Oscar Season 2025-2026; Sundance Film Festival Re-Cap; New Voices, Splashy Premieres, Skittish Distributors and Titles That Can Go the Distance

On this episode of ACADEMY ANONYMOUS:

• An uncertain future for Utah and the Sundance Film Festival
• Sundance 2025 again key to unlocking the early favorites for Best Documentary Oscar
• A24 teams with Pastel again on Eva Victor’s “Sorry, Baby” - screenwriting winner, early critics darling and standout debut among US Dramatic Competition
• Race for Best International Feature starts with selection of co-production titles among World Dramatic Competition - Canada, Argentina, North Macedonia, Turkey, India, UK, Poland, France
• Underdog “Omaha” and John Magaro pull on the heartstrings just right, dismiss the title at your own peril!!
• Crowd-pleasing debuts for “The Ballad of Wallis Island” and “The Wedding Banquet” look to signal sleeper hits for Focus Features and Bleecker Street in theaters this spring
• Josh O’ Connor makes first (but NOT last) festival stop this year with “Rebuilding” - in a year where he’s primed to finally break into major Oscar acting race
• Will the Academy Awards ever wake up to the artistic achievement of “Peter Hujar’s Day” director Ira Sachs?
• The BIG 3 titles from Sundance 2025!
• “If I Had Legs I’d Kick You” kickstarts a big year for Safdie-esque cinema, BUT can this brand of filmmaking crossover with the Academy Awards in a big way?
• Can “If I Had Legs I’d Kick You” succeed where “Hereditary” failed and finally bring Rose Byrne to the Oscars for Best Actress?
• Will “If I Had Legs I’d Kick You” get lost among A24’s slate of films?
• Queer-Golden Age Hollywood musical hybrid “Kiss of the Spider Woman” has all the cards it needs for a long, successful Oscar run
• The prestigious legacy of “Kiss of the Spider Woman” - Bill Condon, William Hurt, Raul Julia, Sonia Braga, Hector Babenco, Kander & Ebb, Chita Rivera, Terrence McNally
• Colleen Atwood, Oscar-winning Sound Designers and veteran Production Designer and DP in the Oscar hunt for sumptuous visuals on display in “Kiss of the Spider Woman”
• Jennifer Lopez channels old-Hollywood glamour and dances her way to another Oscar bid for Best Supporting Actress in “Kiss of the Spider Woman”
• Tonatiuh poised for breakout year as Molina, Diego Luna's heartfelt turn and reputable career to figure in Best Supporting Actor
• Netflix bets on “Train Dreams,” but after last year’s “Sing Sing” can Bentley and Kwedar score consecutive Best Adapted Screenplay nods with prized source material?
• “Train Dreams” to factor into Best Cinematography, but is it going to miss the big-screen treatment?
• Joel Edgerton wins strong mentions for Best Actor but will he be the victim of the film’s use of voice-over?
• Is Netflix the right fit for “Train Dreams” Best Picture hopes?
• Where have all the distributors gone?! Big-name independents scaring themselves out of sure-fire Oscar contention and potential mass audience appeal