While it may sound fitting for two film critics to name their pets Oscar, neither Christopher Campbell nor Kate Erbland named theirs for the Academy Awards. It just turns out that two of the Film School Rejects associate editors have animals (he a dog; she a cat) who share a name with the biggest film honor there is. So, we’ve decided to exploit these little friends and put them to work making predictions about who will win in the major categories this Sunday night. It’s okay, they were paid for their efforts.
First up is Oscar the dog (full name: Oscar the Groucho Marx Campbell), a tubby, ginger miniature pincher who enjoys sleeping under sheets and eating anything that’s not technically food (we swear he’s part goat). To make his predictions, he had a little help in the form of kibble, a piece of which was placed on cards for each nominee in ten categories (actually nine, because he got special doggy treats for Best Picture). Whichever name or title card he ran to first was his first-choice prediction.
The poor pup did experience a few snags. He initially chose Robert De Niro for Best Supporting Actor but the camera wasn’t recording (on second try he ran for Alan Arkin just to get it over with, it seemed). And while he chose Helen Hunt for Best Supporting Actress, he went for Anne Hathaway next and seemed to realize his mistake, turning to his friends as if to ask for a do-over. Finally, a funny thing happened with his Best Picture picking. On the first, confused effort, he actually ate all but the treat on Silver Linings Playbook. When redone for the official run, he went straight for Silver Linings Playbook.
Watch the video of Oscar’s predictions below:
Oscar the Dog’s Official Oscar Picks
Best Picture: Silver Linings Playbook
Best Director: Benh Zeitlin, Beasts of the Southern Wild
Best Animated Film: ParaNorman
Best Documentary: The Gatekeepers
Best Adapted Screenplay: Silver Linings Playbook
Best Original Screenplay: Django Unchained
Best Actor: Daniel Day-Lewis
Best Supporting Actor: Alan Arkin
Best Actress: Quvenzhané Wallis
Best Supporting Actress: Helen Hunt (but look at how he knows he meant Hathaway!)
Next up, meet Oscar Erbland (full name: Oscar Erbland), a skinny tuxedo cat who started life in an underground car garage and now lives in the absolute lap of luxury in Southern California. Oscar was self-assured about his early picks, including Lincoln for Best Picture and, shockingly enough, Michael Haneke for Best Director, but he began to slow down when we got to Animated Feature and Documentary. Eventually, he just tapped out and refused to budge, leaving an opening for his big brother Felix to bum-rush the picks for Best Original Screenplay. Apparently, Felix is a huge Wes Anderson fan, because that kit went straight to Moonrise Kingdom, pawed at it, meowed at it, and eventually just threw his body on it. Guaranteed winner. In any case, Felix’s ardor for Oscar prognostication lit a fire in his little brother, and Oscar tore through the acting categories with renewed vigor.
Everyone got treats and scratching pads by the evening’s end.
Behold, an entire gallery of photos of the world’s most charming seven-pounder feline picking Oscar winners (with bonus big brother!):
Oscar the Cat’s Official Oscar Picks
Best Picture: Lincoln
Best Director: Michael Haneke, Amour
Best Animated Film: Wreck-It Ralph
Best Documentary: Searching for Sugar Man
Best Adapted Screenplay: Beasts of the Southern Wild
Best Original Screenplay: Moonrise Kingdom
Best Actor: Daniel Day-Lewis
Best Supporting Actor: Alan Arkin
Best Actress: Jennifer Lawrence
Best Supporting Actress: Anne Hathaway
Who says that cats and dogs can’t get along? Oscar the cat and Oscar the dog agreed on the following Academy Awards picks: Best Actor (Daniel Day-Lewis) and Best Supporting Actor (Alan Arkin) and…yup, that’s it. Wow, you’d think we were just going totally random with our pet-picked Oscar winners. Wild stuff.
