Keeping track of the Foreign Language submissions for the Oscars each year is something I constantly forget to keep on top of, but I have just done a full update as we are now up to 56 total submissions, only 20 shy of last year’s record-breaking 76 submissions with only eight days to go before the October 1 submission deadline.
Notable new entries on the list include Belguim’s submission of Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne‘s festival favorite Two Days, One Night as well as Canada submitting Xavier Dolan‘s Mommy, which knocked the socks of Cannes audiences and did the same to me in Toronto this year (read my review here).
It should also be noted France has submitted Bertrand Bonello‘s Saint Laurent instead of last year’s buzzy title Blue is the Warmest Color, which missed the release date cut off date last year, making it eligible for this year’s Oscars, but the French don’t seem to be the least bit interested.
For further analysis allow me to point you in the direction of Scott Feinberg‘s most recent write up at The Hollywood Reporter where he adds a little historical context to the success of several countries in the race over recent years.
Otherwise, the complete list is below and I will continue to update the list right here.
- Afghanistan, A Few Cubic Meters of Love (dir. Jamshid Mahmoudi))
- Austria, The Dark Valley (dir. Andreas Prochaska))
- Belgium, Two Days, One Night (dirs. Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne)
- Bolivia, Olvidados (dir. Carlos Bolado))
- Bosnia and Herzegovina, With Mom (dir. Faruk LonÄarević)
- Brazil, The Way He Looks (dir. Daniel Ribeiro)
- Bulgaria, Bulgarian Rhapsody (dir. Ivan Nitchev))
- Canada, Mommy (dir. Xavier Dolan)
- Chile, To Kill a Man (dir. Alejandro Fernández Almendras))
- Colombia, Mateo (dir. Maria Gamboa)
- Croatia, Cowboys (dir. Tomislav Mrsic))
- Czech Republic, Fair Play (dir. Andrea SedláÄková)
- Denmark, Sorrow and Joy (dir. Nils Malmros)
- Dominican Republic, Cristo Rey (dir. Leticia Tonos))
- Estonia, Tangerines (dir. Zaza Urushadze))
- Finland, Concrete Night (dir. Pirjo Honkasalo))
- France, Saint Laurent (dir. Bertrand Bonello)
- Georgia, Corn Island (dir. Giorgi Ovashvili))
- Germany, Beloved Sisters (dir. Dominik Graf))
- Greece, Little England (dir. Pantelis Voulgaris))
- Hong Kong, The Golden Era (dir. Ann Hui))
- Hungary, White God (dir. Kornél Mundruczó))
- Iceland, Life in a Fishbowl (dir. Baldvin ZophonÃasson)
- India, Liar’s Dice (dir. Geetu Mohandas)
- Iran, Today (dir. Reza Mirkarimi)
- Israel, Gett: The Trial of Viviane Amsalem (dirs. Ronit Elkabetz and Shlomi Elkabetz)
- Japan, The Light Shines Only There (dir. Mipo Oh))
- Kosovo, Three Windows and a Hanging (dir. Isa Qosja)
- Latvia, Rocks in My Pockets (dir. Signe Baumane))
- Lithuania, The Gambler (dir. Ignas Jonynas)
- Luxembourg, Never Die Young (dir. Pol Cruchten))
- Macedonia, To the Hilt (dir. Stole Popov)
- Mauritania, Timbuktu (dir. Abderrahmane Sissako))
- Mexico, Cantinflas (dir. Sebastian del Amo))
- Montenegro, The Boys from Marx and Engels Street (dir. Nikola Vukcevic))
- Morocco, The Red Moon (dir. Hassan Benjelloun)
- Nepal, Jhola (dir. Yadavkumar Bhattarai))
- Netherlands, Accused (dir. Paula van der Oest))
- Norway, 1001 Grams (dir. Bent Hamer))
- Pakistan, Dukhtar (dir. Afia Nathaniel)
- Panama, Invasion (dir. Abner Benaim))
- Peru, The Gospel of the Flesh (dir. Eduardo Mendoza de Echave))
- Poland, Ida (dir. Pawel Pawlikowski))
- Portugal, What Now? Remind Me (dir. Joaquim Pinto))
- Romania, The Japanese Dog (dir. Tudor Cristian Jurgiu))
- Serbia, See You in Montevideo (dir. Dragan Bjelogrlić))
- Slovakia, A Step Into the Dark (dir. Miloslav Luther)
- Slovenia, Seduce Me (dir. Marko Santic))
- South Korea, Sea Fog (dir. Shim Sung-bo)
- Sweden, Force Majeure (dir. Ruben Ostlund))
- Switzerland, The Circle (dir. Stefan Haupt)
- Taiwan, Ice Poison (dir. Midi Z))
- Thailand, Teacher’s Diary (dir. Nithiwat Tharathorn)
- Turkey, Winter Sleep (dir. Nuri Bilge Ceylan))
- Ukraine, The Guide (dir. Oles Sanin))
- Venezuela, The Liberator (dir. Alberto Arvelo))
