#he also keeps missing steven really badly but its ok its fine

[khonshusavatars]

Jake most pathetic man in the system

[sunphroggy]

alright I have an au idea that im about to badly explain but it's a little strange so stick with me.

I call it: 'The Parent Trap but Opposite' au

So picture this: Tommy is Phil's only child, right. His mother died in childbirth so for his entire eight years of life its just been him and Phil. And that's fine, that's great, he loves it. Tommy doesn't want another addition to the family, it would only screw everything up.

That being said, Phil is lonely. Don't get him wrong, he loves his son and loves spending time with him, but he misses the feeling of being in love. He misses his wife.

Enter, Kristen.

They meet on a blind date, set up by a friend from Phil's work, and hit it off instantly. Months pass and Phil wants to propose.

One problem though. He hasnt told Tommy about it. He hasn't even introduced Kristen to him.

So what better way to merge both families that a holiday?

(I should probably say here that Kristen also has children. Take a wild guess who they are.)

Tommy is all for a holiday. Two weeks at a fancy ass hotel with room service, an arcade and a pool? Sign him up!

That is until, he finds out that Kristen and her boys will be joining them.

Enter, Wilbur and Techno.

(They're about fourteen. Their parents are divorced and, unlike Tommy, they knew Kristen was seeing Phil. They alse know that Phil is gonna propose - well, it's just a hunch)

Phil, god bless him, tries his hardest to get Tommy to warm up to Kristen, Wilbur and Techno. He plans all these activities and takes them all shopping, to the beach, to waterparks ect. But Tommy just won't take to them; he doesn't mind Kristen but Wilbur and Techno are weird, they keep making these cryptic comments about how they're going to be seeing eachother a lot in the future and Tommy just does not understand.

That is, until they decide to let Tommy in on the obvious.

Tommy, as expected, is in denial. Because there's no way his dad would do something like that without telling him first. Besides, Phil doesn't need to get married, they're perfectly happy just the two of them.

There's just no way.

Right?

Wrong.

Because Tommy is a curious little shit and he ransacks his and Phil's hotel room in search for the ring. He doesn't find it, of course, because Phil is used to Tommy's little raccoon tactics and hid it properly. But when he comes back from dinner with Kristen to a destroyed room and a confused Tommy, he decides to tell him the truth.

Needless to say Tommy has a fit. One moment, he's happy; just him and dad, living life. And then this lady and her shitty sons come along and fucks that up

(I imagine the conversation being something like:

Phil: Yeah im gonna propose Kristen

Tommy, inhaling deeply: *screams*

And then it would proceed to reinact that once scene from Steven universe with ruby and sapphire like-

phil: he'll eventually tire himself out :'D

Tommy, making even more of a mess than he already has: that's what you think! I am an eternal flame baby!! >:(

Yeah.)

Tommy, ever the drama queen, storms to Wilbur and Techno - who are like "we told you so :/" - and the three of them (because Techno and Wilbur also do not want this little racoon gremlin hybrid in their home either) team up and plan to ruin the proposal. The only problem, they don't know when Phil is gonna actually propose.

And this...this is where the hijinks and shenanigans ensue.

They just like, constantly ruin Phil and Kristen's date nights with their dumb shit.

(I'm thinking shit like the three of them stacked on each others shoulders in a trench coat pretending to be a waiter at the hotel restaurant Phil and Kristen are eating at and constantly spilling drinks and food of them whenever it looks like Phil is about to pop the question; following them on walks under the stars, hiding in bushes with binoculars and making birds attack them; tackling Phil into the pool ect. ect. ect.)

But, plot twist, while pulling off these epic plans, the three of them...bond! Dun dun dunnnnn!!! Wilbur and Techno actually grow to like Tommy and think "Hey, maybe this kid ain't so bad" so they back out on the plans and try to convince Tommy to do the same. He won't.

(Meanwhile, Phil is just wondering why all his proposal attempts have gone so fucking wrong like???)

Anyways, fast forward. Its the last day of their holiday the two families go out for dinner. Its nice, they're having a good time, Kristen is chatting away to Tommy about Minecraft and Tommy is happy to tell her all about his favourite game. And then, Phil clears his throat.

He starts talking about Kristen and how happy he makes her, and Tommy can tell what's coming the moment Phil reaches into his jacket pocket and pulls out a small black box. And, in a final attempt to keep the life he has, Tommy snatches the box out of Phil's hand and fucking runs.

He runs right out of the restaurant, ignoring everyone calling after him, and doesn't stop running until he's on the beach, where he hides. And he cries. He cries because his dad is gonna replace him with Techno and Wilbur, and he misses his mum even though he never met her, and because this he knows that stealing a ring and running away isn't gonna stop this proposal from happening, and because the only family dynamic he knows is going to change and he isn't ready for that. And it's just a big angst moment.

And then some fluff.

Kristen finds him hidden by the rocks, and Tommy quickly pretends he wasn't just crying bc he's a big man and shit like that. He half expects her to immediately call for Phil and then for Phil to disown him, but instead she sits with him.

She asks if he's OK and when he doesnt answer her she just goes on talking about random things as if Tommy didn't just ruin their entire holiday (about shit like how she thought the cake at the restaurant was too dry and about the stars and different constellations and she even continues asking him about minecraft) and Tommy, after a while, talks back to her.

They talk for a while, arguing about the best Minecraft block (Tommy wholeheartedly defending cobblestone like his life depends on it) until eventually Kristen asks why he did what he did. And Tommy explains everything (that can basically be summed up in "I'm scared of change")

It's just a wholesome moment really. They're just sitting behind a bunch of rocks, Tommy is spilling his guts and Kristen is just listening. And at then end of it she's there to give him a big hug.

(I imagine Tommy saying that one cliche line "please don't hurt my dad" and Kristen being like "I wouldn't dream of it" and then Tommy gives her the ring box)

But yeah, happy ending! Phil proposes to Kristen on the beach and it's all happy and nice and cool and Tommy, Techno and Wilbur watch and Techno starts crying a little bc he's so happy for his mum.

...

I came up with this last night when I couldn't sleep.

[lightanddarklove]

Connverse Week Day 5 - Drive

Drive Carefully, Get Home Safe

Gen |1569 words | No warnings apply

Connie Maheswaran/Steven Universe | Connie Maheswaran & Steven Universe Read on Archive of Our Own | Day 1 prompt | Day 2 prompt |  Day 3 prompt | Day 4 prompt | Day 6 Prompt | Day 7 prompt | My Writing Masterpost

I wasn't able to finish Day 4 (or 6) yet, I'm trying not to make it into a monster chapter like Day 2, but this was easier to get out. I had an idea for a Greg & Steven one shot that this spun off of, I might try to write that later this month.

I hope you enjoy Connie being the comfort recipient, I've been punishing Steven too much and wanted to turn it around a bit. Its a bit more somber, but the kids will be alright.

I appreciate any feedback, and thanks for reading!

After a stressful evening, Steven wasn't quite prepared to have Connie fuming with him the following afternoon. He probably should have seen this coming, but he reassures her that his accident wasn't as bad as she fears. Post Volleyball, pre Snow Day of SU Future. Hurt/ Comfort. Steven Centric. Gen.

Steven had spent the day with his dad, working from his phone on rescheduling the projects he wouldn’t be able to delegate. The unscheduled tune-up his car had needed only resulted in 2 missed lectures which wouldn’t be too bad, but most of his other work would be piling up on his desk at Little Homeschool. This wasn’t how he wanted to spend his day, but it was unavoidable.

Greg had avoided putting any undue pressure on his son, seeing how booked his schedule usually was. Talking to the mechanics and getting the work needed with the car handled was something he could do that could ease Steven’s mind. The other phone call Greg had made while Steven was busy was not going to relieve the teenager’s stress right away, but it would likely help him in the long run. Greg just hoped Steven wouldn’t be too mad. Greg had kept his promise that he wouldn’t tell the gems the real reason the car needed to fixed today and not on a less busy day. However, Connie had not been mentioned in that conversation, and it was probably best she be kept in the loop.

When Steven darted off to give Connie a call, Greg went to grab a soda and snack for when Steven returned, knowing that would at least help keep his son from chewing him out too badly.

At around 4pm Connie sent Steven a text that just said “Call me.”

Steven rounded the back of the carwash and paced nervously for a moment. That could be about anything. Maybe trouble with something in class? Or something was going on with her parents? Or maybe it has something to do with one of her friends, or clubs? There was no use just hypothesizing about the problem, it would be better to get more data and then work on fixing it. After 3 rings the call connected.

“Hi Connie, is everything ok?”

“What happened last night after you left?” She wasn’t yelling but her tone was stern. He continued to pace.

“Uh, just a bit of car trouble, I don’t know what dad told you but-“

“Steven.” Connie barked. He swallowed hard. “You should have had some caffeine or slept on the couch, Mom is fine with that when you’re tired, but you insisted that you were able to drive and I have to hear from your dad that you dozed off while driving home!” Steven dragged the hand that wasn’t holding the phone down his face.

Connie, I didn’t think-“

“To tell me after it happened?” She cut him off, exasperated.

“I didn’t want you to worry.”

“Well, you did make me worry. I can’t believe you wouldn’t have called me after you were done on the phone with your dad.”

“It was late, and you had school today-“

“I want to know what’s going on with you Steven,” She said, voice tight. “If you got hurt, and nobody told me, I- I don’t know what I’d do.”

“I’m not hurt,” he said gently, trying to calm her. “It wasn’t that serious of an accident. No one else was hurt either. I messed up, but I’m waiting on the Dondai to be fixed and then it’ll all be ok.”

“You hit a guard rail, you could have gone through it, gone into the ravine and gotten really hurt!” Connie shouted. Steven cursed internally that his dad gave her all the details.

“I got lucky, I wasn’t going that fast when it happened.” He soothingly replied. “I also only grazed the side of the car. I’m ok, I promise.”

“I- I’m scared Steven,” she said, voice quaking. “What if this happens again? I don’t want to-” She choked down a sob.

“I don’t want it to either Connie.” His voice thick with emotion, but soft. His gut had twisted when he heard her start crying. “I’ll be more careful.”

“Falling asleep at the wheel kills people,” she bawled. “You could have hit a pole or tree or building! I don’t want to lose you.” His mouth went dry, heart thudding heavily as it had after the accident. “A- a-and if you do get into trouble, I want to know about it. Don’t leave me in the dark again. I hate it.”

“I’m sorry. I should have called. Your parents might be mad, though.”

“Well mom knows, I texted her after I got off the phone with Greg.” She admitted quietly. His pacing stopped, mind spinning. “She knows not to tell the Gems, though, your dad told me you didn’t want them to know, and I told her that.” Steven took a few breaths, trying to stop the tangled thought spiral of panic after knowing Dr. Maheswaran had been told about this accident. “So she’ll understand if you need to call after dark. Honestly, if you have to drive somewhere late, and you want to just talk on the phone to keep yourself from falling asleep, I’ll take that over worrying you won’t make it home.”

“Dad offered to do that too.”

“If you don’t call me on the ride, just text me that you got home when you leave my house. If I know you’re safe, I’ll sleep better at night.”

“I can do that.” He murmured. “I’m sorry.”

“I’m glad you’re ok.”

“Yeah, I’m glad I didn’t hit anything else. The car was scratched up but other than the passenger side mirror falling off, most of the damage isn’t too bad. I needed some other work done so they’re doing all of it today. I’ll be back on the road tomorrow.” He paused. “And I’ll be more careful from now on.”

“I sure hope you will,” she replied anxiously. “Why aren’t you getting enough sleep?” Steven chewed the inside of his lip as he considered what to say.

“It’s just been really busy lately.” Steven said, shrugging. “Little Homeschool takes up a lot of time, and some days are harder than others to get enough sleep.”

“Please try to take care of yourself, ok?” she urged. “I want you to be safe.”

“I know, I’ll try to be better about it. I don’t like making you worry.”

“My mom’s going to make you take a tea with you if you try to leave while yawning too much.”

“Yeah, just, please don’t tell Pearl. I don’t think I could take her hiding my car keys to make sure I don’t have any accidents. I don’t want to have to rely on Lion again, he disappears for days at a time, and warps can’t get me everywhere.”

“I won’t. I know you like your independence.”

“Are you still mad?” Steven asked.

“A little bit, but I know you understand, so I feel a lot better.”

“I hope you can forgive me.”

“As long as I know you’ll be more careful. I won’t stop talking to you over it.”

“Good, that was awful last time.”

“Yeah, but we made it through.” Connie paused. “I should probably tell mom you’re doing ok, I stopped texting her after you called me.”

“Ok, I’ll talk to you later.”

“Bye,” Connie replied, and hung up. Steven put his phone back in his pocket. He walked back to the pair of beach chairs his dad had at the front of It’s a Wash. He laid back in the chair and sighed.

Greg came out of the office where he kept his microwave and mini fridge with a piping hot egg and cheese wrap on a paper plate, in one hand and two sodas in the other. “Everything ok, Schtu-ball? I got a bite to eat if you want.” Greg offered the sandwich to Steven, which he took, but wouldn’t meet his dad’s eyes. “You mad?”

“Yeah, kind of,” Steven said, shrugging. “She brought up some good points though. She was yelling and crying, which made me feel bad that it was my fault, but I was gonna tell her later, just not today.”

“Well, I figured you should have somebody else to talk about this with.” Greg replied, rubbing the back of his neck. “I probably shouldn’t have pressed as much, but I know you feel guilty about the car, and if you won’t talk to the gems or me, somebody’s gotta check in with you, you know?”

“I hate being the reason she’s upset,” Steven muttered, taking a bite of the sandwich. The pair looked to the setting sun, and Greg sat down, placing one soda next to Steven’s chair and kept the other in his hand. ”I don’t want to cause any more trouble.”

“We all make mistakes, kiddo.” Greg said. “I know I did, at your age. As long as you’re learning from them and you don’t get hurt doing reckless things, we’re not going to hold it against you. She’s angry with you because I know the two of you mean a lot to each other. And you mean the world to me. Just be more careful, ok?”

“Yeah,” Steven replied.

Greg and Steven spent the evening in quiet reflection, enjoying the sunset and each other’s company. Greg could only be grateful that Steven’s first accident hadn’t been worse. No one could replace the love he had in his heart for his son, though he knew Steven had the love of many. He hoped one day that Steven’s best friend would be the one he thought that way about, too.

[tocinephile]

The Morning After... 2021 Oscars Edition

Whether you liked it or hated it, at least last night's Oscars are worth talking about, which is more than I can say for any other award show this season. But there's no way to hate on Glenn Close doing "Da Butt" after telling Daniel Kaluuya he was too young to know Donna Summer trivia, now that's the mark you want to leave on Oscars history!

This year's award began in a beautiful garden party and then moved inside a train station for a cavernous yet intimate small audience feel. Largely live with overseas presenters (including the Brits gathered at BFI) broadcast with a quality signal with pros on site to make sure everyone was unmuted when they should be, and a few pre-recorded segments thrown in.

Hats off to Regina King for her stylish entrance during the classic movie opening credits, give her an award for walking all the way through Union Station in heels no less! Some people missed the comedic opening, but for all the years that those same skits/monologues incited criticisms and yawns, I think it was fine to skip the comedy for one year. Apparently it's also fine to skip the musical performances and film clips when announcing the nominees. Perhaps many will disagree, but I often take bio breaks leave the room during the song performances anyway, coupled with none of the songs making an impression on me this year, it made no difference to me.

Awards were also presented in a different order this year. By the middle of the show I was already seeing commentary about this in my Twitter but I actually thought things were going well until out of nowhere they start announcing the Best Picture nominees and I started to wonder if I'd left the room by mistake during the Best Actor/Actress awards. I haven't found any sources yet that confirm the reason for the change-up, I can only assume they were saving the Best Actor for last so we could all have an emotional cry over the tragic loss of Chadwick Boseman. It turned out both the Best Actress and Best Actor awards were a bit of a surprise, we can now reconfirm our trust in PWC that NOBODY knows the winners ahead of time.

The Best Actress category hasn't had a clear frontrunner but I was personally rooting for Andra Day. I thought Viola Davis also had a good shot of winning. While Carey Mulligan's film was my favourite, I was really blown away by Day's performance. Plus I really wanted to see a BIPOC sweep in the acting categories and I think this was the year for the Oscars to do this right. Frances McDormand is always a force, but I think it was in Three Billboards that she outdid herself, and she was awarded for that. In Nomadland, she was merely 'great'.

Then came the final category of the night and we prepared for them to announce the Best Actor. I'm just going to be presumptuous and say most people were expecting Chadwick Boseman to win posthumously, but not only did they announce Anthony Hopkins name, he wasn't even in attendance/available on video conference to make a speech. The biggest night in Hollywood ended with "we accept this award on his behalf. Thank you and goodnight". I really don't think this is what Steven Soderbergh (and Stacey Sher and Jesse Collins) had in mind. I would have to agree that Hopkins really nailed his performance in The Father, and the film in general is quite an achievement (not only in acting, but in writing, editing, and set design) but I think had the producers known what would hapen, they would have stuck with the classic formula and ended things with Nomadland taking Best Picture. Sure, it would have been playing it safe, but hey, ain't nothing wrong with a classic Hollywood ending.

The acting categories were strong as always. I remarked to a friend prior to the awards, out of the films of the Actor nominees I saw Mank first and thought there was no way Gary Oldman could lose, but after seeing the rest of the films, I had changed my opinion to he didn't stand a chance. And of course there were my BIPOC (ok, every time I type this I think there should have been an Indigenous person nominated... Oscars 2022 are you listening??) acting sweep fantasies. If not Boseman, then maybe Riz Ahmed? Or Steven Yuen? To be up there with a statue alongside Youn Yuh Jung and Chloe Zhao cause "#OscarsSoAsian" has a nice ring to it.

Let's look a little closer at the winners by category:

Best Actor in a Leading Role

Riz Ahmed (“Sound of Metal”)

Chadwick Boseman (“Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom”)

Anthony Hopkins (“The Father”) (WINNER)

Gary Oldman (“Mank”)

Steven Yeun (“Minari”)

Since this was the last award, it’s forever remembered as “ruining” the Oscars. While it was not the ending we wanted (maybe it was the ending we deserved? j/k…) it’s important to note Sir Anthony Hopkins didn’t ruin the Oscars, the producers betting an entire award show finale on what they thought was a sure thing is what derailed the evening. What Hopkins did was give a phenomenal performance and subsequently became the oldest actor to be recognized in the category.

I did want Chadwick Boseman to win. I did want a teary emotional finish. I did want a person of colour to win the Oscar. But I also want millions of dollars and the ability to travel around the world right now, so, let’s keep our desires in check.

Best Actress in a Leading Role

Viola Davis (“Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom”)

Andra Day (“The United States v. Billie Holiday”)

Vanessa Kirby (“Pieces of a Woman”)

Frances McDormand (“Nomadland”) (WINNER)

Carey Mulligan (“Promising Young Woman”)

Oh how badly did I want Andra Day to win? How amazing did I think Viola Davis was? How much did I love Carey Mulligan’s film? (and sidenote: Does Vanessa Kirby know how to smile? Forget smiling, I don’t think I saw her expression change once during the show last night?) But you gotta respect Frances McDormand who didn’t care if she won, who doesn’t need to explain herself, and advocates for Karaoke Bars at award shows.

Best Picture

“The Father”

“Judas and the Black Messiah”

“Mank”

“Minari”

“Nomadland” (WINNER)

“Promising Young Woman”

“Sound of Metal”

“The Trial of the Chicago 7”

Someone on Twitter rightly pointed out… Best Picture is a good choice to hand out last because there’s always someone there to accept it. I’m all for Nomadland winning this, but wouldn’t it have been awesome if Promising Young Woman took it for the upset of the season?

Best Original Song

“Fight for You,” (“Judas and the Black Messiah”). Music by H.E.R. and Dernst Emile II; Lyric by H.E.R. and Tiara Thomas (WINNER)

“Hear My Voice,” (“The Trial of the Chicago 7”). Music by Daniel Pemberton; Lyric by Daniel Pemberton and Celeste Waite

“Húsavík,” (“Eurovision Song Contest”). Music and Lyric by Savan Kotecha, Fat Max Gsus and Rickard Göransson

“Io Si (Seen),” (“The Life Ahead”). Music by Diane Warren; Lyric by Diane Warren and Laura Pausini

“Speak Now,” (“One Night in Miami”). Music and Lyric by Leslie Odom, Jr. and Sam Ashworth

Best Original Score

“Da 5 Bloods,” Terence Blanchard

“Mank,” Trent Reznor, Atticus Ross

“Minari,” Emile Mosseri

“News of the World,” James Newton Howard

“Soul,” Trent Reznor, Atticus Ross, Jon Batiste (WINNER)

I’ll never get used to seeing Trent Reznor as a multiple Oscar Winner/Nominee. (Spoken like a true Gen X-er)

Best Film Editing

“The Father,” Yorgos Lamprinos

“Nomadland,” Chloé Zhao

“Promising Young Woman,” Frédéric Thoraval

“Sound of Metal,” Mikkel E.G. Nielsen (WINNER)

“The Trial of the Chicago 7,” Alan Baumgarten

I’d read in some articles that whoever gets Editing also typically wins Sound and vice versa. Is that true? Has it always been true or is that recent? Wasn’t there recognition in Sound Editing and Sound Mixing until recent years? While Sound of Metal immediately stood out to me in Sound (I mean, would it have been truly successful if it didn’t?) I’m still not sure how it’s outstanding for its editing. The Father on the other hand, and even The Trial of the Chicago 7. I’d also like to note that David Fincher films also typically feature great editing, and so my impressions of Mank are correct and reconfirmed by its absence in this category.

Best Cinematography

“Judas and the Black Messiah,” Sean Bobbitt

“Mank,” Erik Messerschmidt (WINNER)

“News of the World,” Dariusz Wolski

“Nomadland,” Joshua James Richards

“The Trial of the Chicago 7,” Phedon Papamichael

I’m hearing from both the Oscar Pools I was part of, that I was in the minority for calling this one correctly.

Best Production Design

“The Father.” Production Design: Peter Francis; Set Decoration: Cathy Featherstone

“Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom.” Production Design: Mark Ricker; Set Decoration: Karen O’Hara and Diana Stoughton

“Mank.” Production Design: Donald Graham Burt; Set Decoration: Jan Pascale (WINNER)

“News of the World.” Production Design: David Crank; Set Decoration: Elizabeth Keenan

“Tenet.” Production Design: Nathan Crowley; Set Decoration: Kathy Lucas

There’s just something about old Hollywood isn’t there? I mean most creative should definitely be The Father, and outstanding is Ma Rainey, but this is Hollywood’s night, not unusual for them to celebrate themselves. For what it’s worth, I loved the Production Design in Mank. Also in all the personal tidbits they tried to share about the nominees, the only one I remember a day later is winner Jan Pascale's dream career trajectory for me... from puppeteer for Mr Rogers to set decorating for David Fincher! Talk about living your best life!

Best Actress in a Supporting Role

Maria Bakalova (‘Borat Subsequent Moviefilm”)

Glenn Close (“Hillbilly Elegy”)

Olivia Colman (“The Father”)

Amanda Seyfried (“Mank”)

Yuh-Jung Youn (“Minari”) (WINNER)

This is going to come off unkind, but I never understood how Maria Bakalova made the cut once we stopped separating out Comedy and Drama categories. What can I say, I just didn’t get the appeal of the Borat sequel (I was lukewarm to first one too truth be told, but at least it was funnier)

Best Visual Effects

“Love and Monsters,” Matt Sloan, Genevieve Camilleri, Matt Everitt and Brian Cox

“The Midnight Sky,” Matthew Kasmir, Christopher Lawrence, Max Solomon and David Watkins

“Mulan,” Sean Faden, Anders Langlands, Seth Maury and Steve Ingram

“The One and Only Ivan,” Nick Davis, Greg Fisher, Ben Jones and Santiago Colomo Martinez

“Tenet,” Andrew Jackson, David Lee, Andrew Lockley and Scott Fisher (WINNER)

I haven’t looked too carefully at other smaller awards, but I feel there is a world of technical awards out there that Tenet deserves to win. I wonder if Tenet shouldn’t have gotten some recognition for Sound as well, alongside the sets, stunts, etc etc.

Best Documentary Feature

“Collective,” Alexander Nanau and Bianca Oana

“Crip Camp,” Nicole Newnham, Jim LeBrecht and Sara Bolder

“The Mole Agent,” Maite Alberdi and Marcela Santibáñez

“My Octopus Teacher,” Pippa Ehrlich, James Reed and Craig Foster (WINNER)

“Time,” Garrett Bradley, Lauren Domino and Kellen Quinn

Best Documentary Short Subject

“Colette,” Anthony Giacchino and Alice Doyard (WINNER)

“A Concerto Is a Conversation,” Ben Proudfoot and Kris Bowers

“Do Not Split,” Anders Hammer and Charlotte Cook

“Hunger Ward,” Skye Fitzgerald and Michael Scheuerman

“A Love Song for Latasha,” Sophia Nahli Allison and Janice Duncan

Best Animated Feature Film

“Onward” (Pixar)

“Over the Moon” (Netflix)

“A Shaun the Sheep Movie: Farmageddon” (Netflix)

“Soul” (Pixar) (WINNER)

“Wolfwalkers” (Apple TV Plus/GKIDS)

Best Animated Short Film

“Burrow” (Disney Plus/Pixar)

“Genius Loci” (Kazak Productions)

“If Anything Happens I Love You” (Netflix) (WINNER)

“Opera” (Beasts and Natives Alike)

“Yes-People” (CAOZ hf. Hólamói)

Best Live-Action Short Film

“Feeling Through”

“The Letter Room”

“The Present”

“Two Distant Strangers” (WINNER)

“White Eye”

Best Sound

“Greyhound,” Warren Shaw, Michael Minkler, Beau Borders and David Wyman

“Mank,” Ren Klyce, Jeremy Molod, David Parker, Nathan Nance and Drew Kunin

“News of the World,” Oliver Tarney, Mike Prestwood Smith, William Miller and John Pritchett

“Soul,” Ren Klyce, Coya Elliott and David Parker

“Sound of Metal,” Nicolas Becker, Jaime Baksht, Michelle Couttolenc, Carlos Cortés and Phillip Bladh (WINNER)

Best Director

Thomas Vinterberg (“Another Round”)

David Fincher (“Mank”)

Lee Isaac Chung (“Minari”)

Chloé Zhao (“Nomadland”) (WINNER)

Emerald Fennell (“Promising Young Woman”)

This has been said, but it needs to be said again (and again)… Oscar Winner Chloe Zhao is the 2nd woman in the history of the Oscars (which is nearing close to a century) to win in this category and the first woman of Asian descent. Her award announced by last year’s – also Asian – winner Bong Joon Ho. THIS is what I want to be hearing in the news about Asians. Seeing all the side by side photo comparisons of them each posing with their two Oscars is sparking so much joy in my social media feeds.

Best Costume Design

“Emma,” Alexandra Byrne

“Mank,” Trish Summerville

“Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom,” Ann Roth (WINNER)

“Mulan,” Bina Daigeler

“Pinocchio,” Massimo Cantini Parrini

When you take a step back and consider Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom as a whole, the look of the entire film really does grab you doesn’t it? Well deserved win.

Best Makeup and Hairstyling

“Emma,” Marese Langan, Laura Allen, Claudia Stolze

“Hillbilly Elegy,” Eryn Krueger Mekash, Patricia Dehaney, Matthew Mungle

“Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom,” Sergio Lopez-Rivera, Mia Neal, Jamika Wilson (WINNER)

“Mank,” Kimberley Spiteri, Gigi Williams, Colleen LaBaff

“Pinocchio,” Mark Coulier, Dalia Colli, Francesco Pegoretti

I said this in my twitter best... in recent years it’s finally dawned on the Academy to stop simply awarding the period films in these categories. I fully support this, I just need to remember this when I’m making Oscar Pool picks in attempts to win money.

Best Actor in a Supporting Role

Sacha Baron Cohen (“The Trial of the Chicago 7”)

Daniel Kaluuya (“Judas and the Black Messiah”) (WINNER)

Leslie Odom Jr. (“One Night in Miami”)

Paul Raci (“Sound of Metal”)

Lakeith Stanfield (“Judas and the Black Messiah”)

I’d like to thank Daniel Kaluuya’s mom and dad for having sex too.

Best International Feature Film

“Another Round” (Denmark) (WINNER)

“Better Days” (Hong Kong)

“Collective” (Romania)

“The Man Who Sold His Skin” (Tunisia)

“Quo Vadis, Aida?” (Bosnia and Herzegovina)

Another Round was an early favourite among audiences, I saw it back in the fall myself. I’m almost positive it’s the style of the film and a general lack of enthusiasm I have for cinema of Northern Europe (no offence, there are many exceptions but I don’t really jump out of my seat when I hear there’s a Scandinavian film festival in town) but I wouldn’t rave about this film. It’s decent but I was much more moved by Better Days (which is a Mandarin-spoken film, so I was entirely reliant on the subtitles despite it originating from HK) and much more interested in seeing Quo Vadis, Aida?

Best Adapted Screenplay

“Borat Subsequent Moviefilm.” Screenplay by Sacha Baron Cohen, Anthony Hines, Dan Swimer, Peter Baynham, Erica Rivinoja, Dan Mazer, Jena Friedman, Lee Kern; Story by Sacha Baron Cohen, Anthony Hines, Dan Swimer, Nina Pedrad

“The Father,” Christopher Hampton and Florian Zeller (WINNER)

“Nomadland,” Chloé Zhao

“One Night in Miami,” Kemp Powers

“The White Tiger,” Ramin Bahrani

Looking at this list, I’m reminded that Regina King should have gotten a nomination for directing. Good script but her direction brought it to life.

Best Original Screenplay

“Judas and the Black Messiah.” Screenplay by Will Berson, Shaka King; Story by Will Berson, Shaka King, Kenny Lucas, Keith Lucas

“Minari,” Lee Isaac Chung

“Promising Young Woman,” Emerald Fennell (WINNER)

“Sound of Metal.” Screenplay by Darius Marder, Abraham Marder; Story by Darius Marder, Derek Cianfrance

“The Trial of the Chicago 7,” Aaron Sorkin

I’m so happy Emerald Fennell won, over Aaron Sorkin, who’s got enough awards he can live without this one despite Trial of the Chicago 7 being some good writing. There’s something to be said about a story so triggering, wracks many with guilt (I know it did that for me, and it better have done the same for many others that I know, because we all know the things we turned a blind eye to growing up in the years that we did. We remember the things that we cannot even bare to talk to each other about now.), and we still can’t help but be in awe and consider it the best damn story of the year.

Also tipping my hat to Minari (which Chef/Restuaranteur/TV celeb David Chang so accurately describes as the real “Marriage Story”) and Judas and the Black Messiah. And the absence of Da 5 Bloods needs to be pointed out, it should’ve been nominated for Screenplay.

Sound of Metal is many things, its performances, technical achievements, and even directing are superior, but script-wise… I liked It’s All Gone Pete Tong (2004) better.

My post-Oscar ramble seems a little longer than usual (I mean, I do have a LOT more time than usual) so I won't recap my tweets of varying relevance and intelligence, you can find them all on my Twitter at https://twitter.com/palindr0me