The shortlist of 15 films set to vie for a Best International Feature FiOscar nomination has now been revealed, with only a few surprises in the mix.
Firstly, there are a couple of crossovers with films also included on the documentary shortlist: Ukraine’s 20 Days in Mariupol and Tunisia’s Four Daughters. At the same time, Morocco’s The Mother of All Lies, also eligible in documentary, landed a shortlist slot only in International Feature.
For Ukraine, this is the first inclusion on an International Feature shortlist. For a narrative feature, same goes for Armenia with Michael A. Goorjian’s Amerikatsi.
Bhutan, here with The Monk and the Gun, is a comer. After landing the country’s first advancement in 2021 with Lunana: A Yak In The Classroom, director Pawo Choyning Dorji is again in the mix.
A surprise here is Iceland’s Godland which originally debuted in Cannes in 2022 and is handled by Janus domestically. Hlynur Palmason’s movie “strikes that elusive balance of pace and pitch” said Deadline’s review at the time.
We’re a little surprised to not see Bulgaria’s Blaga’s Lessons included, but the rest of the field was essentially expected.
That includes Denmark’s The Promised Land, Finland’s Fallen Leaves, France’s The Taste of Things, Germany’s The Teachers’ Lounge, Italy’s Io Capitano, Japan’s Perfect Days, Mexico’s Totem, Spain’s Society of the Snow and the UK’s The Zone of Interest.
