In anticipation of the Academy Awards, we polled our contributors to see who they thought should win the Oscar. Once we had our winners, we asked various writers to make the case for our selection in each category. We’re posting those essays this week, two a day, leading up to the big reveal of our picks for our best director and best picture on Friday. Here you’ll find links to all our picks.
Best Supporting Actor: J.K. Simmons, “Whiplash“—Essay by Matt Fagerholm
Best Supporting Actress: Patricia Arquette, “Boyhood“—Essay by Christy Lemire
Best Adapted Screenplay: “Inherent Vice” by Paul Thomas Anderson—Essay by Patrick McGavin
Best Original Screenplay: “The Grand Budapest Hotel” by Wes Anderson—Essay by Scout Tafoya
Best Animated Film: “The Tale of the Princess Kaguya”—Essay by Peter Sobczynski
Best Foreign Language Film: “Ida“—Essay by Odie Henderson
Best Actor: Michael Keaton, “Birdman“—Essay by Glenn Kenny
Best Actress: Marion Cotillard, “Two Days, One Night“—Essay by Sheila O’Malley
Best Director: Richard Linklater, “Boyhood”—Essay by Susan Wloszczyna
Best Picture: “Selma“—Essay by Matt Zoller Seitz
And Scout Tafoya and Olivia Collette produced a video essay about the Best Original Score of 2014: “The Grand Budapest Hotel” by Alexandre Desplat