By: Alex Spindler

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences will soon announce its nominees for the 86th Academy Awards, regarded by many to be the highest accolade a film can receive.

PICTURE:

“12 Years a Slave,” “Gravity,” “American Hustle,” “August: Osage County,” “Saving Mr. Banks” Lackluster in comparison to last year, this year’s choices for the highly-coveted best picture will probably feature period dramas, sci-fi thrillers and modern-day tragicomedies.

ACTOR:

Chiwetel Ejiofor – “12 Years a Slave,” Bruce Dern – “Nebraska,” Robert Redford – “All is Lost,” Tom Hanks – “Captain Phillips,” Leonardo DiCaprio – “Wolf of Wall Street” A Best Actor nomination could literally go toward either spectrum: a seasoned, respected actor (Redford) or a rising, British scene-stealer (Ejiofor). The nominations for this are up for grabs.

ACTRESS:

Sandra Bullock – “Gravity,” Cate Blanchett – “Blue Jasmine,” Meryl Streep – “August: Osage County,” Emma Thompson – “Saving Mr. Banks,” Judi Dench – “Philomena” This slew of nominations will likely go to seasoned, previously nominated ladies. They share 31 nominations just among the five of them and each is a previous Oscar winner.

SUPPORTING ACTOR:

Barkhad Abdi – “Captain Phillips,” Michael Fassbender – “12 Years a Slave,” Bradley Cooper – “American Hustle,” Jared Leto – “Dallas Buyers Club,” Daniel Bruh – “Rush” This award never seems to have a rhyme or reason its result. It will be nice to see some fresh faces to the category compared to last year’s group of already honored gentlemen.

SUPPORTING ACTRESS:

Jennifer Lawrence – “American Hustle,” Julia Roberts – “August: Osage County,” Oprah Winfrey – “The Butler,” Lupita Nyong’o – “12 Years a Slave,” Scarlett Johansson – “Her” Frequently labeled as the “scene stealer” award, this category features a bevy of talented actresses. Lawrence remains a familiar face to the Oscar circuit while Nyong’o has exploded on the screen with her debut performance.

ANIMATED FEATURE:

“Despicable Me 2,” “Frozen,” “Monsters University” While Pixar has dominated this category since its inception in 2001, it makes for a quieter showing this year. It’s safe to say that “Frozen” has taken the proverbial cake here.