Despite the awful winners, stupid rules, and boring telecasts, I’m a sucker for the Oscars. And so I always get excited this time of year when awards buzz picks up, even though I’m typically unable to see most of the movies nominated.
Most interesting to me: the “For Your Consideration” sites the studios put online to promote their films to Academy voters. Typically, these sites at minimum list showtimes for special screeni
ngs so voters can get another chance to see the films on the big screen.
Of course, those screenings are only for the some 6000 Academy members who get to vote. So what do these sites offer the rest of us?
Besides the immense pleasure we get from learning that Disney is actively campaigning to get High School Musical 3 a Best Picture nomination (check for yourself if you don’t believe me), we get access to free, legit PDFs of many great screenplays. Many of the sites also sample potential contenders for Best Original Score.
Since there doesn’t appear to be a single list for available scripts, I thought I’d compile what I found here (Note: this list may be incomplete, and I may update it as more screenplays become available). Broken down by studio:
Walt Disney Studios is campaigning on behalf of Bolt, Miracle at St. Anna, Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian, Wall-E, and the aforementioned HSM:3. The only available screenplay is Wall-E, which has a pretty good shot at getting a nomination for Best Original Screenplay.
Miramax Films highlights Doubt and Happy-Go-Lucky, but neither have scripts uploaded.
Universal Pictures has scripts up for Changeling (original) and Frost/Nixon (adapted). The studo is also promoting Mamma Mia! and The Tale of Despereaux.
Focus Features is pushing Burn After Reading (an original script by Oscar faves the Coen brothers) and Milk (original).
Warner Bros., no surprise here, is working hard to make sure The Dark Knight gets the recognition it deserves. The only other film WB is promoting is Clint Eastwood’s Gran Torino, but the script is not yet available online.
Paramount Pictures (with Dreamworks and Dreamworks Animation) has a fairly bare site, with just screening information for Indiana Jones IV, Kung Fu Panda, Madagascar 2, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, and Tropic Thunder. No scripts are currently available, but I wouldn’t be surprised if they eventually put up Benjamin Button. If it isn’t available here, Warner Bros. (which is handling international distribution) is promising to upload it onto its BAFTA site.
Paramount Vantage has scripts up for The Duchess and Defiance (both adapted). The adapted screenplay for Revolutionary Road will likely appear eventually as well.
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UPDATE 11/25/08
