The Academy has released another shortlist. This one is more of a longlist as another shortlist will release later this month for the final ten contenders. Two films I had thought might contend were absent from the list: Geostorm, which isn’t terribly surprising, and Transformers: The Last Knight, marking the first time the Transformers series hasn’t had a film in the running.

20 CONTENDERS ADVANCE IN VFX OSCAR® RACE

LOS ANGELES, CA – The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences today announced that 20 films are in the running in the Visual Effects category for the 90th Academy Awards®.

The films are listed below in alphabetical order:

“Alien: Covenant”
“Beauty and the Beast”
“Blade Runner 2049
“Dunkirk”
“Ghost in the Shell”
“Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2”
“Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle”
“Justice League”
“Kong: Skull Island”
“Life”
“Logan”
“Ojka”
“Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales”
“The Shape of Water”
“Spider-Man Homecoming”
“Star Wars: The Last Jedi”
“Thor: Ragnarok”
“Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets”
“War for the Planet of the Apes”
“Wonder Woman”

The Academy’s Visual Effects Branch Executive Committee determined the preliminary shortlist. Later this month, the committee will select the 10 films that will advance to nominations voting.

Nominations for the 90th Oscars® will be announced on Tuesday, January 23, 2018.

The 90th Oscars® will be held on Sunday, March 4, 2018, at the Dolby Theatre® at Hollywood & Highland Center® in Hollywood, and will be televised live on the ABC Television Network at 6:30 p.m. ET/ 3:30 p.m. PT. The Oscars also will be televised live in more than 225 countries and territories worldwide.