We had 23 players this year (counting me). Thanks for playing! Unfortunately (for me), I didn’t learn my lesson, and ended up with two winners. James, remember a tie-breaker question for next year! This…is awkward…
If you look closer…
Must have been a duplicate card. Guess I’m getting a new accounting firm for next year! For my Grand Prize winners, unlike the Best Picture winners, you each get a prize.
In all seriousness, though, I feel awful that these two groups had a once-in-a-lifetime bucket list experience tarnished by a silly mistake. Not to mention the poor Matt Damon lookalike with the briefcase. Wouldn’t want to be that guy right about now.
And from the results, you all were just as surprised. With 23 entries, no one picked Moonlight for Best Picture!
That’s it for 2017’s contest. All participants should have received an email with your results. See you next year!
Did you watch the show? How many winners did you manage to see this year?
Leave me a comment below, and don’t forget to share and subscribe!
As per the rules for my Online Oscar Contest, here are my picks. It’s not too late to join in and win a book or some sweet Amazon monies! For those who enter, know that I’m going to watch the show tomorrow night (recorded), so results will go out some time on Tuesday.
I saw almost all of the Best Picture nominees this year. Tough choices. When in doubt, Hollywood loves a good movie about Hollywood. La La Land to sweep!
Best Picture (3 pts): La La Land
Directing (2 pts): Damien Chazelle – La La Land
Original Screenplay (2 pts): Manchester by the Sea
Adapted Screenplay (2 pts): Arrival
Leading Actor (2 pts): Casey Affleck – Manchester by the Sea
Leading Actress (2 pts): Isabelle Huppert – Elle
Supporting Actor (2 pts): Mahershala Ali – Moonlight
Supporting Actress (2 pts): Viola Davis – Fences
Production Design (1 pt): La La Land
Documentary Feature (1 pt): O.J. Made in America
Documentary Short(1 pt): The White Helmets
Animated Short(1 pt): Piper
Live Action Short Film (1 pt): Silent Nights
Foreign Language Film (1 pt): The Salesman (Iran)
Animated Feature (1 pt): Kubo and the Two Strings
Film Editing (1 pt): La La Land
Sound Editing (1 pt): La La Land
Sound Mixing (1 pt): La La Land
Cinematography (1 pt): La La Land
Visual Effects (1 pt): Kubo and the Two Strings
Costume Design (1 pt): Jackie
Makeup and Hairstyling (1 pt): A Man Called Ove
Original Score (1 pt): La La Land – Justin Hurwitz
Let me get this out of the way up front: These are not the best books of the year by any metric other than “what I enjoyed most.” If you’re looking for a great read and you trust my tastes, this post is for you.
I’ve done book recommendations for three years running now, usually before Christmas, but with my Big Move I didn’t have time to post about the previous year’s literary gems until now. Enjoy!
The perfect image to talk about some great books and to put in a quick plug for the online Oscar contest I’m running. Join in, win free books!
1) First up is a book I’ve loved for a long time, but re-read in 2016. The Things They Carried by Tim O’Brien is hard to categorize, but perhaps could be called a “Fictional Memoir.” Transcending the genre of war literature, this novel (or, arguably, collection of stories) is more a treatise on what it means for a story to be true. Highly recommended for lovers of storytelling and its impact on us as people.
2) Next is Hell Divers by Nicholas Sansbury Smith. Nick is one of my writer buddies, and this is the start to his latest series. For my money, Nick is really hitting his stride as a writer here. This book has a unique hook and it hits hard. Book 2 releases this summer and I’m looking forward to seeing where he goes with this world and these characters.
3)Bun by Brian Silveira and Lisa Nguyen is the bizarre and beautiful brainchild of my cover artist for SUPERPOWERED and PATHOGENS in partnership with his wife. After reading book one, I have to say: Brian, you have been holding back on my covers! The art on these pages are creative, detailed, stunning, and masterful. You can read the book for free online, but I’d highly recommend reaching out for a printed copy.
4) Finally, a book I listened to as I’m gearing up to write my fifth Click Your Poison novel, Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson. Alfred Molina was the narrator and did an incredible job, but that’s not the reason this book made my list. I’ve read/listened to a lot of classics, but this is one of the few that doesn’t dip into “widow dressing” (describing a scene ad nauseam). It’s also the progenitor for all the Pirates of the Caribbean movies, the restaurant Long John Silver’s, and basically our entire “Talk Like a Pirate” day culture.
Honorable Mentions
I read Best Food Writing 2015 edited by Holly Hughes as part of a book club last year, and there are some fantastic, thought-provoking stories in there. Some of the authors do an amazing job of relating new perspectives on food culture. However, I can’t 100% recommend it, because there were a few stories inside that weren’t quite to my…tastes.
I almost loved Modern Romance by Aziz Ansari. I think I wanted it to either be funnier or more insightful. Though it’s a short read with a little of both, so feel free to pick it up and judge for yourself. Or grab the audiobook and let Aziz make fun of you for being too lazy to read…
So, what do YOU think? Have you read any of the titles listed? Any suggestions for me?
Feel free to comment below, and don’t forget to share and subscribe!
Although I’m now living in the UK and will certainly not be watching live, I still have my online competition to turn to. That’s right — It’s time for the 4th Annual, James Schannep Oscar competition!
If you beat my predictions for the 2017 Academy Awards, I’ll gift you or a friend an e-copy of a Click Your Poison book. The highest scoring participant also gets a $10 giftcard to Amazon.com.
All you have to do is fill out the form below before showtime on Feb 26th (I’ll post mine online before then too) to qualify.
The complete list of the nominees can be found here.
Author James Schannep 