Oscars 2026 – Animated Features – the year 2025 in animation

Elysia and guest Logan take a tour that begins with this year's five Oscar-animated features before turning to other highlights from the surprisingly short eligibility list, the most surprising exclusions from the eligibility list, and Logan's thoughts on this year's animated shorts and a few final recommendations and general Oscar picks and predictions.

• Origin and rules (00:03:49)
• The five nominees (00:11:57)
• The biggest snubs (01:17:34)
• Beyond the eligibility list (01:46:43)

Note: All film discussion in this episode is spoiler-free.

Links discussed:

This year's 35 Oscar-eligible features

Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes (with Logan)

Last year's Tech categories (with Logan)

Animated Feature nominees:

• KPop Demon Hunters (USA) – info (Netflix)
• Zootopia 2 (USA) – info (to rent, later Disney+)
• Elio (USA) – info (Disney+)
• Arco (France, USA) – info (to rent)
• Little Amélie or the Character of Rain (Belgium, Japan) – info (to rent)

Other films discussed: Marcel the Shell with Shoes On (2021, USA, Plex / to rent), Hoppers (2026, USA, in theaters)

Lost in Starlight (Korea, Netflix), The Bad Guys 2 (USA, Peacock / SkyShowtime), Scarlet (Japan, to rent soon), The Girl Who Leapt Through Time (2006, Japan, HBO Max), Belle (2021, Japan, HBO Max), In Your Dreams (USA, Netflix), Boys Go to Jupiter (USA, HBO Max), Endless Cookie (Canada, to rent), Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba Infinity Castle (Japan, to rent soon), Chainsaw Man – The Movie: Reze Arc (Japan, to rent), 100 Meters (Japan, Netflix)

Ne Zha 2 (China, HBO Max), Lesbian Space Princess (Australia, various streamers), The Colors Within (Japan, HBO Max), Predator: Killer of Killers (USA, Disney+/Hulu, our coverage [subscriber bonus]), Predator: Badlands (live action, USA, Disney+/Hulu, our coverage [public]), Prey (2022, live-action, USA, Disney+/Hulu, our coverage [subscriber bonus])

“The Three Sisters”* (Russia/”Cyprus” [no spoken language], trailer), “Butterfly”* (France, YouTube), “Forevergreen”* (USA, YouTube), “Retirement Plan”* (Ireland, YouTube [US] / Disney+ [NL]), “The Girl Who Cried Pearls”* (Canada, YouTube: English, French), “Snow Bear” (USA, YouTube), “Playing God” (Italian / French, Vimeo), “Hurikán” (Czechia, Vimeo)

The Girl Who Stole Time (China, trailer, our coverage [subscriber bonus]), Another World (Hong Kong, trailer, our coverage [subscriber bonus]), The Witcher: Sirens of the Deep (USA, Netflix)

*Nominated in the Animated Shorts category.

The 98th Academy Awards will air Sunday, March 15, 2025 at 7 pm ET (on ABC/Hulu in the US) – where it's aired around the world

Check how many Oscar nominees you've seen at OscarsDeathRace.com – or with extended stats and access to the animated shorts via DeathRaceTracking.com

Oscars 2026 coverage

Nominations + Best Picture preview

Live-Action, Animated, & Documentary Shorts 

Production Design, Costumes, Makeup & Hair

International Features

Documentary Features

Animated Features (this episode)

Score & Original Song

Cinematography, VFX, Editing, Sound

Adapted & Original Screenplay, Director

Lead & Supporting Actor & Actress, Casting

Ceremony reactions + Best Picture rankings

Deep dives into 2026 Oscar nominees

Sinners

One Battle After Another – pt. 1, pt. 2, pt. 3

Frankenstein

Weapons

Shorts: “Two People Exchanging Saliva,” “Jane Austen’s Period Drama,” “The Singers,” “Retirement Plan,” and “The Girl Who Cried Pearls”

For subscribers: 

Leiden IFF – WhachaWachin (Sentimental Value, If I Had Legs I Would Kick You, Arco)

Additional awards coverage

BAFTAs shorts

BAFTAs features

Independent Spirit Awards

Revisit Oscars 2024 & 2025: links in these show notes

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