French
DeutschList of foreign-language films nominated for Academy Awards
This article lists all the foreign language films which have been nominated for or won Academy Awards in any category, not just the International Feature Film category (known before the 2019 awards as Best Foreign Language Film) itself. The Academy Awards, popularly known as the Oscars, are among the world's oldest and most prestigious film prizes.[1] They were first handed out on May 16, 1929 by the U.S.-based Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, and have been given annually ever since.[2] Even though a separate prize has existed for foreign language films since the 1956 Academy Awards, such films continue to be eligible for Academy Awards in other categories, including Best Picture, provided that they have been commercially released in Los Angeles County, California and that they comply with the special rules governing those categories.[3] The French comedy À Nous la Liberté (1931) was the first foreign language film to be nominated for an Academy Award (Best Art Direction); the German-language Swiss drama Marie-Louise (1944) was the first to actually win one (Best Original Screenplay).
Although a Los Angeles theatrical release is not required for eligibility for the Best International Feature Film Award itself, it is a prerequisite for consideration for Academy Awards in other categories. In the past, this had enabled some foreign language films to receive nominations over multiple years, the most recent case being that of the Italian comedy-drama Amarcord (1973). Because such films were still unreleased in Los Angeles when they were submitted to the Academy, they could only be nominated in the Foreign Language Film category. However, upon their Los Angeles release, they became eligible for other Academy Awards, and often ended up receiving nominations in various categories one year after their initial Foreign Language Film nomination. Presently, such nominations over multiple years are no longer possible since the current rules of the Academy unambiguously state that: "Films nominated for the Best International Feature Film Award shall not be eligible for Academy Awards consideration in any category in any subsequent Awards year." This restriction, however, does not apply to submitted films that were not selected as nominees.[3] The Brazilian film City of God (2002) was thus able to receive four Academy Award nominations for the 2003 Academy Awards, even though it had failed to garner a Foreign Language Film nomination as Brazil's official submission for the 2002 Academy Awards.[4]
Background
[edit]
Foreign films are not to be confused with foreign language films. A foreign film is a motion picture produced outside the United States, regardless of the language used in its dialogue track. A foreign language film, on the other hand, is a predominantly non-English speaking motion picture, regardless of where it was produced. Although the overwhelming majority of foreign language films are foreign, this is not always the case: in recent years, for instance, several non-English speaking American films such as The Passion of the Christ (2004), Letters from Iwo Jima (2006) or Minari (2020) have been nominated for Academy Awards (American films have never been eligible for the Best International Feature Film Award, even if none of the dialogue is in English). Such films are included in this list. On the other hand, foreign films where the majority of the dialogue is in English — such as the Indo-British co-production of Gandhi (1982) — are not taken into account. The article also includes films such as the Japanese anime Spirited Away (2001) that were initially released in their native country in a foreign language but were nominated by the Academy for the English-dubbed version under which they were shown in Los Angeles. The films are grouped by award category, and are arranged chronologically within each category. The years are listed as per Academy convention, and generally correspond to the year of film release; the ceremonies are always held the following year. The winning films are in bold and in light blue background; the presence of an Oscar statuette indicates the official recipient of the award.
Best Picture
[edit]The Best Picture category has existed since the creation of the Academy Awards. Its name has changed several times over the years. When Grand Illusion (1937) was nominated, the name of the category was Outstanding Production; the Best Picture designation has been continuously used since the 1962 Academy Awards. Individual producers have been officially nominated for this award since the 1951 Academy Awards. Previously, the nominations went to the production companies instead.
Acting awards
[edit]Documentary Feature
[edit]The Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature category has existed since 1942.
Documentary Short Film
[edit]The Academy Award for Best Documentary Short Film has been awarded since the 14th Academy Awards in 1941.
Animated Feature Film
[edit]The Animated Feature Film category has existed since the 2001 Academy Awards. The intended recipient(s) of this award must be designated by those responsible for the production of the film. Agreement on the designated recipient(s) has to be settled prior to the film's submission to the Academy. Unlike other Academy Awards, the Best Animated Feature Film Award therefore does not always go to the same crew member. However, the person(s) to whom it is given must always be "the key creative individual most clearly responsible for the overall achievement or a two-person team with shared and equal directing credit".[12]
| Year | Film title used in nomination | Original title | Award recipient(s) | Country of production | Language(s) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2002 (75th) | Spirited Away | Sen to Chihiro no kamikakushi 千と千尋の神隠し | Hayao Miyazaki (director & writer) |  Japan | Japanese (nominated for its English-dubbed version) | |
| 2003 (76th) | The Triplets of Belleville | Les Triplettes de Belleville | Sylvain Chomet (director & writer) |  France Belgium Canada United Kingdom | French | |
| 2005 (78th) | Howl's Moving Castle | Hauru no ugoku shiro ハウルの動く城 | Hayao Miyazaki (director, writer & executive producer) | Japan | Japanese (nominated for its English-dubbed version) | |
| 2007 (80th) | Persepolis | Persépolis | Marjane Satrapi Vincent Paronnaud (directors & writers) | France Iran | French (some parts in English, Persian & German) | [13] |
| 2010 (83rd) | The Illusionist | L'Illusionniste | Sylvain Chomet (director & writer) | France | French (some parts in English and Gaelic) | |
| 2011 (84th) | A Cat in Paris | Une vie de chat | Alain Gaignol (director & writer) Jean-Loup Felicioli (director) | France Belgium Netherlands Switzerland | French | |
| Chico and Rita | Chico y Rita | Fernando Trueba (director & writer) Javier Mariscal (director) |  Spain United Kingdom | Spanish (some parts in English) | ||
| 2013 (86th) | Ernest & Celestine | Ernest et Célestine | Benjamin Renner (director) Didier Brunner (producer) | France Belgium | French | |
| The Wind Rises | Kaze tachinu 風立ちぬ | Hayao Miyazaki (director & writer) Toshio Suzuki (producer) | Japan | Japanese | ||
| 2014 (87th) | The Tale of the Princess Kaguya | Kaguya-hime no Monogatari かぐや姫の物語 | Isao Takahata (director) Yoshiaki Nishimura (producer) | Japan | Japanese | |
| 2015 (88th) | Boy and the World | O Menino e o Mundo | Alê Abreu (director) |  Brazil | Brazilian Portuguese | |
| When Marnie Was There | Omoide no Mānī 思い出のマーニー | Hiromasa Yonebayashi (director) Yoshiaki Nishimura (producer) | Japan | Japanese | ||
| 2016 (89th) | My Life as a Courgette | Ma vie de Courgette | Claude Barras (director) Max Karli (producer) | France Switzerland | French | |
| The Red Turtle | La Tortue Rouge レッドタートル ある島の物語 | Michaël Dudok de Wit (director) Toshio Suzuki (producer) | France Belgium Japan | No dialogue | ||
| 2018 (91st) | Mirai | Mirai no Mirai 未来のミライ | Mamoru Hosoda (director) Yuichiro Saito (producer) | Japan | Japanese | |
| 2019 (92nd) | I Lost My Body | J'ai perdu mon corps | Jérémy Clapin (director) Marc du Pontavice (producer) | France | French | |
| 2021 (94th) | Flee | Flugt | Jonas Poher Rasmussen (director) Monica Hellström (producer) Signe Byrge Sørensen (producer) |  United States United Kingdom France  Sweden  Norway  Denmark | Danish | |
| 2023 (96th) | The Boy and the Heron | Kimitachi wa Dō Ikiru ka 君たちはどう生きるか | Hayao Miyazaki (director) Toshio Suzuki (producer) | Japan | Japanese | |
| 2024 (97th) | Flow | Straume | Gints Zilbalodis (director & producer) Matīss Kaža (producer) Ron Dyens (producer) Gregory Zalcman (producer) |  Latvia France Belgium | No dialogue |
Animated Short Film
[edit]The Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film has been awarded since the 5th Academy Awards, covering the year 1931–32, to the present. From 1932 to 1970, the category was presented as Short Subjects, Cartoons, and from 1971 to 1973 as Short Subjects, Animated Films. The first non-English-language international short to win was Zagreb Film's Ersatz (The Substitute) in 1961.
| Year | Film title used in nomination | Original title | Award recipient(s) | Country of production | Language(s) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1951 (24th) | The Two Mouseketeers | The Two Mouseketeers | Fred Quimby | United States | English, French | [14] |
| 1960 (33rd) | A Place in the Sun | O místo na slunci | František Vystrčil |  Czechoslovakia | Czech | [14] |
| 1961 (34th) | Ersatz | Surogat | Zagreb Film |  Yugoslavia | Serbo-Croatian | [14] |
| 1963 (36th) | My Financial Career | My Financial Career | Tom Daly Colin Low | Canada | English, French | [14] |
| The Game | Igra | Dušan Vukotić | Yugoslavia | Serbo-Croatian | ||
| 1967 (40th) | What on Earth! | What on Earth! | Robert Verrall Wolf Koenig | Canada | English, French | [14] |
| Hypothese Beta | Hypothèse Beta | Jean-Charles Meunier | France | French | ||
| 1971 (44th) | Evolution | Évolution | Michael Mills | Canada | English, French | [15] |
| 1972 (45th) | Tup Tup | Tup Tup | Nedeljko Dragić | Yugoslavia Italy | No dialogue | [15] |
| 1973 (46th) | Pulcinella | Pulcinella | Guilo Gianini Emanuele Luzzati | Italy | Italian | [15] |
| 1975 (48th) | Sisyphus | Sisyphus | Marcell Jankovics |  Hungary | No dialogue | |
| 1976 (49th) | Dedalo | Dedalo | Manfredo Manfredi | Italy | No dialogue | |
| 1979 (52nd) | Every Child | Every Child | Derek Lamb | Canada | English, French | |
| Dream Doll | Lutka snova | Bob Godfrey Zlatko Grgić | United Kingdom Yugoslavia | No dialogue | ||
| 1980 (53rd) | The Fly | A légy | Ferenc Rófusz | Hungary | No dialogue | |
| 1982 (55th) | Tango | Tango | Zbigniew Rybczyński |  Poland | No dialogue | |
| 1985 (58th) | Anna & Bella | Anna & Bella | Cilia van Dijk | Netherlands | Dutch | |
| 1986 (59th) | A Greek Tragedy | A Greek Tragedy | Willem Thijssen Linda Van Tulden | Belgium | Dutch | |
| 1987 (60th) | The Man Who Planted Trees | L'homme qui plantait des arbres | Frédéric Back | Canada | French, English | |
| 1989 (62nd) | Balance | Balance | Christoph Lauenstein Wolfgang Lauenstein |  West Germany | No dialogue | |
| The Cow | Корова | Aleksandr Petrov |  Soviet Union | Russian | ||
| 1990 (63rd) | Grasshoppers | Cavallette | Bruno Bozzetto | Italy | Italian | |
| 1992 (65th) | Reci, Reci, Reci... | Reci, Reci, Reci... | Michaela Pavlátová | Czechoslovakia | Czech | |
| 1993 (66th) | The Mighty River | Le Fleuve aux grandes eaux | Frédéric Back Hubert Tison | Canada | English, French | |
| 1994 (67th) | The Monk and the Fish | Le Moine et le poisson | Michaël Dudok de Wit | France | No dialogue | |
| 1995 (68th) | Gagarin | Гагарин | Alexij Kharitidi |  Russia | Russian | |
| 1996 (69th) | Quest | Quest | Tyron Montgomery Thomas Stellmach | Germany | No dialogue | |
| La Salla | La Salla | Richard Condie | Canada | Italian | ||
| 1997 (70th) | The Mermaid | Русалка | Aleksandr Petrov | Russia | Russian | |
| 1998 (71st) | When Life Departs | Når livet går sin vej | Stefan Fjeldmark Karsten Kiilerich | Denmark Estonia | Danish | |
| 1999 (72nd) | The Old Man and the Sea | Старик и море | Aleksandr Petrov | Russia Canada Japan | English, French, Russian, Japanese | |
| 3 Misses | 3 Misses | Paul Driessen | Netherlands | No dialogue | ||
| 2000 (73rd) | Father and Daughter | Father and Daughter | Michaël Dudok de Wit | Netherlands United Kingdom | No dialogue | |
| 2002 (75th) | The Cathedral | Katedra | Tomek Baginski | Poland | No dialogue | |
| Rocks | Das Rad | Chris Stenner Heidi Wittlinger | Germany | German | ||
| Mt. Head | Atamayama 頭山 | Kōji Yamamura | Japan | Japanese | ||
| 2004 (77th) | Birthday Boy | Birthday Boy | Andrew Gregory Sejong Park |  Australia | Korean | |
| 2006 (79th) | Maestro | Maestro | Géza M. Tóth | Hungary | No dialogue | |
| 2007 (80th) | Even Pigeons Go to Heaven | Même les pigeons vont au paradis | Samuel Tourneux Simon Vanesse | France | French | |
| Madame Tutli-Putli | Madame Tutli-Putli | Chris Lavis Maciek Szczerbowski | Canada | English, French | ||
| My Love | Моя любовь | Aleksandr Petrov | Russia | Russian | ||
| 2008 (81st) | La Maison en Petits Cubes | Tsumiki no Ie つみきのいえ | Kunio Katō | Japan | Japanese | |
| Lavatory – Lovestory | Уборная история — любовная история | Konstantin Bronzit | Russia | No dialogue | ||
| Oktapodi | Oktapodi | Thierry Marchand Emud Mokhberi | France | French | ||
| 2009 (82nd) | Logorama | Logorama | Nicolas Schmerkin | France | English, French | |
| French Roast | French Roast | Fabrice Joubert | France | French | ||
| 2010 (83rd) | The Gruffalo | The Gruffalo | Max Lang Jakob Schuh | United Kingdom Germany | English, German | |
| Madagascar, a Journey Diary | Madagascar, a Journey Diary | Bastien Dubois | France | French | ||
| 2011 (84th) | Sunday | Dimanche | Patrick Doyon | Canada | French | |
| 2013 (86th) | Possessions | Tsukumo 九十九 | Shuhei Morita | Japan | Japanese | |
| 2015 (88th) | Bear Story | Historia de un oso | Pato Escala Pierart Gabriel Osorio Vargas |  Chile | Spanish | |
| 2016 (89th) | Blind Vaysha | Vaysha l'aveugle | Theodore Ushev | Canada | English, French | |
| 2017 (90th) | Garden Party | Garden Party | Victor Caire Gabriel Grapperon | France | French | |
| 2019 (92nd) | Sister | Sister | Siqi Song | United States | Mandarin | |
| Mémorable | Mémorable | Bruno Collet Jean-François Le Corre | France | French | ||
| 2020 (93rd) | Genius Loci | Genius Loci | Adrien Mérigeau Amaury Ovise | France | French | |
| Yes-People | Já-fólkið | Gísli Darri Halldórsson |  Iceland | Icelandic | ||
| 2021 (94th) | The Windshield Wiper | The Windshield Wiper | Alberto Mielgo Leo Sanchez | United States Spain | English, Romanian | |
| Bestia | Bestia | Hugo Covarrubias Tevo Díaz | Chile | Spanish | ||
| Boxballet | БоксБалет | Anton Dyakov | Russia | Russian | ||
| 2022 (95th) | Ice Merchants | Ice Merchants | João Gonzalez Bruno Caetano |  Portugal United Kingdom France | No dialogue | |
| 2023 (96th) | Letter to a Pig | מכתב לחזיר | Tal Kantor Amit R. Gicelter |  Israel France | Hebrew | |
| Our Uniform | Our Uniform | Yegane Moghaddam | Iran | Persian | ||
| Pachyderme | Pachyderme | Stéphanie Clément Marc Rius | France | French | ||
| 2024 (97th) | In the Shadow of the Cypress | در سایهی سرو | Hossein Molayemi Shirin Sohani | Iran | No dialogue | |
| Beautiful Men | Beautiful Men | Nicolas Keppens Brecht Van Elslande | Belgium France Netherlands | Dutch, Turkish | ||
| Magic Candies | Magic Candies | Daisuke Nishio Takashi Washio | Japan | Japanese | ||
| Yuck! | Beurk! | Loïc Espuche Juliette Marquet | France | French |
Art Direction/Production Design
[edit]The Production Design category, formerly named Best Art Direction until 2012, has existed since the creation of the Academy Awards. Until 1939, only one award was given. From 1940 until 1966, two awards were given, one for black-and-white films, the other for color films. The two awards were briefly merged at the 1957 and 1958 Academy Awards, and were permanently combined once again in a single category starting 1967. All the foreign language films that were nominated for the Art Direction Award between 1940 and 1966 received their nomination in the Black-and-White category, with the exception of Juliet of the Spirits (1965), which was nominated in the Color category.
Cinematography
[edit]The Cinematography category has existed since the creation of the Academy Awards. Until 1938, only one award was given. From 1939 until 1966, two awards were given, one for black-and-white films, the other for color films. The two awards were briefly merged at the 1957 Academy Awards, and were permanently combined once again in a single category starting 1967. However, since foreign language films were not nominated for the Cinematography Award prior to the 1966 Academy Awards, they were unaffected by the splits and mergers that took place in this category.
Costume Design
[edit]The Costume Design category has existed since the 1948 Academy Awards. Until 1966, two awards were given, one for black-and-white films, the other for color films. The two awards were briefly merged at the 1957 and 1958 Academy Awards, and were permanently combined once again in a single category starting 1967. All the foreign language films that were nominated for the Costume Design Award between 1948 and 1966 received their nomination in the Black-and-White category, with the exception of Gate of Hell (1953) and Juliet of the Spirits (1965), which were nominated in the Color category.
Directing
[edit]The Directing category has existed since the creation of the Academy Awards. Lina Wertmüller's nomination for Seven Beauties (1976) made her the first-ever woman to be nominated for the Directing Award.
| Year | Film title used in nomination | Original title | Award recipient | Country of production | Language(s) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960 (33rd) | Never on Sunday | Pote tin Kyriaki | Jules Dassin |  Greece United States | Greek (some parts in English) | |
| 1961 (34th) | La Dolce Vita | La dolce vita | Federico Fellini | Italy | Italian (some parts in English, French & German) | |
| 1962 (35th) | Divorce Italian Style | Divorzio all'italiana | Pietro Germi | Italy | Italian | |
| 1963 (36th) | Federico Fellini's 8½ | 8½ | Federico Fellini | Italy | Italian (some parts in English, French & German) | [5] |
| 1965 (38th) | Woman in the Dunes | Suna no onna 砂の女 | Hiroshi Teshigahara | Japan | Japanese | [6] |
| 1966 (39th) | A Man and a Woman | Un homme et une femme | Claude Lelouch | France | French | [5] |
| 1968 (41st) | The Battle of Algiers | La battaglia di Algeri (Italian) La Bataille d'Alger (French) | Gillo Pontecorvo | |