When predicting Oscar nominations, there is a lot to consider. Top contenders are calculated based on their other nominations of the year, press campaigns, and the Oscars shortlists. Although some people, like Ben Zauzmer from The Hollywood Reporter, use mathematical equations to meticulously chart the likelihood of specific outcomes, as this year’s nominations show, there will always be surprises. Paul Dano, an established actor who has never received a nomination for an Academy Award despite his extensive film canon, missed out on a nomination for his role in The Fabelmans. However, Brian Tyree Henry got a spot on this list, earning him his first ever nomination for Causeway, a film whose campaign was much more subdued than its counterparts. Other surprises include Paul Mescal’s nomination for best actor. His performance in Aftersun has been admired by many, but as Alli Rosenbloom explained for CNN, it was unexpected that an actor with minimal filmography to his name and a film with a limited budget would go on to receive a nomination.

Everything, Everywhere all at Once (EEAAO), the absurdist film from the directing duo the Daniels, took the coveted spot of most nominated film with 11 nods in various categories. After its premiere at SXSW early last year, critics’ and moviegoers’ reviews were overwhelmingly positive. The campaign trail was a momentous feat; the film became A24’s highest-grossing film to date and made back their relatively small budget in abundance. EEAAO has proved to the entertainment industry that films beyond the tight restrictions of a typical Hollywood blockbuster can be successful; in fact, they’re what audiences want. 

This year’s nominations mark a record-breaking year for Asian performers. The majority of EEAAO’s cast was recognized in several different categories. Stephanie Hsu and Key Huy Quon both got Supporting Actor nods, and the film’s star, Michelle Yeoh – an actress who, through the years, has accumulated a diverse body of work – garnered a Best Actress nomination. This recognition makes Michelle Yeoh the first Asian-identifying woman to ever be nominated in the category. In a similar vein, Hong Chau, a Vietnamese-American actress, received a supporting nomination for her performance in The Whale. Another cause for celebration is Angela Bassett, who received a nomination for her role in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever. She joins these history-makers as the first actor to earn an Oscar nomination for a performance in a Marvel Cinematic Universe film. 

While these surprises showed promising changes for the industry, the holes in this year’s ballot tell another story. The first upset worth mentioning is the Best Director category. Though two woman directors, Chloé Zhao and Jane Campion, won the award in the past two years, this is not an excuse for the lack of female nominations on the ballot. Directors of outstanding films such as Sarah Polley for Women Talking, Charlotte Wells for Aftersun, and Gina Prince-Bythewood for The Woman King were not nominated. Yet Steven Spielberg wracked up his ninth nomination in the category for his film The Fabelmans. 

In the 95 years since the conception of the Academy Awards, a Black woman has never been nominated for Best Director. The omission of Black women amongst nominees is also evident in the Best Actress category, where frontrunners Viola Davis, for The Woman King, and Danielle Deadwyler, for Till, went unnoticed by the Academy. In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Prince-Bythewood spoke out about what the exclusion of Black women in this year’s nominees means to her and the state of the industry. She admits to being disappointed, especially because of the undeniable success of her film The Woman King, in both box office numbers and critical responses. However, the focus of her words was on the Black women who felt overlooked this year, as well as in many past years: “It’s not a snub. It’s a reflection of where the Academy stands and the consistent chasm between Black excellence and recognition.” Deadwyler and her director, Chinonye, echoed similar remarks in the past few days. Readers can hear the lead actress’s full remarks on the podcast “Kermode & Mayo’s Take.” 

In her interview, Prince-Blythewood acknowledges the campaign trails of Davis and Deadwyler, who were Black actresses backed by studios but lacking in the social capital of other nominees. These remarks come as a response to Andrea Riseborough’s unexpected nomination for Best Actress. A Vulture article explains how her film To Leslie received minimal attention until a grassroots social media campaign, spearheaded by famous actors such as Gwyneth Paltrow, Edward Norton, Helen Hunt, and Alan Cumming, pushed for her to be recognized, causing a stir online over the fairness of such tactics. The celebrity-led campaign came on behalf of independent white creators, while Black artists – never mind box office and critical hit films like The Woman King – proceeded the way the system told them to and went unrecognized. In another article on the topic, film critic Robert Daniels resists pointing the finger at Riseborough and instead poses the following question to readers of the Los Angeles Times: “What does it say that the Black women who did everything the institution asks of them — luxury dinners, private academy screenings, meet-and-greets, splashy television spots and magazine profiles — are ignored when someone who did everything outside of the system is rewarded?”

Many other films were excluded entirely from the list of nominations. The South Korean auteur Park Chan-wook’s film Decision to Leave was not nominated in any category, despite the director receiving the award for Best Director at the Cannes Film Festival this past year. The omission has frustrated many cinephiles, especially since South Korea is full of influential filmmakers, and yet, its only acknowledgment from the Academy was for Bong Joon-Ho’s Parasite. The lack of nominations points to the Oscars’ shallow attempts at representation – attempts that tick off boxes rather than acknowledge non-white creators whose works are better. The same goes for the film She Said, which speaks directly about the film industry and the disgraced industry titan Harvey Weinstein. Jordan Peele’s third feature, the sci-fi horror film Nope, also received no recognition. 

With pressure from the #OscarsSoWhite social justice campaign spearheaded by April Reign’s 2015 tweet, and the initiation of the Time’s Up movement, Hollywood has promised to take action to ensure a more diverse and inclusive future for several years now. Despite some achievements in diversity and gender representation over the past few years, the missing names in this year’s nominations show otherwise. It seems that the inherent flaws of the Academy Awards are consistently patched up with empty promises. As Prince-Bythewood explains, the legacy of these awards is not something to be dismissed. Winning an Academy Award has a far more significant impact than bragging rights: “What awards give you is currency. They impact your standing. They impact the box office. They impact the steps you take in this industry. They impact who gets final cut.” As trivial as an Oscar may seem, that gold statue means something. Awards can change a career, an audience’s perspective, or even push the industry in different directions. This year’s nominations are divided; while some represent the possibilities of a more inclusive future, the missing names remind us that Hollywood’s exclusionary history is still present and demands immediate attention.

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Aftersun finds Sophie (Frankie Corio) and her young father, Calum (Paul Mescal), on vacation in Turkey. We meet the two in their shared hotel room, an immediate sign of their close relationship, which  will linger throughout the film. Sophie is not old enough to hang out with the teenagers staying at the hotel, but she no longer wants to play with girls younger than her. Enticed by the other universe in which the teenagers exist, Sophie wrestles with how to define herself as she becomes her own person – a person no longer attached to her father. She must also navigate her relationship with Calum: while her father seems a  gentle and enthusiastic man, beneath his stacks of literature on meditation and tai chi, he is losing an internal battle. 

What makes Aftersun unique is the way the story is told. It becomes clear to audiences partway through the film that the narrative is retrospective, weaved together with camcorder footage that bridges the past and the present. Memory becomes the basis of the film as Sophie reflects on a defining experience in her childhood and, even more so, on how she remembers her father. Aftersun is not stuffed with dialogue; instead, it captivates audiences with silence. 

While the narrative of the film is incredibly moving, the technical elements are just as captivating. Wells and her team capture the air of vacation in the pigmented hues of the turquoise pool and the tropical drinks that line the hotel buffet. Shot in 35 mm, Aftersun uses many conventions of realist filmmaking: a standout being the use of on-location shots, some drenched in sun, and others submerged in the water. There is a subtlety to Wells’s filmmaking. She leaves clues scattered throughout the film that only the active viewer will pick up on, forcing you to engage. She also records people with an air of sensitivity, capturing the emotions and feelings of each character without judgment. While many shots are of faces and bodies, others are just parasail wings in the sky, colourful stripes amidst a sea of blue.

Wells has proven herself a force to be reckoned with – she has even been described as a director who is reinventing the language of cinema – but female voices are continuously underrepresented in Hollywood. The “Celluloid Ceiling,” which surveys the reality of women working in film and television, showed that in 2021, while the film industry was making strides in inclusivity, only 17 per cent of the top 250 highest-grossing films were directed by women. These challenges are even more prevalent for women of colour who must also deal with the institutionalized racism that still plagues the industry. 

While multiple female directors are in the public eye, their tokenization makes it feel like the strides made are much more significant than they really are. In the 94 years since the inception of the Academy Awards, only seven women have been nominated for Best Director, and only three have won the award. Consider the situation of Olivia Wilde this past year. She became a topic of discussion not so much for directing her second feature film but for her relationship with a certain famous pop star and the controversy that followed. Women have always been present as directors in the film industry; one of the most influential filmmakers in cinema’s history was Agnès Varda, who paved her way as a director in a male-dominated period of cinema’s history. But the sad reality is that despite decades of fighting, sexism is still present
 in Hollywood.

Martin Scorsese has explained in multiple interviews that the film industry is clogged with superhero blockbusters. While these films fill a certain niche, the future of cinema cannot rely on the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Popular cinema often compensates with dramatic turns and grand imagery, but Wells’s film skips these unnecessary ploys with a simple story that is more interested in the human experience. What makes the movie most effective is that there is no grandiose statement. Aftersun is simply about grappling with one’s memory. Wells has said in multiple interviews that there is room for everyone in the film. There is no lesson to learn or message to understand; rather, it is an experience that will be different for each viewer. 

Discussions on the future of film are often distorted and confused by box office targets and streaming services, but its trajectory is becoming more clear. Women are crafting works that do not fit into set genres. Consider Joanna Hogg, Gina Prince-Bythewood, and Chloé Zhao – the first woman of colour to win the Academy award for Best Director – all women producing bodies of work that are subversive and that make you think. Carving a place for themselves in the film industry is a constant challenge for women, but there is hope for a promising future, and Wells is a part of that. The first-time director may be a new face in the industry, but she has proven herself a name to remember. Aftersun is an inspiring piece of modern cinema because it transcends boundaries and shows a new future of film: one full of personal and inventive stories told by women.

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Johnny, played by Joaquin Phoenix, is working on a project interviewing children across America about what they envision the future to look like. His young nephew, Jesse, played by Woody Norman, soon joins his cross country journey as his mother is forced to deal with familial hardship. The pair foster a friendship that defies the boundaries of age. The film privileges and takes seriously the emotions of children, giving particular attention to the feelings of nine year old Jesse. It is Jesse who changes Johnny’s perspective on life, not the other way around.

Aesthetically, the film is beautiful; from the simplistic yet modern font of the credits, to the striking aerial shots of New York in all its concrete glory and the beaches of Santa Monica, Mike Mills showcases his genius cinematographic eye. Shot in black and white, the stark palette allows viewers to focus on the human connection between the lead characters, engulfing them in the play between shadow and light that reflects their relationship.

The film’s use of sound is noteworthy as it magnifies the details often missed in major pictures. Johnny is a journalist that records cityscapes for his assignments. As a result, Johnny and Jesse spend a significant portion of the film walking the streets of Los Angeles, New York, and New Orleans with a microphone in hand. Mills captures the mundane noises of the world, finding charm in normalcy. In the ambient sounds of the city, the skateboarders in abandoned pools, and the waves crashing on beaches, Mills confronts the audience with the sounds of life that we so often miss and take for granted.

The film is gorgeous in its capturing of urban American cities, however, its most lasting ideas come from the film’s documentary-like elements. Littered throughout the film are interviews between Johnny and children from all over the United States. In each interview, he asks questions about the future and their ideas of the country. These scenes are unscripted, and  the children’s answers are full of curiosity, optimism and honesty. They do not look at the future with pessimism much like we are used to today; rather, the children acknowledge the hardships of the modern age, and seem to be aware of the prejudiced systems they must challenge. They grapple with issues like climate change and gentrification and yet they acknowledge them without fear. There are no pretentious answers to impress a cameraman, only genuine childlike hope for the future. It is as if the audience is confronted with their own cynicism.

Having lived through a period of isolation, seeing two people connect on such a human level is refreshing and hopeful. But what truly leaves one tingling as you emerge from this movie is the kind of future C’mon C’mon reassures for its viewers. C’mon C’mon shows us that it is the younger generations we must turn to for the betterment of our society. The film suggests we need to reconnect with our childhood selves and rekindle the optimism and wonder of childhood, starting with paying more attention to the little details, like the sounds of incoming trains or the embrace of a loved one.

It is dismissive to think that seeing the world with this newfound lens will enable the dismantling of systemic issues in society. However, Mills shows through the recordings of a new generation that there is a collective of individuals that understand these disadvantages even in their adolescence, without doubt or paralyzing fear. It is not a technological invention that will help us out of the messes we have created: it is the youth.

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Almost Famous is the story of William Miller (Patrick Fugit), an aspiring rock journalist who is assigned by Rolling Stone to write a profile on the emerging rock band Stillwater. William may be the protagonist, but it’s Kate Hudson’s Penny Lane who has become the symbol of the film. Penny doesn’t describe herself as a groupie; rather, she refers to herself as a devoted “band-aide” that goes on tour with the group. Hudson’s effortless looks reflect popular 70s fashion trends, and have since elevated her as a fashion icon in cinema. Vintage sites including Depop and Etsy are overflowing with copies of the jacket, all for people to bid over. While the film itself offers a charming coming-of-age story, it’s ultimately the iconic looks that captivate viewers post-credits.

Penny Lane exudes confidence even in her most vulnerable moments, and the jacket embodies this perfectly. The film’s costume designer Betsy Heimann describes the coat as Penny’s “armour,” since the exaggerated collar and shearling material act as a protective layer against the cruel world that is rock n’ roll music. While Penny is confident, romantic and free-spirited, she is also a petrified young girl in a misogynistic industry. The jacket allows her to fully embody a self-assured persona. When Penny walks into a room, people notice, and the jacket only amplifies that power, which is why the world – or at least, the trendy youth on Depop – is currently fawning over it. We’ve been anxiously hibernating for a year now, so it makes sense that an article of clothing used to create a carefree facade is at the top of our shopping lists.

While the jacket is a show-stopping piece, many of the film’s other costumes have since become icons as well. The wardrobe choices in Almost Famous were carefully curated to authentically embody the era in which the film is set – in true 70s fashion, many of the characters rocked bell-bottom jeans and the iconic Levi 501s, a “vintage” staple that has transcended into mainstream culture after Gen Z banded together to cancel skinny jeans (Thank you, Gen Z!). Almost all of the characters in the film wear this denim, which helps them achieve the “laid-back rockstar” aesthetic that was popular at the time.  

Heimann has also explained how she channeled Bianca Jagger’s thrift store aesthetic to master the groupie’s look. 70s fashion adopted many trends from both the 30s and 40s due to the newfound popularity of vintage clothing, so aspects of these previous decades are apparent in many of the female costumes as well, helping them achieve the bohemian aesthetic of the groupie look. For instance, Polexia (Ana Paquin), another groupie, adopts the “vintage chic” look within her 70s wardrobe while sporting a 1930s chemise throughout the film. This iconic apparel has since become a popular wardrobe staple, sported by icons for decades, and by teenagers in the summer months.  

This piece wouldn’t be complete without acknowledging Penny Lane’s iconic round glasses, featured on the film’s poster. The metallic round shape is synonymous with the film, and has been adopted by brands like Ray-Ban as the perfect summer accessory. So, while we can thank Almost Famous for its legendary soundtrack and its nostalgic references, we must also acknowledge its masterful fashion statements. The film provides iconic looks that have left viewers infatuated for decades. And let’s face it – who doesn’t want to be Penny Lane?

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