List of Lithuanian submissions for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film
Lithuania has submitted films for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film since 2006 . The award is handed out annually by the United States Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to a feature-length motion picture produced outside the United States that contains primarily non-English dialogue.[1] It was not created until the 1956 Academy Awards, in which a competitive Academy Award of Merit, known as the Best Foreign Language Film Award, was created for non-English speaking films, and has been given annually since.[2]
Submissions
Below is a list of the films that have been submitted by Lithuania for review by the Academy for the award by year and the respective Academy Awards ceremony.
| Year (Ceremony) | Film title used in nomination | Original title | Director | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2006 (79th) |
Before Flying Back to Earth | Prieš parskrendant į žemę | Matelis, ArūnasArūnas Matelis | Not Nominated |
| 2008 (81st) |
Loss | Nereikalingi žmonės | Martinsons (director), MārisMāris Martinsons (director) | Not Nominated |
| 2009 (82nd) |
Vortex | Duburys | Lukšas, GytisGytis Lukšas | Not Nominated |
| 2011 (84th) |
Back to Your Arms[3] | Kai apkabinsiu tave | Vildžiūnas, KristijonasKristijonas Vildžiūnas | Not Nominated |
| 2012 (85th) |
Ramin[4] | Ramin | Stonys, AudriusAudrius Stonys | Not Nominated |
| 2013 (86th) |
Conversations on Serious Topics[5] | Pokalbiai rimtomis temomis | Beinoriūtė, GiedrėGiedrė Beinoriūtė | Not Nominated |
| 2014 (87th) |
The Gambler[6] | Lošėjas | Ignas Jonynas | Not Nominated |
| 2015 (88th) |
The Summer of Sangailė[7] | Sangailės vasara | Alantė Kavaitė | Not Nominated |
| 2016 (89th) |
Seneca's Day[8] | Senekos diena | Kristijonas Vildziunas | TBD |
Though they have been invited to submit a film by AMPAS regularly since achieving independence in the early 1990s, Lithuania has only submitted films for Oscar consideration since 2006. In fall of that year, it was announced that they had submitted documentary short "Before Flying Back to Earth" in 2006. With a 52-minute running time, it is one of the few documentaries and few non-feature-length films ever to be submitted in the category. Before Flying Back to Earth follows the lives of a number of young cancer patients receiving treatment at Vilnius University Children's Hospital. Director Arūnas Matelis' own daughter had been a patient at this hospital several years before. The film won the Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Documentary award from the Directors Guild of America in 2007 and was featured at a number of international film festivals from 2005-2007, but failed to be nominated for an Oscar.
Two years later, they returned to the competition with Loss, a drama set in Lithuania and Ireland, focused on the theory of six degrees of separation. Having won two awards at the Shanghai International Film Festival, it was the first Lithuanian to feature at a Class A film festival.[9] In 2009, they selected Vortex, a drama about a man's life spanning several decades before and after Lithuania's Soviet occupation.
References
- ↑ "Rule Thirteen: Special Rules for the Foreign Language Film Award". Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Retrieved 2013-08-26.
- ↑ "History of the Academy Awards - Page 2". Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Archived from the original on 2008-06-22. Retrieved 2008-08-22.
- ↑ "63 Countries Vie for 2011 Foreign Language Film Oscar". oscars.org. Retrieved 2011-10-14.
- ↑ Holdsworth, Nick (2 October 2012). "Lithuania selects 'Ramin' for Oscar bout". Variety. Reed Business Information. Retrieved 2 October 2012.
- ↑ "Oscars: Lithuania Nominates 'Conversations on Serious Topics' for Foreign Language Category". Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 2013-09-27.
- ↑ "'The Gambler' by Ignas Jonynas – Lithuania's candidate for Best Foreign Language Academy Award". Lithuanian film center. Retrieved 19 September 2014.
- ↑ Holdsworth, Nick (11 September 2015). "Oscars: Lithuania Nominates 'The Summer of Sangaile' for Foreign Language Category". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 11 September 2015.
- ↑ Holdsworth, Nick (13 September 2016). "Oscars: Lithuania Selects 'Seneca's Day' for Foreign-Language Category". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 13 September 2016.
- ↑ Cockrell, Eddie (2008-09-17). "Loss". Variety.
