This is a list of submissions for the 96th Academy Awards for the Best International Feature Film. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) has invited the film industries of various countries to submit their best film for the Academy Award for Best International Feature Film every year since the award was created in 1956.[1] The award is presented annually by the academy to a feature-length motion picture produced outside the United States that contains primarily non-English dialogue.[1][2] The International Feature Film Award Committee oversees the process and reviews all the submitted films.[2] The category was previously called the Best Foreign Language Film, but this was changed in April 2019 to Best International Feature Film, after the Academy deemed the word "Foreign" to be outdated.[3]
For the 96th Academy Awards, the submitted motion pictures must be first released theatrically in their respective countries between December 1, 2022, and October 31, 2023. The deadline for submissions to the Academy was October 2, 2023. 92 countries submitted films, and 88 were found to be eligible by AMPAS and screened for voters.[4]Namibia submitted a film for the first time,[5] and Burkina Faso made a submission for the first time since 1989.[6]
The 15-film shortlist was announced on December 21, 2023, to be followed by the official nominations on January 23, 2024.[4][7]The Zone of Interest by Jonathan Glazer won the award for the United Kingdom.
Cuba's submission was reported to be Nelsito's World by Fernando Pérez. In October 2023, the film was included in one of the Oscar selection committee's official group assignments alongside the 88 other films, but was reportedly found "ineligible" and the film did not appear on the Academy's final official list in December 2023.[20]
Hong Kong submitted A Light Never Goes Out by Anastasia Tsang,[36] but it was disqualified by the Academy. One member of Hong Kong's 13-person selection committee was an actor in the film, which the Academy deemed a conflict of interest. Hong Kong declined an invitation to submit a second film.[94]
Iran's government-controlled Farabi Cinema Foundation submitted The Night Guardian by Reza Mirkarimi. The selection was criticized by the dissident Iranian Independent Filmmaker Association (IIFMA), who asked the Academy to consider an alternative film. They released a press statement saying: "Over the past year, Iranian filmmakers have been imprisoned, interrogated and intimidated with Farabi being a key player in implementing this severe repression." IIFMA contended that The Night Guardian was not reflective of the year's work by Iranian filmmakers, who were largely working independently of the Iranian government or in exile.[41]
Kazakhstan's Oscar selection committee announced they received four submissions and considered two of them: Ademoka's Education by Adilkhan Yerzhanov and Bauryna Salu by Askhat Kuchinchirekov. Ademoka's Education received two votes and Bauryna Salu received one vote, while four committee members abstained. The committee decided not to submit either film.[95]
Kosovo's Cinematography Center announced on September 27, 2023 that their selection committee unanimously decided not to submit a film despite receiving four submissions: Actors of Cannes by Mentor Spahiu, The Albanian Virgin by Bujar Alimani, I Love You More by Erblin Nushi, and The Land Within by Fisnik Maxville.[96] In a statement, Maxville said that the decision not to send any film "hurts our young country's blooming film industry. It is quite hard to understand how Kosovo has invested in the different films... and then refuses to further that investment by sending a film — any film — to showcase Kosovo's vibrant new cinema scene to the Oscars."[97] This leaves the country absent for the first time since they began submitting films in 2014.
Kyrgyzstan submitted This Is What I Remember by Aktan Abdykalykov,[49] but it was not included in the final list because it was released in Kyrgyzstan on November 18, 2022, two weeks prior to the eligibility window. Kyrgyzstan declined an invitation to submit a second film, contending that the window had yet not been known when the release was scheduled so it was impossible to plan ahead for the qualification.[98]
Russia's state media reported that the national Oscar selection committee had suspended its operations and would not submit a film. A former committee member said that submitting a film would "look extremely inappropriate" in light of international sanctions on Russia due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine.[99] Russia cited similar reasons for not submitting a film in 2022.[100]
Tajikistan's submission was reported to be Melody by Behrouz Sebt Rasoul.[84] It was not included on the assignment lists sent to Academy members who volunteered to participate in first-round voting, reportedly because the country did not have its selection committee approved by AMPAS in advance.[98][20]
The Oscar selection committees for Cambodia,[101] Malawi,[102] Malta,[103] Uganda[104] and Zambia [105] invited filmmakers to make submissions, but did not end up sending films.
1 2 Yossman, Patrick Frater,Ellise Shafer,Elsa Keslassy,Leo Barraclough,John Hopewell,Naman Ramachandran,Nick Vivarelli,K J.; Frater, Patrick; Shafer, Ellise; Keslassy, Elsa; Barraclough, Leo; Hopewell, John; Ramachandran, Naman; Vivarelli, Nick; Yossman, K. J. (2023-09-25). "International Oscar Race: Hong Kong Selects 'A Light Never Goes Out'". Variety. Archived from the original on 2023-09-13. Retrieved 2023-09-25.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
↑ "Submissions are open for the 96th Oscars". MEIA - Malta Entertainment Industry and Arts Association on Facebook. MEIA - Malta Entertainment Industry and Arts Association. August 18, 2023. Archived from the original on October 5, 2023. Retrieved September 29, 2023.
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