From Santa Barbara to Hollywood: Film Festival stars shine bright at the Academy Awards
SANTA BARBARA, Calif.—Angelina Jolie, Ralph Fiennes, and Adrien Brody were just a few of the A-listers that graced the Arlington Theater for the Santa Barbara International Film Festival at the beginning of the month.
It’s no coincidence that the film festival wrapped just a couple days before the window for Oscar voting closed.
“ I don't really look at it like a campaign or anything. I feel like it's like an excuse for a bigger runway to put out the movie,” said Timothee Chalamet, who is nominated for his second Oscar for his performance as Bob Dylan in “A Complete Unknown.”
It was a year of progress.
“For the first time in a long time, women and female narratives composed more than half of the films that are out out this year,” said ‘Emilia Pérez’ star and Oscar nominee Zoe Saldaña.
Saldaña is in good company with Monica Barbaro, Mikey Madison, Demi Moore, Ariana Grande, and Fernanda Torres. For all 6 of these female powerhouses it’s their first acting nomination.
If Fernanda Torres from “I’m Still Here” wins she will become the first Brazillian actress to win the ‘Best Actress’ award.
“If she wins, it would be, you know, like a final World Cup in Brazil. It's not only about Brazil, but it's about this amazing woman, you know, trying to make her life work,” said Brazil based journalist Fernanda Isabella.
First time nominee Guy Pearce played opposite Oscar winner Adrien Brody in “The Brutalist” which is nominated for 10 Academy Awards, including ‘Best Picture.’
“It speaks to the hope and yearnings and hardships that so many people endure emigrating to the United States, and how challenging it really is,” said Adrien Brody who won his first Oscar for his role in “The Pianist.”
But this just might be the ‘Year of the Musical’ as “Wicked” and “Emilia Pérez” are striking a chord with audiences and Academy voters.
‘Wicked’ landed 10 Oscar nods, and Emilia Pérez is leading the pack with 13 nominations.
“Real life is a little depressing, so you sing and dance. Musicals were huge during the Great Depression… so maybe it is like a reaction to real life being a little depressing,” said The Hollywood Reporter’s Scott Feinberg.
“The films of Fred Astaire and Gene Kelly were were important films, because during that time, the world was really getting over a big, big war. And this desire to escape to to a world that made you feel joy, that made you dream again…It would come in the form of song and dance which was so alleviating,” said Zoe Saldaña, whose role in ‘Emilia Pérez,’ marks a dramatic departure from the happy-go-lucky musicals of the past.
Music isn't just at the forefront of several of the Oscar nominated films this year. It's also a character in its own right.
“It drags you to the story. So if you have a nice soundtrack, if you have a nice song, I mean, you pay attention easily. One of my favorite movies this year is the Bob Dylan one, you know, “A Complete Unknown, ” and it's I just love it,” said Fernanda Isabella.
Fans are dying to see which one of the stars that stopped at Santa Barbara will hear the sweet sound of victory come Oscar Sunday.
