Having Dominated the Annie Awards, Can Netflix Win Best Animated Film?

Scene from I Lost My Body

In a year that many are arguing is among the most predictable Oscar nominations in history, there is one field that seems ripe with interesting contradictions. The Best Animated Film category felt like it was set in stone since before the year was over. Disney was scheduled to dominate with two of the biggest films of the year: Toy Story 4 and Frozen II, both sequels to films that won the category previously. However, things began to unravel from there. Frozen II missed the cut entirely. In fact, the studio with a dual nomination was the one that was least expected: Netflix. With I Lost My Body and Klaus, the studio pulled one of the biggest upsets of the year. But, what if this is only the beginning? What if Netflix is on track to beat the major studios in the CGI landscape?

While there's still plenty to argue against this, the news just keeps looking worse and worse for Disney and Pixar. At the Annie Awards, Netflix won 19 awards including Best Feature for Klaus and Best Independent Feature for I Lost My Body. This isn't to say that Netflix has the upper-hand, but it's looking like this may be one of the most surprising upsets in recent years. What lies ahead at an Oscars where Pixar is already being undermined at other awards ceremonies by its competition? One has to wonder what lies ahead if either Netflix film stands a decent chance of beating the big boys. Even if it's a longshot, it feels like a good time to think that things are changing in the Best Animated Film category, maybe for the better.

"Toy Story 4," "Frozen II," and the Race for the Best Animated Film Oscar

Scene from Frozen II

This morning, Disney released the trailer for their latest film Frozen II. Most audiences will know the franchise very well, in part because of the 2013 film but also because this is the third year in a row that Elsa and Anna will have appeared on the big screen. Following Olaf's Frozen Adventure in 2017 and brief cameos in Wreck-It Ralph: Ralph Breaks the Internet in 2018, it's the long-awaited follow-up to the highest-grossing animated film in history that also spawned two Oscar wins. Considering that this trailer is likely to play in front of Toy Story 4 in 10 days, it also begins to raise another question: how is this year's Best Animated Film Oscar category shaking out? Have we seen the winner already? Considering that Frozen II AND Toy Story 4 are both sequels to previous winners, the answer may be staring us in the face. That is if the pattern continues to hold up.

The First Trailer for Laika's "Missing Link" is a Delightfully Curious One

Scene from Missing Link

With exception to maybe Pixar, there have been few animation studios with as strong of a recent track record as Laika, who caters to stop-motion stories that skew a bit more horror and fantasy. It's the type of cinema that the oddball kid would definitely enjoy and their films (Coraline, ParaNorman, Kubo and the Two Strings) all have earned a reputation for provocative stories that are wholly original as well as having some of the greatest animation in their given year. It makes sense then that their latest, 2019's Missing Link, takes on a lot of familiar elements as they tackle another odd subject: the "missing link" between man and species. It looks a lot more comical and silly than the other films, but it's no less of a marvelous visual delight that promises to be another joyful experience.