71 Countries Submit For Best Foreign Language Oscar: Who Are The Contenders?

71 Countries Submit For Best Foreign Language Oscar: Who Are The Contenders?

A record breaking 71 countries have submitted movies for the prize of Best Foreign-Language movie at February’s 85th’s annual Oscars, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences confirmed this week.

This year’s batch of submissions includes entries from Kenta (Nairobi Half Half) and Kyrgyzstan (The Empty House), helping to push the tally beyond the previous record of 67 countries. Though there’s a fine array of movies on offer this year, attention is understandably fixed on Michael Haneke’s ‘Amour’ (Austria) – winner of the prestigious Palme d’Or at the Cannes Film Festival. Haneke’s story of love tested under severe circumstances is highlighted as one of the year’s finest movies – full stop – and will take all the beating come February. It’s likely that the film will receive nominations in the major categories too. The category’s 2011 winner ‘A Separation’ also received a nod for the original screenplay prize, though Iran announced it would not enter a movie for 2012 in protest against the U.S. anti-Islam video that has gained notoriety in recent months. Elsewhere, Australia’s ‘Lore’ and Bosnia and Herzegovina’s ‘Children of Sarajevo’ receive submissions on the back of positive reviews.

The full list of submissions are as followed;
Afghanistan, "The Patience Stone," Atiq Rahimi
Albania, "Pharmakon," Joni Shanaj
Algeria, "Zabana!" Said Ould Khelifa
Argentina, "Clandestine Childhood," Benjamín Ávila
Armenia, "If Only Everyone," Natalia Belyauskene
Australia, "Lore," Cate Shortland
Austria, "Amour," Michael Haneke
Azerbaijan, "Buta," Ilgar Najaf
Bangladesh, "Pleasure Boy Komola," Humayun Ahmed
Belgium, "Our Children," Joachim Lafosse
Bosnia and Herzegovina, "Children of Sarajevo," Aida Begic
Brazil, "The Clown," Selton Mello
Bulgaria, "Sneakers," Valeri Yordanov and Ivan Vladimirovs
Cambodia, "Lost Loves," Chhay Bora
Canada, "War Witch," Kim Nguyen
Chile, "No," Pablo Larraín
China, "Caught in the Web," Chen Kaige
Colombia, "The Snitch Cartel," Carlos Moreno
Croatia, "Vegetarian Cannibal," Branko Schmidt
Czech Republic, "In the Shadow," David Ondrícek
Denmark, "A Royal Affair," Nikolaj Arcel
Dominican Republic, "Jaque Mate," José María Cabral
Estonia, "Mushrooming," Toomas Hussar
Finland, "Purge," Antti J. Jokinen
France, "The Intouchables," Olivier Nakache and Eric Toledanos
Georgia, "Keep Smiling," Rusudan Chkonia
Germany, "Barbara," Christian Petzold
Greece, "Unfair World," Filippos Tsitos
Greenland, "Inuk," Mike Magidson
Hong Kong, "Life without Principle," Johnnie To
Hungary, "Just the Wind," Bence Fliegauf
Iceland, "The Deep," Baltasar Kormákur
India, "Barfi!" Anurag Basu
Indonesia, "The Dancer," Ifa Isfansyah
Israel, "Fill the Void," Rama Burshtein
Italy, "Caesar Must Die," Paolo Taviani and Vittorio Tavianis
Japan, "Our Homeland," Yang Yonghi
Kazakhstan, "Myn Bala: Warriors of the Steppe," Akan Satayev
Kenya, "Nairobi Half Life," David 'Tosh' Gitonga
Kyrgyzstan, "The Empty Home," Nurbek Egen
Latvia, "Gulf Stream under the Iceberg," Yevgeny Pashkevich
Lithuania, "Ramin," Audrius Stonys
Macedonia, "The Third Half," Darko Mitrevski
Malaysia, "Bunohan," Dain Iskandar Said
Mexico, "After Lucia," Michel Franco
Morocco, "Death for Sale," Faouzi Bensaïdi
Netherlands, "Kauwboy," Boudewijn Koole
Norway, "Kon-Tiki," Joachim Rønning and Espen Sandbergs
Palestine, "When I Saw You," Annemarie Jacir
Peru, "The Bad Intentions," Rosario García-Montero
Philippines, "Bwakaw," Jun Robles Lana
Poland, "80 Million," Waldemar Krzystek
Portugal, "Blood of My Blood," João Canijo
Romania, "Beyond the Hills," Cristian Mungiu
Russia, "White Tiger," Karen Shakhnazarov
Serbia, "When Day Breaks," Goran Paskaljevic
Singapore, "Already Famous," Michelle Chong
Slovak Republic, "Made in Ash," Iveta Grofova
Slovenia, "A Trip," Nejc Gazvoda
South Africa, "Little One," Darrell James Roodt
South Korea, "Pieta," Kim Ki-duk
Spain, "Blancanieves," Pablo Berger
Sweden, "The Hypnotist," Lasse Hallström
Switzerland, "Sister," Ursula Meier
Taiwan, "Touch of the Light," Chang Jung-Chi
Thailand, "Headshot," Pen-ek Ratanaruang
Turkey, "Where the Fire Burns," Ismail Gunes
Ukraine, "The Firecrosser," Mykhailo Illienko
Uruguay, "The Delay," Rodrigo Plá
Venezuela, "Rock, Paper, Scissors," Hernán Jabes
Vietnam, "The Scent of Burning Grass," Nguyen Huu Muoi.