Could this be the hippest Best Original Song category in years? Meh, probably not. Basically, it works like this. If you had an original song in a movie this year, you’re basically on the shortlist (hello Katrina Elam for “Pure Country 2”). Then, the Academy goes through a pretty ridiculous system to determine the nominees (more on that in a second) which results in small handful of final contenders who are all usually from one or two films (get ready for mulitiple nods “Burleseque”!).
So what does that all mean? Well, hopefully we won’t have to deal with Justin Bieber‘s “Never Say Never” (featuring Jaden Smith!) from “The Karate Kid” coming near the Kodak Theater, but it also means that good and/or creative songs by worthwhile talent (Beck for “Life During Wartime,” Pharrell‘s tunes for “Despicable Me,” Jonsi‘s “Stick & Stones” for “How To Train Your Dragon”) will probably get left in the dust to make room for much more easily digestible fare or familiar names (they might as well just send Randy Newman his invitation now). But we swear to god, if we see that douchebag Owl City step up to a microphone during the Oscar ceremonies, we’re gonna ga’hoole all over our TV screens.
Voting to whittle down the shortlist will begin on January 6th, when the Academy will screen clips featuring each song, in random order, for voting members of the Music Branch in Los Angeles. Following the screenings, members will determine the nominees by an averaged point system vote. If no song receives an average score of 8.25 or more, there will be no nominees in the category. If only one song achieves that score, it and the song receiving the next highest score shall be the two nominees. If two or more songs (up to five) achieve that score, they shall be the nominees. Did you follow all that? Yeah, we didn’t either.
“Alice” from “Alice in Wonderland”
“Forever One Love” from “Black Tulip”
“Freedom Song” from “Black Tulip”
“Bound to You” from “Burlesque”
“Welcome to Burlesque” from “Burlesque”
“You Haven’t Seen the Last of Me” from “Burlesque”
“There’s a Place for Us” from “The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader”
“Coming Home” from “Country Strong”
“Me and Tennessee” from “Country Strong”
“Despicable Me” from “Despicable Me”
“Prettiest Girls” from “Despicable Me”
“Dear Laughing Doubters” from “Dinner for Schmucks”
“Better Days” from “Eat Pray Love”
“If You Run” from “Going the Distance”
“Darkness before the Dawn” from “Holy Rollers”
“Sticks & Stones” from “How to Train Your Dragon”
“Le Gris” from “Idiots and Angels”
“Chanson Illusionist” from “The Illusionist”
“Never Say Never” from “The Karate Kid”
“To the Sky” from “Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga’Hoole”
“What If” from “Letters to Juliet”
“Life During Wartime” from “Life During Wartime”
“Made in Dagenham” from “Made in Dagenham”
“Little One” from “Mother and Child”
“Be the One” from “The Next Three Days”
“If I Rise” from “127 Hours”
“When You See Forever” from “The Perfect Game”
“I Remain” from “Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time”
“Dream Big” from “Pure Country 2: The Gift”
“How I Love You” from “Ramona and Beezus”
“Darling I Do” from “Shrek Forever After”
“Noka Oi” from “Six Days in Paradise”
“This Is a Low” from “Tamara Drewe”
“I See the Light” from “Tangled”
“Rise” from “3 Billion and Counting”
“We Belong Together” from “Toy Story 3”
“Eclipse: All Yours” from “The Twilight Saga: Eclipse”
“Nothing” from “Tyler Perry’s Why Did I Get Married Too”
“A Better Life” from “Unbeaten”
“Shine” from “Waiting for ‘Superman’”
“The Reasons Why” from “Wretches & Jabberers”