Is the race for Best Cinematography over before it’s even really begun? Now that Mank has been unveiled, the spectacular black-and-white photography of Erik Messerschmidt is dazzling critics and audiences alike. With his feature film debut as director of photography, Messerschmidt is practically an unstoppable frontrunner right now.
So who has a chance to stop him? The beautiful landscape photography of Joshua James Richards in Nomadland remains firmly in the race, as does the spectacular work of Newton Thomas Sigel in Da 5 Bloods. And while Lachlan Milne’s imagery in Minari is far more subtle, it’s a potential darkhorse here, especially if the Academy truly falls in love with the film.
BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY PREDICTIONS:
1. Mank (Netflix)
Erik Messerschmidt
2. Nomadland (Searchlight Pictures)
Joshua James Richards
3. News of the World (Universal Pictures)
Dariusz Wolski
4. Da 5 Bloods (Netflix)
Newton Thomas Sigel
5. Minari (A24)
Lachlan Milne
MAJOR CONTENDERS:
The Father (Sony Pictures Classics)
Ben Smithard
Hillbilly Elegy (Netflix)
Maryse Alberti
I’m Thinking of Ending Things (Netflix)
Łukasz Żal
Judas and the Black Messiah (Warner Bros.)
Sean Bobbitt
Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom (Netflix)
Tobias A. Schliessler
The Midnight Sky (Netflix)
Martin Ruhe
Mulan (Disney)
Mandy Walker
One Night in Miami (Amazon Studios)
Tami Reiker
Tenet (Warner Bros.)
Hoyte van Hoytema
The Trial of the Chicago 7 (Netflix)
Phedon Papamichael