There are a handful of films I would have expected to see here, but didn’t: Albert Nobbs, A Dangerous Method, J. Edgar, Jane Eyre, My Week with Marilyn and War Horse among many others. Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy getting a nomination is a fantastic surprise, but one that typically doesn’t transition to the Oscars (but proves the art directors at least have seen the film). Toss out the entire contemporary category and half of the other two categories and you’ll find the Oscar nominees. 2009 and 2008 excepted, this group almost always picks the eventual Oscar nominees. If I had to pull out five, I’d go with Anonymous, The Artist, The Help, Harry Potter and Hugo. But Anonymous is weak and My Week with Marilyn or War Horse could easily pick up Oscar nominations in its stead, but the other four seem pretty solid for various reasons. And don’t expect to see The Adventures of Tintin on the Oscar list. Both WALL-E and Ratatouille got ADG nominations and didn’t get Oscar nominations.

In addition to the nominees and/or winners listed below, this year, we’re giving you a quick background on each individual precursor including founding year, first awards year and a glimpse at how many predictions the group has gotten right in the last five years. This data can be found below.

As promised, I have posted the history of this particular guild on my website. You can find it by following this link: Art Directors Guild.

The Nominations

Best Period Art Direction

Anonymous
The Artist
The Help
Hugo
Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy

Best Fantasy Art Direction

The Adventures of Tintin
Captain America: The First Avenger
Cowboys & Aliens
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 2
Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides

Best Contemporary Art Direction

Bridesmaids
The Descendants
Drive
Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo

Art Directors Guild Data

Year Founded: 1937
First Awards: 1996 (16)

Precursor Accuracy

KEY:

• Nominee was nominated for the corresponding Oscar
• Nominee was not nominated for a corresponding Oscar
• Total (2010-2009-2008-2007-2006)

Art Direction: 20 (5-2-3-5-5) N / 5 (0-3-2-0-0) I
Art Direction (Period): 12 (2-1-2-4-3) N / 13 (3-4-3-1-2) I
Art Direction (Fantasy): 8 (3-1-1-1-2) N / 17 (2-4-4-4-3) I
Art Direction (Contemporary): 0 (0-0-0-0-0) N / 25 (5-5-5-5-5) I