The British Film Academy announced their nominations in the wee-hours of the morning Tuesday. Similar in its prestige to the Academy Awards, the British Academy Film Awards (BAFTA) will feature three categories in which Toy Story 3 has received nominations! The animated film has been flying high lately, most recently named Best Animated Film at the Critics Choice Awards and the Golden Globes. That run looks like it is just getting started.
Toy Story 3 has been nominated in the following categories:
Adapted Screenplay
- 127 Hours – Danny Boyle, Simon Beaufoy
- The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo – Rasmus Heisterberg, Nikolaj Arcel
- The Social Network – Aaron Sorkin
- Toy Story 3 – Michael Arndt
- True Grit – Joel Coen, Ethan Coen
Animated Film
- Despicable Me
- How To Train Your Dragon
- Toy Story 3
Special Visual Effects
- Alice In Wonderland
- Black Swan
- Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1
- Inception
- Toy Story 3
So far, the nomination for best animated film has been Toy Story 3’s most reliable nomination. In a strong year for animation, the film has still topped most critics’ lists in the animation category, making it the film to beat. Echoing what will likely also happen when the Oscar nominations are announced, the British Film Academy gave the animated film a nomination in the screenplay category, recognizing the fantastic writing that has become commonplace for Pixar films.
The surprise nomination is in the visual effects category, where live-action films have had the tendency to dominate. To find the last animated film to receive a nomination here for a BAFTA, you have to go all the way back to the 2001 film, Shrek. The last Pixar film to receive a visual effects nomination from the British Film Academy was A Bug’s Life (released in 1998), which lost out to The Matrix. The only other Pixar to be nominated for a visual effects award across the pond was the very first feature film the studio released, Toy Story. With animation and visual effects that were often stunning, the nomination for Toy Story 3 is a pleasant surprise.
To view the full list of the year’s nominees, click here.
The British Academy Film Awards will be presented on Sunday, February 13 at the Royal Opera House in London.
