The list of nominees for the Oscars 2025, was revealed today, January 23, by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, confirming the expectations of many film fans, but bringing some surprises. The ceremony, scheduled for March 2 at the iconic Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles, will be the 97th edition of the most prestigious awards in the seventh art.

Among this year's highlights are films such as Emilia Perez who is ahead with an impressive 13 nominations and Wicked e The Brutalist, both with 10 nominations. The inclusion of the Brazilian film The In Between, directed by Walter Salles, marks an important moment for Portuguese-language cinema, as it is in the running for Best Film and Best International Film.

However, despite the cultural diversity, rich stories and impressive productions submitted by several African countries, once again, no film from the continent was nominated for the 2025 Oscars, in any of the categories.

The submitted films, including titles from South Africa, Egypt, Morocco, and others, capture the essence of Africa, its complexities, and its beauty, but their exclusion reinforces the barriers African filmmakers face in these competitions, raising important questions about representation, equity, and visibility in the global film industry.

The announcement of the nominees was postponed twice due to the wildfires that hit Los Angeles, prompting the acting duo, Rachel Sennott and Bowen Yang, to pay tribute to the victims during the announcement. Despite the adversities, expectations for the big night remain high, with big names in cinema and productions across a variety of genres vying for the coveted golden trophies.

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The highlight of this year's Oscars goes to Emilia Perez, a dramatic musical that achieved a historic feat: 13 nominations, including Best Picture, Best Director for Jacques Audiard and Best Leading Actress for Karla Sofía Gascón.

This is the highest number of nominations ever achieved by a film spoken in a non-English language, reinforcing the Academy's growing recognition of international productions.

Another big name in this edition is Wicked, the film adaptation of the hit Broadway musical. The film garnered 10 nominations, including Best Picture, Best Leading Actress for Cynthia Erivo, and Best Supporting Actress for Ariana Grande.

Yes, The Brutalist, directed by Brady Corbet, stands out with the same number of nominations, being a work praised for its visual narrative and performances by Adrien Brody and Felicity Jones.

The In Between, by Brazilian filmmaker Walter Salles, also earned a spot among the most discussed nominees. The film, starring Fernanda Torres in the lead role, is nominated in two important categories: Best Picture and Best International Film. Its success reinforces the strength of Brazilian cinema in the global industry and its ability to tell stories that cross cultural boundaries.

His work, a psychological thriller starring Demi Moore, also received nominations for Best Picture and Best Actress. It's also worth noting the presence of films in non-English languages, such as Emilia Perez e The In Between that prove that world cinema can and should be recognized for its cultural and artistic richness.

The inclusion of these films in the list of nominees represents progress, but the absence of African films or films from other less-represented continents shows that there is still a long way to go.

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This year, at the Oscars, in the category of Best Animated Film, Inside Out 2, Memoir of a Snail e The Wild Robot compete for the prize, while Flow, a work that was also nominated for Best International Film, shows that animation can transcend genres and capture different audiences.

Among the documentaries, Black Box Diaries e Soundtrack to a Coup d'État stand out for the way they explore political and social issues. Sugarcane, a production that tells the stories of plantation workers, offers a sensitive and engaging look at human struggles.

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Despite the celebrations, there was no shortage of criticism of the Academy's choices for this year's Oscars. The Portuguese short film Barnacles, directed by Laura Gonçalves and Alexandra Ramires, despite having won the most prestigious award for this genre, the Cristal Award for Best Short Film at the Annecy Animation Film Festival in France, was left out of the list of nominees.

Furthermore, Africa's absence from the Oscar nominations, particularly in the Best International Feature Film category, raises questions about the film industry's recognition of African narratives. Although African cinema delivered major productions in 2024, such as Old Righteous Blues (South Africa) and nawi (Kenya), none of them reached the final stage.

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The 2025 Oscar Nominees

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The nominees for the 23 categories of the 97th edition of the Oscars are as follows:

Best movie

• Anora
• The Brutalist
• A Completely Unknown
• Conclave
• Dunes: Part Two
• Emilia Perez
• The In Between
• Nickel Boys
• The Substance
• Wicked

Best Director

• Sean Baker – Anora
• Brady Corbet – The Brutalist
• James Mangold – A Completely Unknown
• Jacques Audiard – Emilia Perez
• Coralie Fargeat – The Substance

Best Actress

• Cynthia Erivo – Wicked
• Karla Sofia Gascon – Emilia Perez
• Mikey Madison – Anora
• Demi Moore – The Substance
• Fernanda Torres – The In Between

Best Actor

• Adrien Brody – The Brutalist
• Timothée Chalamet – A Completely Unknown
• Colman Domingo – Sing Sing
• Ralph Fiennes – Conclave
• Sebastian Stan – The Apprentice

Best Supporting Actress

• Monica Barbaro – A Completely Unknown
• Ariana Grande - Wicked
• Felicity Jones – The Brutalist
• Isabella Rossellini – Conclave
• Zoe Saldana – Emilia Perez

Best Supporting Actor

• Yura Borisov – Anora
• Kieran Culkin - And Real Pain
• Edward Norton – A Completely Unknown
• Guy Pearce – The Brutalist
• Jeremy Strong – The Apprentice

Best Original Screenplay

• Anora
• The Brutalist
• And Real Pain
• September 5
• The Substance

Best Adapted Screenplay

• A Completely Unknown
• Conclave
• Emilia Perez
• Nickel Boys
• Sing Sing

Best International Film

• The In Between (Brazil)
• Flow (Latvia)
• The Seed of the Sacred Fig (Germany)
• Emilia Perez (France)
• The Girl With the Needle (Denmark)

Best Animated Film

• Flow
• Inside Out 2
• Memoir of a Snail
• Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Foul
• The Wild Robot

Best Documentary

• Black Box Diaries
• In the Other Land
• Porcelain War
• Soundtrack to a Coup d'État
• Sugarcane

Best Photography

• The Brutalist
• Dunes: Part Two
• Emilia Perez
• Maria
• Nosferatu

Best Editing

• Anora
• The Brutalist
• Conclave
• Emilia Perez
• Wicked

Best Original Soundtrack

• The Brutalist
• Conclave
• Emilia Perez
• Wicked
• The Wild Robot

Best Original Song

• “El Mal” – Emilia Perez
• “The Journey” – The Six Triple Eight
• “Like a Bird” – Sing Sing
• “My Way” – Emilia Perez
• “Never Too Late” – Elton John: Never Too Late

Best Production Design

• The Brutalist
• Conclave
• Dunes: Part Two
• Nosferatu
• Wicked

Best Wardrobe

• A Completely Unknown
• Conclave
• Gladiator II
• Nosferatu
• Wicked

Best Makeup and Hair

• A Different Man
• Emilia Perez
• Nosferatu
• The Substance
• Wicked

Best Visual Effects

• Alien: Romulus
• Better man
• Dunes: Part Two
• Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes
• Wicked

Best sound

• A Completely Unknown
• Dunes: Part Two
• Emilia Perez
• Wicked
• The Wild Robot

Best Action Short Film

• A Lien
• Anuja
• I'm Not a Robot
• The Last Ranger
• The Man Who Could Not Remain Silent

Best Animated Short Film

• Beautiful Men
• In the Shadow of the Cypress
• Magic Candies
• Wander to Wonder
• yuck!

Best Short Documentary

• Death by Numbers
• I Am Ready, Warden
• Incident
• Instruments of a Beating Heart
• The Only Girl in the Orchestra

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This year, several African countries submitted films to the Oscars that explore local histories, cultural identities, and universal issues. Despite their regional impact and recognition at international festivals, none of them made it to the final list. The films submitted were:

• South Africa - Old Righteous Blues

A young man confronts his own limitations and the ghosts of his past to unite a fractured community and restore his town's Christmas choir to its former glory.

• Algeria – Algiers

Dounia, a brilliant psychiatrist, and Sami, a police inspector, explore the traumas of Algeria's past as they investigate the disappearance of a young girl, against a backdrop of tension and suspicion in the city of Algiers.

• Cameroon – Kismet

Amid religious tensions and cultural differences, Wambo, a 25-year-old Christian woman, defies social norms by falling in love with Ibrahim, a Muslim man.

• Egypt – Flight 404

Ghada faces a medical emergency that requires her mother to undergo urgent surgery, days before her trip to perform the Hajj. To raise the necessary funds, she is forced to revisit her past and make difficult ethical decisions.

• Morocco – Everybody Loves Touda

Touda, a traditional Moroccan singer, performs in bars in her provincial town while dreaming of moving to Casablanca in search of recognition and a better life for her son.

• Niger – Mai Martaba

Rival forces clash for the throne of the ancient Kingdom of Jallaba, in a tale of betrayal, loyalty, and ambition.

• Kenya – nawi

Based on true events, the film tells the story of Nawi, a 13-year-old girl sold into marriage with an older man. Nawi runs away on her wedding night to pursue her dream of attending school and combat forced child marriage.

• Senegal – Dahomey

This artistic documentary blends fact and fiction to chronicle the return of 26 royal treasures looted from the Kingdom of Dahomey, exhibited in Paris, and repatriated to Benin. The film highlights the voices of youth and the debates surrounding the cultural restitution of African art.

These films, rich in authentic narratives and rooted in African culture, demonstrated the diversity of creative voices on the continent. However, the fact that they were not recognized by the Academy is cause for reflection for both parties.

• Argelia:
  Z (1969) – Won.
  The Bal (1983)
  Dust of Life (1995)
• South Africa:
  Yesterday (2004)
  Tsotsi (2005) – He won.
  Life, Above All (2010)
• Mauritania:
  Timbuktu (2014)
• Ivory Coast:
  Black and White in Color (1976) – He won.
• Tunisia:
  The Man Who Sold His Skin (2020)
• Egypt:
  The Night of Counting the Years (1969)

Although these nominations demonstrate Africa's capacity to create excellent cinema, the numbers reveal inequality and the lack of systematic recognition from the Academy, in which the vast majority of foreign-language films come from the "old continent," as can be seen this year, with four of the five nominations coming from Europe.

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Africa's absence from the 2025 Oscars is not an isolated incident. Historically, the continent has struggled to gain due recognition on global platforms. Despite its significant contribution to cinema, few African films have reached the top. This underrepresentation can be attributed to several factors:

• Lack of Resources and Infrastructure: Film production in many African countries faces many constraints, from limited funding and lack of infrastructure to the absence of advanced technology, which hinders competitiveness.
• Prejudices in Industry: The global film industry still favors Western narratives or those focused on large markets.
• Limited Distribution: Many African films struggle to reach international screening circuits, such as major festivals, which reduces their visibility among Academy voting members and reduces their chances of being nominated.
• Promotion Strategies: The lack of financial resources hinders the promotional campaigns necessary for films to be seriously considered in the awards race.
• lobbying: Lobbying campaigns, essential to gaining the attention of Academy members, are often not viable for African filmmakers due to the high costs.

• Government and Private Support: Investments in film infrastructure, as well as training programs, can help strengthen the industry.
• International Collaborations: Partnerships with filmmakers and producers from other parts of the world can open doors to greater distribution and visibility.
• Well-Structured Promotion Campaigns: Work with public relations and lobbying experts to highlight African films during awards season.
• Strengthening the Local Market: Encourage African audiences to consume and appreciate local film productions.

From Africa's underrepresentation to the need for greater gender diversity in the Best Director category, issues surrounding inclusion continue to be debated.

Africa's absence from the 2025 Oscars reflects the structural challenges African filmmakers face in establishing themselves on global platforms. Despite this, the quality of the films submitted this year is a testament to the creativity, innovation, and cultural richness of African cinema. With increased support and visibility, there's no doubt that the future holds more success for the continent.

As we await the March 2nd ceremony, it's undeniable that this edition has already made history with remarkable achievements and top contenders. World cinema comes to life during these celebrations, but the work toward equity and diversity in the industry must be ongoing. After all, the power of stories lies in their ability to unite and represent everyone.