For our fifteenth Rundown article, we look at two creative categories that are invariably tied together. After the jump, you’ll find our winner and runner-up predictions for Best Production Design and Best Costume Design as well as general commentary about the race. Tomorrow, we’ll cover the biggest category of them all.

Best Production Design

Winner Predictions

• Anna Karenina (R) [New]
• The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey
• Life of Pi (R) [New]
• Lincoln
• Les Misérables (O)

Runner-Up Predictions

• Anna Karenina (R) [New]
• Life of Pi (R) [New]
• Lincoln (O)

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Wesley Lovell: Typically, Best Production Design and Best Costume Design go together; however, Life of Pi could follow a long string of digitally-produced backgrounds and settings to win this award. Anna Karenina and Life of Pi both have Art Directors Guild awards to give them a position at the front of the pack. I want to hedge my bets towards Anna Karenina, which is likely to win the Costume Designers Guild award and the Costume Design Oscar, but the slight edge goes to Life of Pi.
Peter J. Patrick: The production design of Anna Karenina is certainly eye-popping, but it’s at the service of such a weak tea version of Tolstoy’s classic that it really doesn’t deserve a win.
Tripp Burton: Anna Karenina is the most highly praised design of the year, and it should easily win here as well. Unless, in a running theme, Life of Pi goes on a Hugo-esque run through the tech categories.

Best Costume Design

Winner Predictions

• Anna Karenina (O) (R) [New]
• Lincoln
• Mirror Mirror
• Les Misérables (O)
• Snow White and the Huntsman

Runner-Up Predictions

• Lincoln (O)
• Mirror Mirror (R) [New] (O)

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Wesley Lovell: The Costume Designers Guild only confirmed what we long expected: Anna Karenina is the frontrunner and Eiko Ishioka’s posthumous nomination for her work on Mirror Mirror may be running second. Any of the year’s nominees could surprise, but Anna has the traditional period detail that Oscar voters love rewarding.
Peter J. Patrick: As with Production Design, if the voters are looking for how costumes are used in a film as opposed to how gorgeous they look on the models, er actors, then they’ll bypass Anna Karenina again.
Tripp Burton: Anna Karenina and Mirror Mirror both won the Costume Guild award this week, so this will be a tight race right up to the time the envelope is opened. I think that the ornate gowns of Anna Karenina will come out on top, but don’t be surprised if the Academy gives one last, posthumous award to the legendary Eiko Ishioka.

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