Oscars 2018: India's 'Newton' among record 92 countries in race for best foreign language film

Nominations for the 90th Academy Awards will be announced on January 23 and the glitzy ceremony will be held on March 4 in Hollywood.
Image used for representational purpose (AP)
Image used for representational purpose (AP)

LOS ANGELES: A record 92 countries have entered the race hoping to snag an Oscar for best foreign language film at next year's awards, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced on Thursday.

Amit Masurkar's 'Newton', India's official entry for the Best Foreign Language Film, is a political satire revolving around an honest election officer's attempt to conduct a free and fair poll in a conflict-hit area of Chhatisgarh. Starring Rajkummar Rao, it was chosen last month from among 26 titles from different languages by a 14-member jury appointed by the Film Federation of India (FFI). It also stars Pankaj Tripathi, Raghubir Yadav and Anjali Patil.

First-time entrants include Haiti ("Ayiti Mon Amour"), Lao People's Democratic Republic ("Dearest Sister") and Syria ("Little Gandhi").

Among the contenders that have created a buzz this year is Angelina Jolie's "First They Killed My Father" from Cambodia, Robin Camillo's "BPM (Beats Per Minute)" from France, Ziad Doueiri's "The Insult" from Lebanon and Joachim Trier's "Thelma" from Norway.

Swedish art world satire "The Square," directed by Ruben Ostlund, was the shock winner at the Cannes Film Festival this year and is also among the contenders.

Last year's Oscar for best foreign language film went to Iranian director Asghar Farhadi's "The Salesman." Farhadi boycotted the ceremony over US President Donald Trump's visa ban barring citizens of seven Muslim-majority countries, including Iran, from entering the United States.

Nominations for the 90th Academy Awards will be announced on January 23 and the glitzy ceremony will be held on March 4 in Hollywood next year at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles.

Here’s the full list of entrants in the running for the Foreign Language Oscar:

Afghanistan, A Letter to the President, Roya Sadat

Albania, Daybreak, Gentian Koçi

Algeria, Road to Istanbul, Rachid Bouchareb

Argentina, Zama, Lucrecia Martel

Armenia, Yeva, Anahit Abad

Australia, The Space Between, Ruth Borgobello

Austria, Happy End, Michael Haneke

Azerbaijan, Pomegranate Orchard, Ilgar Najaf

Bangladesh, The Cage, Akram Khan

Belgium, Racer and the Jailbird, Michaël R. Roskam

Bolivia, Dark Skull, Kiro Russo

Bosnia and Herzegovina, Men Don’t Cry, Alen Drljevic

Brazil, Bingo - The King of the Mornings, Daniel Rezende

Bulgaria, Glory, Petar Valchanov, Kristina Grozeva

Cambodia, First They Killed My Father, Angelina Jolie

Canada, Hochelaga, Land of Souls, François Girard

Chile, A Fantastic Woman, Sebastian Lelio

China, Wolf Warrior 2, Wu Jing

Colombia, Guilty Men, Ivan D. Gaona

Costa Rica, The Sound of Things, Ariel Escalante

Croatia, Quit Staring at My Plate, Hana Jusic

Czech Republic, Ice Mother, Bohdan Slama

Denmark, You Disappear, Peter Schonau Fog

Dominican Republic, Woodpeckers, Jose Maria Cabral

Ecuador, Alba, Ana Cristina Barragan

Egypt, Sheikh Jackson, Amr Salama

Estonia, November, Rainer Sarnet

Finland, Tom of Finland, Dome Karukoski

France, BPM (Beats Per Minute), Robin Campillo

Georgia, Scary Mother, Ana Urushadze

Germany, In the Fade, Fatih Akin

Greece, Amerika Square, Yannis Sakaridis

Haiti, Ayiti Mon Amour, Guetty Felin

Honduras, Morazan, Hispano Duron

Hong Kong, Mad World, Wong Chun

Hungary, On Body and Soul, Ildiko Enyedi

Iceland, Under the Tree, Hafsteinn Gunnar Sigurdsson

India, Newton, Amit V Masurkar

Indonesia, Turah, Wicaksono Wisnu Legowo

Iran, Breath, Narges Abyar

Iraq, Reseba - The Dark Wind, Hussein Hassan

Ireland, Song of Granite, Pat Collins

Israel, Foxtrot, Samuel Maoz

Italy, A Ciambra, Jonas Carpignano

Japan, Her Love Boils Bathwater, Ryota Nakano

Kazakhstan, The Road to Mother, Akhan Satayev

Kenya, Kati Kati, Mbithi Masya

Kosovo, Unwanted, Edon Rizvanolli

Kyrgyzstan, Centaur, Aktan Arym Kubat

Lao People’s Democratic Republic, Dearest Sister, Mattie Do

Latvia, The Chronicles of Melanie, Viestur Kairish

Lebanon, The Insult, Ziad Doueiri

Lithuania, Frost, Sharunas Bartas

Luxembourg, Barrage, Laura Schroeder

Mexico, Tempestad, Tatiana Huezo

Mongolia, The Children of Genghis, Zolbayar Dorj

Morocco, Razzia, Nabil Ayouch

Mozambique, The Train of Salt and Sugar, Licinio Azevedo

Nepal, White Sun, Deepak Rauniyar

Netherlands, Layla M., Mijke de Jong

New Zealand, One Thousand Ropes, Tusi Tamasese

Norway, Thelma, Joachim Trier

Pakistan, Saawan, Farhan Alam

Palestine, Wajib, Annemarie Jacir

Panama, Beyond Brotherhood, Arianne Benedetti

Paraguay, Los Buscadores, Juan Carlos Maneglia, Tana Schembori

Peru, Rosa Chumbe, Jonatan Relayze

Philippines, Birdshot, Mikhail Red

Poland, Spoor, Agnieszka Holland, Kasia Adamik

Portugal, Saint George, Marco Martins

Romania, Fixeur, Adrian Sitaru

Russia, Loveless, Andrey Zvyagintsev

Senegal, Félicité, Alain Gomis

Serbia, Requiem for Mrs. J., Bojan Vuletic

Singapore, Pop Aye, Kirsten Tan

Slovakia, The Line, Peter Bebjak

Slovenia, The Miner, Hanna A. W. Slak

South Africa, The Wound, John Trengove

South Korea, A Taxi Driver, Jang Hoon

Spain, Summer 1993, Carla Simon

Sweden, The Square, Ruben Östlund

Switzerland, The Divine Order, Petra Volpe

Syria, Little Gandhi, Sam Kadi

Taiwan, Small Talk, Hui-Chen Huang

Thailand, By the Time It Gets Dark, Anocha Suwichakornpong

Tunisia, The Last of Us, Ala Eddine Slim

Turkey, Ayla: The Daughter of War, Can Ulkay

Ukraine, Black Level, Valentyn Vasyanovych

United Kingdom, My Pure Land, Sarmad Masud

Uruguay, Another Story of the World, Guillermo Casanova

Venezuela, "El Inca," Ignacio Castillo Cottin

Vietnam, "Father and Son," Luong Dinh Dung

(With online desk inputs)

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