The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences on Tuesday announced the shortlists in 12 categories for the 98th Oscars Academy Awards. The shortlisted categories include Animated Short Film, Casting, Cinematography, Documentary Feature Film, Documentary Short Film, International Feature Film, Live Action Short Film, Makeup and Hairstyling, Music (Original Score), Music (Original Song), Sound and Visual Effects.
Animated Short Film shortlist announced
Fifteen films have advanced in the Animated Short Film category from a total of 113 eligible entries. Members from the Animation Branch and the Short Films Branch participated in the preliminary round of voting after meeting the required viewing criteria.
The shortlisted films are Autokar, Butterfly, Cardboard, Éiru, Forevergreen, The Girl Who Cried Pearls, Hurikán, I Died in Irpin, The Night Boots, Playing God, The Quinta’s Ghost, Retirement Plan, The Shyness of Trees, Snow Bear and The Three Sisters.
In the nominations round, Academy members from all branches can opt in to vote, provided they view all 15 shortlisted films.
Casting category narrows to 10 films
Ten films have moved forward in the Casting category. Members of the Casting Directors Branch selected the shortlist, which will later be reduced to final nominees.
The shortlisted films are Frankenstein, Hamnet, Marty Supreme, One Battle after Another, The Secret Agent, Sentimental Value, Sinners, Sirât, Weapons and Wicked: For Good.
Academy members will be invited to view selected scenes and pre-recorded interviews with casting directors in Los Angeles and London on January 9, 2026, and in New York on January 10, 2026.
Cinematography contenders revealed
Sixteen films remain in contention in the Cinematography category. As per Academy rules, the preliminary voting round produced a shortlist of between 10 and 20 films.
The films advancing are Ballad of a Small Player, Bugonia, Die My Love, F1, Frankenstein, Hamnet, Marty Supreme, Nouvelle Vague, One Battle after Another, Sentimental Value, Sinners, Sirât, Song Sung Blue, Sound of Falling, Train Dreams and Wicked: For Good.
Documentary Feature Film shortlist
Fifteen films have been shortlisted in the Documentary Feature Film category from 201 eligible titles. Members of the Documentary Branch voted to determine the list.
The shortlisted documentaries are The Alabama Solution, Apocalypse in the Tropics, Coexistence, My Ass!, Come See Me in the Good Light, Cover-Up, Cutting through Rocks, Folktales, Holding Liat, Mr. Nobody against Putin, Mistress Dispeller, My Undesirable Friends: Part 1 – Last Air in Moscow, The Perfect Neighbor, Seeds, 2000 Meters to Andriivka and Yanuni.
Documentary Short Film category
Fifteen titles have also advanced in the Documentary Short Film category from 117 eligible films.
The shortlisted films include All the Empty Rooms, All the Walls Came Down, Armed Only with a Camera: The Life and Death of Brent Renaud, Bad Hostage, Cashing Out, Chasing Time, Children No More: “Were and Are Gone”, Classroom 4, The Devil Is Busy, Heartbeat, Last Days on Lake Trinity, On Healing Land, Birds Perch, Perfectly a Strangeness, Rovina’s Choice and We Were the Scenery.
Documentary Branch members will vote to decide the final nominees.
India features in International Feature Film shortlist
Fifteen films from 86 countries and regions have advanced to the next round of voting in the International Feature Film category. Academy members from all branches participated in the preliminary round after meeting viewing requirements.
India’s official entry, Homebound, has made the shortlist, placing it among strong global contenders.
The full list includes Argentina’s Belén, Brazil’s The Secret Agent, France’s It Was Just an Accident, Germany’s Sound of Falling, India’s Homebound, Iraq’s The President’s Cake, Japan’s Kokuho, Jordan’s All That’s Left of You, Norway’s Sentimental Value, Palestine’s Palestine 36, South Korea’s No Other Choice, Spain’s Sirât, Switzerland’s Late Shift, Taiwan’s Left-Handed Girl and Tunisia’s The Voice of Hind Rajab.
All Academy members opting in for the nominations round must watch all 15 films before voting.
Live Action Short Film shortlist
Fifteen films have advanced in the Live Action Short Film category from 207 qualifying entries.
The shortlisted films are Ado, Amarela, Beyond Silence, The Boy with White Skin, Butcher’s Stain, Butterfly on a Wheel, Dad’s Not Home, Extremist, A Friend of Dorothy, Jane Austen’s Period Drama, Pantyhose, The Pearl Comb, Rock, Paper, Scissors, The Singers and Two People Exchanging Saliva.
The nominations round will be open to Academy members from all branches who opt in and complete the required viewing.
Makeup and Hairstyling contenders
Ten films remain in the race in the Makeup and Hairstyling category. Members of the Makeup Artists and Hairstylists Branch selected the shortlist.
The films advancing are The Alto Knights, Frankenstein, Kokuho, Marty Supreme, Nuremberg, One Battle after Another, Sinners, The Smashing Machine, The Ugly Stepsister and Wicked: For Good.
Excerpts and interviews with artists from the shortlisted films will be screened for Academy members on January 10, 2026.
Original Score category shortlist
Twenty scores have advanced in the Music (Original Score) category from 132 eligible entries.
The shortlisted scores are from Avatar: Fire and Ash, Bugonia, Captain America: Brave New World, Diane Warren: Relentless, F1, Frankenstein, Hamnet, Hedda, A House of Dynamite, Jay Kelly, Marty Supreme, Nuremberg, One Battle after Another, Sinners, Sirât, Train Dreams, Tron: Ares, Truth and Treason, Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery and Wicked: For Good.
Original Song category
Fifteen songs have been shortlisted in the Music (Original Song) category from 65 eligible submissions.
The shortlisted songs include As Alive As You Need Me To Be from Tron: Ares, Dear Me from Diane Warren: Relentless, Dream As One from Avatar: Fire and Ash, Drive from F1, Dying To Live from Billy Idol Should Be Dead, The Girl In The Bubble and No Place Like Home from Wicked: For Good, and two songs from Sinners.
Other shortlisted tracks come from KPop Demon Hunters, The Ballad of Wallis Island, Come See Me in the Good Light, Viva Verdi! and Train Dreams.
Sound category shortlist
Ten films have advanced in the Sound category. All eligible members of the Sound Branch voted to determine the shortlist.
The films are Avatar: Fire and Ash, F1, Frankenstein, Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning, One Battle after Another, Sinners, Sirât, Springsteen: Deliver Me from Nowhere, Superman and Wicked: For Good.
Visual Effects contenders
Ten films remain in the race for Visual Effects. The shortlist was selected by the Visual Effects Branch Executive Committee.
The films are Avatar: Fire and Ash, The Electric State, F1, Frankenstein, Jurassic World Rebirth, The Lost Bus, Sinners, Superman, Tron: Ares and Wicked: For Good.
Key dates for nominations and ceremony
Nominations voting will begin on January 12, 2026, and conclude on January 16, 2026. The official nominations for the 98th Academy Awards will be announced on January 22, 2026.
A total of 24 categories will be awarded at the ceremony. Each category will feature five nominees, except Best Picture, which will have 10.
The 98th Academy Awards will be held on Sunday, March 15, 2026, at the Dolby Theatre at Ovation Hollywood. The ceremony will be broadcast live on ABC and telecast in more than 200 territories worldwide.