Oscar hopefuls: Geoffrey Rush, Colin Firth and Helena Bonham Carter, all hoping for good news tomorrow.
Early Australia Day morning the Oscar nominations will be announced, so who are the Aussies with a shot of making the envelope?
As unpatriotic as it seems, come Australia Day morning there will be a number of very famous Australians (and a few less famous ones) who won't be sleeping in. They'll be getting up VERY early. Actually, they may still be up from the night before... which is a pretty Australian thing to do on a public holiday I guess.
The reason that 'our Nicole', 'our Geoffrey' and 'our Jacki' will be among the early birds is the announcement of the 83rd Academy Award nominations at 5.30am Los Angeles time. That's just after midnight our time, and just in time for the breakfast television shows in New York.
So just who are the Aussies in contention?
Jacki Weaver - Animal Kingdom
The little Aussie that could this year is Jacki Weaver, who has sat politely at a number of the big awards ceremonies and watched others take the gong. For that reason she's not the favourite in the Best Supporting Actress category at the Oscars either, however she is considered to have a very good chance of a nomination.
Geoffrey Rush - The King's Speech
Supporting Jacki's Supporting nomination will hopefully be a Best Supporting Actor nomination for Geoffrey Rush for his role in The King's Speech. Rush is not the favourite in this category, however a solid performance by the film at this weekend's Screen Actors Guild Awards could improve his chances with a month to go 'til Oscars night.
The King's Speech
Somewhat surprisingly, it won't be his turn as Lionel Logue that will provide Rush with his best chance of an Oscar this year, with Christian Bale considered a strong favourite for his role in The Fighter. Rush was also an Executive Producer on The King's Speech and not only is it almost guaranteed a nomination in the Best Film category, it is close to equal favourite (with The Social Network) to win an award that is accepted by the Executive Producers.
Tom Hooper - The King's Speech
Another quiet Australian looking to get a nod is Tom Hooper, proud son to an Australian mother he readily identifies himself as half-Australian, and at approximately 12.45am tomorrow morning we should all be keen to do so as well as he is more than likely to receive a nomination for Best Director.
Peter Weir - The Way Back
Somewhat less likely to receive a nomination, but 50 per cent more Australian is Peter Weir. An Academy favourite, he shouldn't be ruled out entirely, however his true story of a group of escapees from a Soviet Gulag who walked from Siberia to India has failed to garner any awards recognition so far during the Oscars run up.
Nicole Kidman - Rabbit Hole
Though the combined forces of Nicole Kidman and Aaron Eckhart wouldn't exactly have screamed Oscar-bait six months ago, their turn as the grieving parents of a young child killed in an accident has seen Kidman even briefly considered the favourite for the Best Actress award. Though Natalie Portman's performance in Black Swan has now seized the awards momentum, it would be a shock were Kidman not to received a nomination.
Lee Smith - Inception, The Way Back
Though the bulk of the crew on Christopher Nolan's brainy blockbuster were poms, Lee Smith was the token Australian brought on board to pour their beers ... oh and edit the film. With two Oscar nominations to date, Smith has a strong chance of grabbing a third shot at Oscar for his work on Inception. He also edited The Way Back for Peter Weir, so there's even an outside chance that he'll be up against himself.
Michael Wilkinson - Tron: Legacy
Australians have a great track record in the technical awards at the Oscars, however the Brits are looking strong in these categories this year with both The King's Speech and Inception having large British contingents in their technical departments. One Aussie in with a chance is Michael Wilkinson, a co-costume designer on Tron: Legacy, which received a nomination from the Costume Designers Guild this year and shouldn't be ruled out for the Oscars.
Samuel Dixon, Sia Furler - Burlesque
Though the Cher / Christina Aguillera vehicle Burlesque is unlikely to bother the engravers in any of the major awards, it is a strong chance for a couple of nominations for Best Song. One contender is Bound To You which has lyrics by one Australian - Sia Furler - and music by another - Samuel Dixon. This song missed out to another Burlesque number at the Golden Globes, but there's every chance Sia and Samuel will hear their names in the morning.
Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'hoole
The Animal Logic produced owl epic would have a solid shot at a nomination in the animated features category this year, except that somewhat ironically it doesn't have enough competition. The number of nominees in a category is determined by the number of films that are eligible (ie put up for the awards by their studios). This year there haven't been enough animated feature films to justify the 'usual' five nominees. As such there will only be three slots for animated features to aim for, and that severely restricts Ga'hoole's chances.
And that's just about your lot. Ten Aussies in with a shot at a nomination. Hopefully there will be one or two surprises - a short anmated film here, a costume designer there - but as far as the likely candidates go, it's not a bad list. What do you think? How many nods will we be celebrating on Australia Day? And can we win any awards or will the word 'snubbed' be featured heavily in all the headlines come that special night/morning in February? Let us know below.
