“Most awards teams are larger than our whole company,” Neon’s CEO, Tom Quinn, told me earlier this week. “We are not daunted.”
I’m David Canfield, and Quinn hopped on the phone with mein the aftermath of a game-changing weekend for his top Oscar contender, Anora: After taking top honors at both the producers’ and directors’ guilds, Sean Baker’s little-indie-that-could is in pole position to dominate the Academy Awards next month.
It’s a remarkable turn of events for a film budgeted at just $6 million, which has found fans around the world ever since winning the Palme d’Or at Cannes in May. And it’s a kind of Cinderella story for its writer-director-producer-editor—Baker is up for four Oscars—as someone who’s been working in and advocating for independent film for more than 20 years.
Whether or not Anora goes all the way, Neon knows what it’s doing. Quinn spoke with me candidly about what the studio gauges while running campaigns, what they’ve learned from handling Parasite and Anatomy of a Fall, and how to navigate awards seasons that can “notoriously and traditionally can get quite ugly.” He’s on his way to the BAFTAs next, which could either cement Anora as the one to beat, or introduce its primary challenger.
To that end: The Brutalist and Conclave are hoping for big showings this weekend. The former A24 indie has been overshadowed a bit by Anora’s run, but is well-represented at the BAFTAs and could—indeed, needs to—put up a strong fight there to stay in the thick of things. Conclave, meanwhile, is the most nominated movie by the British Academy, and like Anora, has long seemed like a broadly liked, beautifully crafted hit just waiting to pounce with a big win. Will Conclave take its turn? If it does and then takes home the best-ensemble prize at SAG next weekend, we’ve got a race.
Big “ifs,” of course—as this messy season presses on. Not to mention, Oscar voting is ongoing as you’re reading this—so if you’re an Academy member with some titles to catch up on, now’s the time. I’ve spoken with so many voters who, understandably, haven’t yet seen everything. (The title I hear most being caught up on: I’m Still Here. And the word is nothing but positive.) As those last screeners get completed, this race might just have a few more twists left.
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