Academy Releases Foreign-Language Oscar List

Cannes Film Festival

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Foreign Language Executive Committee has vetted the contenders, eliminated a few (notably Joshua Marston's nixed Albanian entry The Forgiveness of Blood, a pretty good movie), and announced the contenders for the foreign Oscar. One promising film is Finland's upbeat, charming Le Havre (picture above) by Aki Kaurismäki. Press release below:

63 COUNTRIES VIE FOR 2011 
FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM OSCAR


Beverly Hills, CA – Sixty-three countries, including first-time entrant New Zealand, have submitted films for consideration in the Foreign Language Film category for the 84th Academy Awards.

The 2011 submissions are:

Albania, "Amnesty," Bujar Alimani, director

Argentina, "Aballay," Fernando Spiner, director

Austria, "Breathing," Karl Markovics, director

Belgium, "Bullhead," Michael R. Roskam, director

Bosnia and Herzegovina,"Belvedere," Ahmed Imamovic, director

Brazil, "Elite Squad: The Enemy Within," José Padilha, director

Bulgaria, "Tilt," Viktor Chouchkov, Jr., director

Canada, "Monsieur Lazhar," Philippe Falardeau, director

Chile, "Violeta Went to Heaven," Andrés Wood, director

China, "The Flowers of War," Zhang Yimou, director

Colombia, "The Colors of the Mountain," Carlos César Arbeláez, director

Croatia, "72 Days," Danilo Serbedzija, director

Cuba, "Havanastation," Ian Padrón, director

Czech Republic,"Alois Nebel," Tomás Lunák, director

Denmark, "Superclásico," Ole Christian Madsen, director

Dominican Republic,"Love Child," Leticia Tonos, director

Egypt, "Lust," Khaled el Hagar, director

Estonia, "Letters to Angel," Sulev Keedus, director

Finland, "Le Havre," Aki Kaurismäki, director

France, "Declaration of War," Valérie Donzelli, director

Georgia, "Chantrapas," Otar Iosseliani, director

Germany, "Pina," Wim Wenders, director

Greece, "Attenberg," Athina Rachel Tsangari, director

Hong Kong,"A Simple Life," Ann Hui, director

Hungary, "The Turin Horse," Béela Tarr, director

Iceland, "Volcano," Rúnar Rúnarsson, director

India, "Abu, Son of Adam," Salim Ahamed, director

Indonesia, "Under the Protection of Ka'Bah," Hanny R. Saputra, director

Iran, "A Separation," Asghar Farhadi, director

Ireland, "As If I Am Not There," Juanita Wilson, director

Israel, "Footnote," Joseph Cedar, director

Italy, "Terraferma," Emanuele Crialese, director

Japan, "Postcard," Kaneto Shindo, director

Kazakhstan, "Returning to the ‘A,’" Egor Mikhalkov-Konchalovsky, director

Lebanon, "Where Do We Go Now?" Nadine Labaki, director

Lithuania, "Back to Your Arms," Kristijonas Vildziunas, director

Macedonia, "Punk Is Not Dead," Vladimir Blazevski, director

Mexico, "Miss Bala," Gerardo Naranjo, director

Morocco, "Omar Killed Me," Roschdy Zem, director

Netherlands, "Sonny Boy," Maria Peters, director

New Zealand, "The Orator," Tusi Tamasese, director

Norway, "Happy, Happy," Anne Sewitsky, director

Peru, "October," Diego Vega and Daniel Vega, directors

Philippines, "The Woman in the Septic Tank," Marlon N. Rivera, director

Poland, "In Darkness," Agnieszka Holland, director

Portugal, "José and Pilar," Miguel Gonçalves Mendes, director

Romania, "Morgen," Marian Crisan, director

Russia, "Burnt by the Sun 2: The Citadel," Nikita Mikhalkov, director

Serbia, "Montevideo: Taste of a Dream," Dragan Bjelogrlić, director

Singapore, "Tatsumi," Eric Khoo, director

Slovak Republic, "Gypsy," Martin Sulík, director

South Africa, "Beauty," Oliver Hermanus, director

South Korea, "The Front Line," Jang Hun, director

Spain, "Black Bread," Agusti Villaronga, director

Sweden, "Beyond," Pernilla August, director

Switzerland, "Summer Games," Rolando Colla, director

Taiwan, "Warriors of the Rainbow: Seediq Bale," Wei Te-sheng, director

Thailand, "Kon Khon," Sarunyu Wongkrachang, director

Turkey, "Once upon a Time in Anatolia," Nuri Bilge Ceylan, director

United Kingdom,"Patagonia," Marc Evans, director

Uruguay, "The Silent House," Gustavo Hernández, director

Venezuela, "Rumble of the Stones," Alejandro Bellame Palacios, director

Vietnam, "The Prince and the Pagoda Boy," Luu Trong Ninh, director.

The 84th Academy Awards nominations will be announced live on Tuesday, January 24, 2012, at 5:30 a.m. PT in the Academy’s Samuel Goldwyn Theater.
Academy Awards for outstanding film achievements of 2011 will be presented on Sunday, February 26, 2012, at the Kodak Theatre at Hollywood & Highland Center®, and televised live by the ABC Television Network.  The Oscar presentation also will be televised live in more than 200 countries worldwide.