From Shane Conto

Awards season can be overwhelming, right? Unless you are the type of film lover that obnoxiously and aggressively tries to keep up with film releases all year (like myself… haha), awards season can be quite overwhelming. There are so many films that get released every year and quite a few of them get caught up in the awards season mix. There are plenty of awards ceremonies to go around with differing perspectives which helps share the love. Sure, there are some films that get love from all of them but BAFTA and The Independent Spirit Awards offer up different tastes and focuses than the Academy Awards and Golden Globes. It is a great journey to attempt to see all the nominees. But how are you going to do it?

Why is it so challenging to keep up with everything? There are a few layers of complications. The inconsistent release schedule of films and the ideas of limited releases make it hard for so many film lovers to track down certain films. Case in point… The Zone of Interest. This is a big time contender for International Film but is still not getting a widely accessible release and it is getting to be late January. To be honest…it might never get an actual wide release. And to that point, it could be a round for a week. The international film distribution situation is challenging because it can take months into the next year for certain films to even get a US release despite being considered for awards. Then you have short films. They never get the right amount of attention throughout the whole year until it is time to throw awards praise at them. By that point, there is a lot of catching up to do. The catch up can be so overwhelming in general because so many films come out in such a small window. 

But where should you even start? Let’s head out to the theaters! With awards buzz swirling, you want to look for re-releases. Where are those big awards films swinging back onto the big screen? You probably want to check out chains with plenty of screens. Being an AMC customer myself, I look to my local 24 screen theaters as they have the space to focus on the awards stuff along with Mean Girls and Wonka. Some chains even have a focus on more prestige or “Artisan” films (as AMC puts it). My local AMC Classic has that focus. You also want to shop around your area to find the local independent theaters. They are going to be the ones that will focus on awards season films compared to most chain theaters. I am lucky to have the likes of the Philadelphia Film Society theaters, Princeton Garden Theatre, and Montgomery Cinemas to explore. Those are the theaters as well that will most likely go out of their way to get the international cinema films you are looking for. The other special offering is the short film collections. Make sure to keep an eye out for those coming post Academy Awards nomination announcements. 

How about shifting gears to streaming? First off, there is finding the big name nominees. There are the Oppenheimer, Barbie, and Killers of the Flower Moon type films. Go find out the production company and keep an eye out for the streaming services they own. Oppenheimer, for example, is a Universal release and that will be coming to Peacock soon. Barbie is already on MAX, for Warner Brothers, and Killers just dropped on Apple TV+. Then you have some of the smaller and more independent films. Hulu is a surprising landing zone for a lot of independent films, especially those that might get a bit of awards buzz. Hulu is also a great place to check out documentaries and international films that get a lot of attention for awards season. The Disney controlled service never gets enough credit for shining a spotlight on films like that. Netflix will have their awards season focused originals but they also get their hands on a lot of short films that get some serious awards attention as well. Mubi is a cinephile’s dream streaming service and they offer up a lot of the international films getting a lot of awards buzz as well. 

What is the unsung hero for short film exploration? YouTube. Many of the small scale short films that want the attention find themselves on the social media platform so that they can get the exposure. “Short of the Week” channel on YouTube is a great hub for all things short films and they are presently highlighting some award winners, nominees, and shortlisted films for the season. “Omeleto” is another strong channel that gives a good spotlight to those short films getting some awards buzz. If you cannot find some of them there, check around the big streaming sites as they might pick some up. Heading to the film’s websites is also a good strategy and you just might get lucky. 

Are you willing to pay for exposure to some of the key contenders every year? Join Film Independent. They charge around $150 per year and you get access to so many opportunities throughout the year but most importantly, right around award season. If you live in Los Angeles, it is a no- brainer for all the special screenings you get invited to all year long. But for the rest of us, the Awards Screening room access might just be worth that $150 price tag itself. The vast majority of films and shows nominated for Independent Spirit Awards make their way to you thanks to their membership. If you are a serious cinephile and can afford it, it is an easy decision.

Wow… that is a lot, isn’t it? Hopefully, these suggestions will help, keep you busy, and not be too overwhelming. Awards season can certainly be that… overwhelming. But if you know where to look and how to navigate this vast landscape of film, you can be in the know for awards season.

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