Emilia Pérez scores 13 Oscar nominations
The musical crime film Emilia Pérez has received 13 Oscar nominations, a record for a non-English language film. The film is one of several nominees co-produced or created by Belgians.
Emilia Pérez follows several women in Mexico as they pursue their own happiness, including transgender cartel leader Emilia and lawyer Rita. The French-Mexican film was co-produced by Les films du Fleuve, the production company of Belgian brothers Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne.
Belgian animator Nicolas Keppens' short film Beautiful Men has also been nominated. The film, about three balding brothers who travel to Istanbul for a hair transplant, was nominated in the Best Animated Short category.
Belgian director Johan Grimonprez's Soundtrack to a Coup d'état was nominated for Best Documentary Feature. Flow, a Latvian-Belgian animated film by Gints Zilbalodis, was nominated for an Oscar in both the Best Animated Feature and Best International Film categories.
Emilia Pérez's nominations include Best Picture and Best International Film, as well as nominations for Karla Sofía Gascón as Best Actress and Zoe Saldaña as Best Supporting Actress. Audiard was also nominated for Best Director.
Favourites Wicked and The Brutalist
The musical Wicked and The Brutalist also did well with 10 nominations each. Wicked received a nomination for Best Film, while pop star Ariana Grande and actress and singer Cynthia Erivo were nominated for Best Supporting Actress and Best Actress in a Leading Role respectively.
The Brutalist is a chronicle of the life of Jewish-Hungarian architect László Tóth, played by Adrien Brody, who emigrates with his wife after the Holocaust. The film has been nominated for Best Picture and Brody for Best Actor.
Also nominated in the best picture category are The Substance, Anora, A Complete Unknown, Conclave, Dune: Part Two, I'm Still Here and Nickel Boys.
LA wildfires delay nominations
The Oscar nominations would normally have been announced on 17 January, but the devastating wildfires that have ravaged Los Angeles and the surrounding area in recent weeks have caused a delay.
About 60 per cent of the Academy's 10,000 voting members live in Los Angeles. To accommodate those affected, the Academy extended the voting period by five days.
The 97th edition of the Oscars ceremony will take place on 2 March at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood. Talk show host Conan O'Brien will host the ceremony for the first time.
A still from the musical crime film Emilia Pérez featuring Selena Gomez's character Jessi © PHOTO CAP/TFS