The British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) just announced its nominations for the best films of 2012, and “The Hobbit,” snagged 3 separate nominations. One each for Sound, Special Visual Effects and Hair & Makeup. “Lincoln” received the most nominations with 10, even though Director Steven Spielberg was not one of the directorial nominees. Following close behind were “Argo,” “Les Miserables,” “Life of Pi” and “Zero Dark Thirty,” all with multiple nominations and among the Best Film category, along with “Lincoln.”
In the Sound category, “The Hobbit” is nominated with “Django Unchained,” “Les Miserables,” “Life of Pi” and “Skyfall.” In my opinion if the voters were able to see and hear a Dolby Atmos screening, this would be in the bag, but that is still a fresh and technology with limited availability. In the Special Visual Effects category, “The Hobbit,” is nominated with “The Dark Knight Rises,” “Life of Pi,” “Prometheus” and “Marvel’s Avengers Assemble.” In the Hair and Makeup category, all the nominees except “The Hobbit” are period pieces, while “The Hobbit,” definitely has some fantastical creations. Not sure which is the advantage here. The other nominees are “Anna Karenina,” “Hitchcock,” “Les Miserables” and “Lincoln.”
One notable nominee in the Documentary category is “West of Memphis,” produced by Fran Walsh and Peter Jackson. Jackson appears in the film that looks at the arrest, conviction and release of three then teens for a murder in West Memphis, Arkansas. Many felt it was a wrong conviction. The British Academy Film Awards will take place on February 10 at London’s Royal Opera House. For a full list of the nominations, please check the BAFTA website
