Mark Harris has been pretty vocal in expressing his disdain for the Oscar buzz that emerged from the echo chamber that is the Toronto Film Festival. Instead, he claims that the awards race really started last week, when audiences were actually able to see two of the awards hopefuls that emerged from the fall festival circuit: Nicole Holofcener’s “Enough Said” and Ron Howard’s “Rush.” (Of course, by that rationale, you may argue that the Oscar race runs all year round.) Anyway, while it’s “Rush” that has enjoyed far more advance buzz, it’s Holofcener’s quiet indie, Harris argues, that emerged victorious in the real world, winning on the critical and commercial front. Will voters see it? “In the case of Rush, it’s Hollywood that tells the world, ‘This is an Academy movie’,” he writes. “In the case of Enough Said, it’s the world that has to tell Hollywood.” [Grantland]
The Academy has made some changes to the voting system in the animated race — Steve Pond examines the specifics. [The Wrap]
Former Academy president Tom Sherak has been named the new Los Angeles “film czar.” I confess I saw this headline repeated about a dozen times before I actually knew what it meant. [LA Times]
“Fruitvale Station,” which is still unreleased in the UK, will kick off a Screen International showcase of “award-worthy” titles in London. [Screen Daily]
Lovely piece, this: Cicely Tyson and Kerry Washington meet for brunch, and chat across the generations. [New York Times]
Woody Allen talks to Catherine Shoard about gender, samurai auteurism and the accidental topicality of his “shock masterpiece,” “Blue Jasmine.” [The Guardian]
Zachary Wigon explains what filmmakers can learn from the career of artist turned auteur turned current Oscar frontrunner Steve McQueen. [Tribeca Film]
The US poster for “Diana” is better than the British one — though I doubt that will overcome the toxic word from across the pond. [House Next Door]
“Star Wars,” “The Good, the Bad and the Ugly” and “West Side Story” have been voted Britain’s favorite film soundtracks in a BBC listeners’ poll. [The Independent]
Speaking of “The Good, the Bad and the Ugly,” that film’s screenwriter Luciano Vincenzoni has passed away aged 87. R.I.P. [The Telegraph]