The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences on December 17 announced the official shortlists in 12 categories for the 2026 Oscars, offering a clear picture of the strongest contenders as the awards season moves closer to final nominations next month.

The shortlists cover best documentary feature, international feature film, original song, original score, cinematography, sound, visual effects, makeup and hairstyling, and the newly introduced best casting category. They also include the three short-film sections — animated, live-action, and documentary. The final Oscar nominees in these categories will be selected from the shortlisted titles.

Among the most prominent films this year, Wicked: For Good and Sinners led the pack with eight mentions each. Frankenstein followed with six mentions, while Sirât, One Battle After Another and F1: The Movie secured five each.

Marty Supreme and Train Dreams appeared in four categories, with Hamnet, Sentimental Value and One Battle After Another also featuring prominently across multiple shortlists.

India earned a significant presence in the International Feature Film category, with Homebound advancing to the next round of voting. The category includes 15 films shortlisted from submissions by 86 countries and regions worldwide.

In the Documentary Feature Film category, titles such as The Alabama Solution, Apocalypse in the Tropics, The Perfect Neighbor and 2000 Meters to Andriivka were among the 15 films that advanced from a pool of 201 eligible entries.

Voting for Oscar nominations will take place from January 12 to January 16, 2026. The official nominations for the 98th Academy Awards will be announced on Thursday, January 22.

The awards ceremony is scheduled for Sunday, March 15, with Conan O’Brien returning as host. The event will be broadcast live on ABC and telecast in more than 200 countries worldwide.

The films, listed in alphabetical order by title, are:

  • “Autokar”
  • “Butterfly”
  • “Cardboard”
  • “Éiru”
  • “Forevergreen” 
  • “The Girl Who Cried Pearls”
  • “Hurikán”
  • “I Died in Irpin”
  • “The Night Boots”
  • “Playing God”
  • “The Quinta’s Ghost”
  • “Retirement Plan”
  • “The Shyness of Trees”
  • “Snow Bear”
  • “The Three Sisters”

CASTING
Ten films will advance in the Casting category for the 98th Academy Awards. Members of the Casting Directors Branch vote to determine the shortlist and the nominees.

The films, listed in alphabetical order by title, are:

  • “Frankenstein”
  • “Hamnet”
  • “Marty Supreme”
  • “One Battle after Another”
  • “The Secret Agent”
  • “Sentimental Value”
  • “Sinners”
  • “Sirât”
  • “Weapons”
  • “Wicked: For Good”

CINEMATOGRAPHY
Sixteen films will advance in the Cinematography category for the 98th Academy Awards. Members of the Cinematographers Branch vote to determine the shortlist and the nominees.

The films, listed in alphabetical order by title, are:

  • “Ballad of a Small Player”
  • “Bugonia”
  • “Die My Love”
  • “F1”
  • “Frankenstein”
  • “Hamnet”
  • “Marty Supreme”
  • “Nouvelle Vague”
  • “One Battle after Another”
  • “Sentimental Value”
  • “Sinners”
  • “Sirât”
  • “Song Sung Blue”
  • “Sound of Falling”
  • “Train Dreams”
  • “Wicked: For Good”

DOCUMENTARY FEATURE FILM
Fifteen films will advance in the Documentary Feature Film category for the 98th Academy Awards. Two hundred one films were eligible in the category. 

The films, listed in alphabetical order by title, are:

  • “The Alabama Solution”
  • “Apocalypse in the Tropics”
  • “Coexistence, My Ass!”
  • “Come See Me in the Good Light”
  • “Cover-Up”
  • “Cutting through Rocks”
  • “Folktales”
  • “Holding Liat”
  • “Mr. Nobody against Putin”
  • “Mistress Dispeller”
  • “My Undesirable Friends: Part 1 – Last Air in Moscow”
  • “The Perfect Neighbor”
  • “Seeds”
  • “2000 Meters to Andriivka”
  • “Yanuni”

DOCUMENTARY SHORT FILM
Fifteen films will advance in the Documentary Short Film category for the 98th Academy Awards. One hundred seventeen films qualified in the category. 

The films, listed in alphabetical order by title, are:

  • “All the Empty Rooms”
  • “All the Walls Came Down”
  • “Armed Only with a Camera: The Life and Death of Brent Renaud”
  • “Bad Hostage”
  • “Cashing Out”
  • “Chasing Time”
  • “Children No More: “Were and Are Gone””
  • “Classroom 4”
  • “The Devil Is Busy”
  • “Heartbeat”
  • “Last Days on Lake Trinity”
  • “On Healing Land, Birds Perch”
  • “Perfectly a Strangeness”
  • “Rovina’s Choice”
  • “We Were the Scenery”

INTERNATIONAL FEATURE FILM
In the nominations round, Academy members from all branches are invited to opt in to participate and must view all 15 shortlisted films to vote.

The films, listed in alphabetical order by country, are:

  • Argentina, “Belén”
  • Brazil, “The Secret Agent”
  • France, “It Was Just an Accident”
  • Germany, “Sound of Falling”
  • India, “Homebound”
  • Iraq, “The President’s Cake”
  • Japan, “Kokuho”
  • Jordan, “All That’s Left of You”
  • Norway, “Sentimental Value”
  • Palestine, “Palestine 36”
  • South Korea, “No Other Choice”
  • Spain, “Sirât”
  • Switzerland, “Late Shift”
  • Taiwan, “Left-Handed Girl”
  • Tunisia, “The Voice of Hind Rajab”

LIVE ACTION SHORT FILM
In the nominations round, Academy members from all branches are invited to opt in to participate and must view all 15 shortlisted films to vote.

The films, listed in alphabetical order by title, are:

  • “Ado”
  • “Amarela”
  • “Beyond Silence”
  • “The Boy with White Skin”
  • “Butcher’s Stain”
  • “Butterfly on a Wheel”
  • “Dad’s Not Home”
  • “Extremist”
  • “A Friend of Dorothy”
  • “Jane Austen’s Period Drama”
  • “Pantyhose”
  • “The Pearl Comb”
  • “Rock, Paper, Scissors”
  • “The Singers”
  • “Two People Exchanging Saliva”

MAKEUP AND HAIRSTYLING
The films, listed in alphabetical order by title, are:

  • “The Alto Knights”
  • “Frankenstein”
  • “Kokuho”
  • “Marty Supreme”
  • “Nuremberg”
  • “One Battle after Another”
  • “Sinners”
  • “The Smashing Machine”
  • “The Ugly Stepsister”
  • “Wicked: For Good”

MUSIC (ORIGINAL SCORE)
The scores, listed in alphabetical order by film title, are:

  • “Avatar: Fire and Ash”
  • “Bugonia”
  • “Captain America: Brave New World”
  • “Diane Warren: Relentless”
  • “F1”
  • “Frankenstein”
  • “Hamnet”
  • “Hedda”
  • “A House of Dynamite”
  • “Jay Kelly”
  • “Marty Supreme”
  • “Nuremberg”
  • “One Battle after Another”
  • “Sinners”
  • “Sirât”
  • “Train Dreams”
  • “Tron: Ares”
  • “Truth and Treason”
  • “Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery”
  • “Wicked: For Good”

MUSIC (ORIGINAL SONG)
The original songs, along with the motion picture in which each song is featured, are listed below in alphabetical order by film title:

  • “As Alive As You Need Me To Be” from “Tron: Ares”
  • “Dear Me” from “Diane Warren: Relentless”
  • “Dream As One” from “Avatar: Fire and Ash”
  • “Drive” from “F1”
  • “Dying To Live” from “Billy Idol Should Be Dead”
  • “The Girl In The Bubble” from “Wicked: For Good”
  • “Golden” from “KPop Demon Hunters”
  • “Highest 2 Lowest” from “Highest 2 Lowest”
  • “I Lied To You” from “Sinners”
  • “Last Time (I Seen The Sun)” from “Sinners”
  • “No Place Like Home” from “Wicked: For Good”
  • “Our Love” from “The Ballad of Wallis Island”
  • “Salt Then Sour Then Sweet” from “Come See Me in the Good Light”
  • “Sweet Dreams Of Joy” from “Viva Verdi!”
  • “Train Dreams” from “Train Dreams”

SOUND
The films, listed in alphabetical order by title, are:

  • “Avatar: Fire and Ash”
  • “F1”
  • “Frankenstein”
  • “Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning”
  • “One Battle after Another”
  • “Sinners”
  • “Sirât”
  • “Springsteen: Deliver Me from Nowhere”
  • “Superman”
  • “Wicked: For Good”

VISUAL EFFECTS
Ten films remain in the running in the Visual Effects category for the 98th Academy Awards. The Visual Effects Branch Executive Committee determined the shortlist. 

The films, listed in alphabetical order by title, are:

  • “Avatar: Fire and Ash”
  • “The Electric State”
  • “F1”
  • “Frankenstein”
  • “Jurassic World Rebirth”
  • “The Lost Bus”
  • “Sinners”
  • “Superman”
  • “Tron: Ares”
  • “Wicked: For Good”