Mithu)
- Belgium, Two Days, One Night (dir. Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne)
- Bolivia, Olvidados (dir. Carlos Bolado)
- Bosnia and Herzegovina, With Mom (dir. Faruk LonÄarević)
- Brazil, The Way He Looks (dir. Daniel Ribeiro)
- Bulgaria, Bulgarian Rhapsody (dir. Ivan Nitchev)
- Canada, Mommy (dir. Xavier Dolan)
- Chile, To Kill a Man (dir. Alejandro Fernández Almendras)
- China, The Nightingale (dir. Philippe Muyl)
- Colombia, Mateo (dir. Maria Gamboa)
- Costa Rica, Red Princesses (dir. Laura Astorga)
- Croatia, Cowboys (dir. Tomislav Mrsic)
- Cuba, Behavior (dir. Ernesto Daranas)
- Czech Republic, Fair Play (dir. Andrea SedláÄková)
- Denmark, Sorrow and Joy (dir. Nils Malmros)
- Dominican Republic, Cristo Rey (dir. Leticia Tonos)
- Ecuador , Silence in Dreamland (dir. Tito Molina)
- Egypt, The Factory Girl (dir. Mohamed Khan)
- Estonia, Tangerines (dir. Zaza Urushadze)
- Ethiopia, Difret (dir. Zeresenay Berhane Mehari)
- Finland, Concrete Night (dir. Pirjo Honkasalo)
- France, Saint Laurent (dir. Bertrand Bonello)
- Georgia, Corn Island (dir. Giorgi Ovashvili)
- Germany, Beloved Sisters (dir. Dominik Graf)
- Greece, Little England (dir. Pantelis Voulgaris)
- Hong Kong, The Golden Era (dir. Ann Hui)
- Hungary, White God (dir. Kornél Mundruczó)
- Iceland, Life in a Fishbowl (dir. Baldvin ZophonÃasson)
- India, Liar’s Dice (dir. Geetu Mohandas)
- Indonesia, Soekarno (dir. Hanung Bramantyo)
- Iran, Today (dir. Reza Mirkarimi)
- Iraq, Mardan (dir. Batin Ghobadi)
- Ireland , The Gift (dir. Tommy Collins)
- Israel, Gett: The Trial of Viviane Amsalem (dirs. Ronit Elkabetz and Shlomi Elkabetz)
- Italy, Human Capital (dir. Paolo Virzì)
- Japan, The Light Shines Only There (dir. Mipo Oh)
- Kosovo, Three Windows and a Hanging (dir. Isa Qosja)
- Kyrgyzstan, Kurmanjan Datka: Queen of the Mountains (dir. Sadyk Sher-Niyaz)
- Latvia, Rocks in My Pockets (dir. Signe Baumane)
- Lebanon, Ghadi (dir. Amin Dora)
- Lithuania, The Gambler (dir. Ignas Jonynas)
- Luxembourg, Never Die Young (dir. Pol Cruchten)
- Macedonia, To the Hilt (dir. Stole Popov)
- Malta, Simshar (dir. Rebecca Cremona)
- Mauritania, Timbuktu (dir. Abderrahmane Sissako)
- Mexico, Cantinflas (dir. Sebastian del Amo)
- Moldova, The Unsaved (dir. Igor Cobileanski)
- Montenegro, The Boys from Marx and Engels Street (dir. Nikola Vukcevic)
- Morocco, The Red Moon (dir. Hassan Benjelloun)
- Nepal, Jhola (dir. Yadavkumar Bhattarai)
- Netherlands, Accused (dir. Paula van der Oest)
- New Zealand, The Dead Lands (dir. Toa Fraser)
- Norway, 1001 Grams (dir. Bent Hamer)
- Pakistan, Dukhtar (dir. Afia Nathaniel)
- Palestine, Eyes of a Thief (dir. Najwa Najjar)
- Panama, Invasion (dir. Abner Benaim)
- Peru, The Gospel of the Flesh (dir. Eduardo Mendoza de Echave)
- Philippines, Norte, the End of History (dir. Lav Diaz)
- Poland, Ida (dir. Pawel Pawlikowski)
- Portugal, What Now? Remind Me (dir. Joaquim Pinto)
- Romania, The Japanese Dog (dir. Tudor Cristian Jurgiu)
- Russia, Leviathan (dir. Andrey Zvyagintsev)
- Serbia, See You in Montevideo (dir. Dragan Bjelogrlić)
- Singapore , My Beloved Dearest (dir. Sanif Olek)
- Slovakia, A Step Into the Dark (dir. Miloslav Luther)
- Slovenia, Seduce Me (dir. Marko Santic)
- South Africa, Elelwani (dir. Ntshavheni wa Luruli)
- South Korea, Sea Fog (dir. Shim Sung-bo)
- Spain, Living Is Easy with Eyes Closed (dir. Spanish)
- Sweden, Force Majeure (dir. Ruben Ostlund)
- Switzerland, The Circle (dir. Stefan Haupt)
- Taiwan, Ice Poison (dir. Midi Z)
- Thailand, Teacher’s Diary (dir. Nithiwat Tharathorn)
- Turkey, Winter Sleep (dir. Nuri Bilge Ceylan)
- Ukraine, The Guide (dir. Oles Sanin)
- United Kingdom, Little Happiness (dir. Nihat Seven)
- Uruguay, Mr. Kaplan (dir. Ãlvaro Brechner)
- Venezuela, The Liberator (dir. Alberto Arvelo)