'The Hollywood Reporters,' Ep. 7: Entering the Home Stretch of the Oscar Race (Video)

The Hollywood Reporter has released the seventh installment of its weekly web series The Hollywood Reporters. In each episode, THR awards analyst Scott Feinberg, the series' host, chats with colleagues from THR's newsroom about different aspects of the awards race.

our editor recommends

PGA Award Victory Cements 'Argo' As New Frontrunner for Best Picture Oscar (Analysis)

VES Awards 2013: 'Life of Pi' Wins Top Prize

Tony Kushner Fires Back After Congressman's 'Lincoln' Criticism

How 'Silver Linings Playbook' Could Top $100 Million (Analysis)

This week, Feinberg was joined by senior editor Alex Ben Block -- last year's winner of the L.A. Press Club's Entertainment Journalist of the Year Award and a nominee for the International Cinematography Guild's Press Award that will be presented on Feb. 22 -- to preview the 16 days remaining before the 85th Oscars.

FEINBERG FORECAST: Updated Projections (With 3 Weeks Until the 85th Oscars)

Feinberg and Block assert that it looks very likely that Ben Affleck's Argo will win the best picture Oscar, based on its Critics' Choice, Golden Globe, DGA, PGA and SAG wins. But Block emphasizes that there are demographic differences between the critics' and guilds' awards-dispensing groups. Feinberg notes that the major cautionary tale for Argo is Apollo 13 (1995) -- another historical drama from an actor-turned-director, Ron Howard, who, like Affleck, was denied a best director Oscar nom for his efforts -- which also won the SAG, DGA and PGA prizes but wound up losing the best picture Oscar to Braveheart.

The two also discuss the strong performance of Ang Lee's Life of Pi with the tech guilds. The film already has won the top prizes of the Art Directors Guild (in the fantasy film category) and the Visual Effects Society, and it certainly might do the same with the American Society of Cinematographers on Feb. 10. While the Academy's actors branch is its largest -- accounting for one-sixth of its total membership -- five-sixths of Academy members are nonactors, and the majority of them come from tech branches. Could Pi's popularity with them propel it to become the first 3D film ever to win the best picture Oscar? Block says it's "highly unlikely."

VIDEO: 'The Hollywood Reporters,' Ep. 6: Dissecting the Costume Design Oscar Nominees

That being said, Feinberg and Block both believe that Lee could win the best director Oscar -- which would be his second in seven years, having won for Brokeback Mountain in 2006 -- though they feel that Spielberg is more likely to win for his most ambitious undertaking and greatest achievement in years. Block describes Lincoln as a film that Academy members will be "proud to be associated with." He also makes note of the rather surprising fact that Lincoln star Daniel Day-Lewis, the heavy favorite to win the best actor Oscar, would be the first person to win an acting Oscar for a performance in a film directed by Spielberg.