‘Coco,’ ‘Loving Vincent’ Lead 26 Films Submitted for 2018 Animated Feature Film Oscar

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced the 26 films submitted this year for consideration for the Animated Feature Film Oscar this morning and there were few surprises on this list.

Notably absent, however, was “Leap!” a animated film produced in France where it was known as “Ballerina” but released in the U.S. this August with vocal performances by Elle Fanning, Carly Rae Jepsen and Dane DeHaan, among others. It grossed $105 million worldwide, but clearly the current scandal surrounding its distributor, The Weinstein Company, affected its submission.

In a rule change this year, all members of the Academy are allowed to vote in the nominating process for this category. Whether that means more commercial fare such as “The Lego Batman Movie,” “The Boss Baby” or “Ferdinand” make the cut remains to be seen. Pixar’s “Coco” is the expected frontrunner to take the Oscar by a mile.

The contenders are as follows:

“The Big Bad Fox & Other Tales”
“Birdboy: The Forgotten Children”
“The Boss Baby”
“The Breadwinner”
“Captain Underpants The First Epic Movie”
“Cars 3”
“Cinderella the Cat”
“Coco”
“Despicable Me 3”
“The Emoji Movie”
“Ethel & Ernest”
“Ferdinand”
“The Girl without Hands”
“In This Corner of the World”
“The Lego Batman Movie”
“The Lego Ninjago Movie”
“Loving Vincent”
“Mary and the Witch’s Flower”
“Moomins and the Winter Wonderland”
“My Entire High School Sinking into the Sea”
“Napping Princess”
“A Silent Voice”
“Smurfs: The Lost Village”
“The Star”
“Sword Art Online: The Movie – Ordinal Scale”
“Window Horses The Poetic Persian Epiphany of Rosie Ming”