Academy Screeners: The Second Wave

Timely screeners sent out to AMPAS, the SAG nominating committee, the HFPA and other precursor groups¬†have become¬†a vital part of any¬†awards campaign worth its salt.¬†In fact, screener mix-ups may have¬†caused Sally Hawkins’ snub for Happy-Go-Lucky, not to mention SAG’s failure to nominate the cast of Atonement.

Fortunately, the studios in 2010 appear to be on their toes. Once Sony Pictures Classics had kicked off¬†screener season with two indie titles at the end of September, we¬†saw another flurry of mostly independent films from SPC, Anchor Bay and Roadside, plus Disney’s Blu-Ray Alice in Wonderland in¬†late October. Then a hiatus of a couple of weeks.

But from mid-November¬†until year’s end, mailboxes¬†are always flooded with Oscar hopefuls.¬†The second wave hoping to sweep voters off their feet these past 10 days¬†included Blu-Ray discs from Disney (Toy Story 3) and Focus Features (The Kids Are All Right and Somewhere), plus¬†standard DVDs from DreamWorks (How to Train Your Dragon) and Columbia (The Social Network), among others.¬†It¬†seems Focus and Disney were the only studios to send Blu-Rays last year, as well,¬†though I’m not sure¬†that made¬†a big¬†difference. A good movie is a good movie, regardless of the medium.

Academy Screeners Received by kenru.net
Animal Kingdom (SPC) – 9/30
Mother and Child (SPC) – 9/30
City Island (Anchor Bay) – 10/15
Solitary Man (Anchor Bay) – 10/15
Please Give (SPC) – 10/16
You Will Meet a Tall Dark Stranger (SPC) – 10/16
Winter’s Bone (Roadside) – 10/22
Alice in Wonderland (Disney) – 10/28

How to Train Your Dragon (DreamWorks) – 11/10
The Karate Kid (Sony) – 11/10
Toy Story 3 (Disney) – 11/12
Get Low (SPC) – 11/13
The Kids Are All Right (Focus) – 11/17
Somewhere (Focus) – 11/17
The Social Network (Columbia) – 11/18
Let Me In (Overture) – 11/19
Stone (Overture) – 11/19
Casino Jack (ATO) – 11/19