What’s Jewish On The Oscars Small Categories Short List

Image by Getty Images/Handout/Handout

By PJ Grisar December 18, 2018

On December 18 The Academy Awards announced its shortlist for some of the ceremony’s smaller categories.

Jews are well represented in the Best Documentary Feature category. Betsy West and Julie Cohen’s Ruth Bader Ginsburg film “RBG” made the list alongside Tim Wardle’s “Three Identical Strangers,” which told the bombshell story of Jewish triplets separated at birth. Also in the running is Alexandria Bombach’s “On Her Shoulders” which tells the story of Nadia Murad, a survivor of sexual slavery under ISIS after the terrorist organization’s genocide of the Yazidi people.

The Best Documentary Short category shortlisted Rob Epstein and Jeffrey Friedman’s “End Game,” which looks at healthcare for the terminally ill; Marshall Curry’s“A Night at the Garden,” which examines a 1939 Nazi rally held at Madison Square Garden; Gordon Quinn’s “’63 Boycott,” about students who boycotted Chicago public schools that supported segregation; and “Women in the Gulag” by director Marianna Yarovskaya. Best Foreign-Language Film hopefuls include Paweł Pawlikowski’s Polish film, “Cold War.” Pawlikowski won this category in 2015 with his film “Ida” about a nun who learns of her Jewish ancestry. And “Never Look Away,” by the German director Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck, is about an art student who learns his lover’s father was involved in the Nazi eugenics program.

Best Original Score aspirants number Carter Burwell’s work for the Coen brothers’ “The Ballad of Buster Scruggs,” Terrance Blanchard’s music for Spike Lee’s “BlacKkKlansman” and James Newtown Howard’s themes from “Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindlewald.” Justin Hurwitz, who won the category in 2017 for “La La Land” is on the shortlist for his work on frequent collaborator Damian Chazelle’s “First Man” and Nicholas Britell is on twice for Barry Jenkins’ “If Beale Street Could Talk” and Adam McKay’s “Vice.” Marc Shaiman and Scott Wittman were shortlisted for their tunes for “Mary Poppins Returns,” directed by Rob Marshall.

Shaiman’s work on that film also gained him two spots on the shortlist for Best Original Song. Grammy-winning producer and songwriter Mark Ronson is also doubly nominated for “Shallow” from Bradley Cooper’s “A Star is Born,” co-written by Lady Gaga, Andrew Wyatt and Anthony Rossomando, and “Reachin’” written with Quincy Jones for the documentary “Quincy” about Jones’ life. “Revealation” by Troye Sivan and Jónsi for Joel Edgerton’s “Boy Erased” is getting attention, as is “I’ll Fight” penned by the legendary Diane Warren for “RBG.” And the first Jewish Disney princess’ banner song, “A Place Called Slaughter Race,” written by Alan Menken, also makes the list for its appearance in “Ralph Breaks the Internet.”

Contenders for Best Animated Short include “Animal Behavior” by the Oscar-winning team of Alison Snowden and David Fine, who last won in 1995 for their short “Bob’s Birthday.” And the Best Live Action Short shortlist features Israeli director Guy Nattiv’s “Skin,” about racial tensions in an American blue-collar town.

The short list always comes with its share of snubs; this year is no exception. “Here Comes the Change,” Kesha’s original song for Ruth Bader Ginsburg biopic “On the Basis of Sex,” was overlooked, as was “The Cakemaker” Israel’s Best Foreign-Language Film entry.

PJ Grisar is the Forward’s culture intern. He can be reached at [email protected].

PJ Grisar is a Forward culture reporter. He can be reached at [email protected] and @pjgrisar on Twitter.

A message from our Publisher & CEO Rachel Fishman Feddersen

I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s award-winning, nonprofit journalism during this critical time.

The coming year promises to be filled with more complex and historic developments. We are entering an era where independent, fact-based Jewish journalism will be more important than ever. We need to be ready for whatever 2025 will bring, and with your help, we can be.

We’ve set a goal to raise $260,000 by December 31. That’s an ambitious goal, but one that will give us the resources we need to invest in the high quality news, opinion, analysis and cultural coverage that isn’t available anywhere else.

If you feel inspired to make an impact, now is the time to give something back. Join us as a member at your most generous level.

— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO