The Oscar’s are coming! The Oscar’s are coming!

While they haven’t happened yet, we at Black Chick Media can’t contain our excitement at the announcement of the nominations. After all, the Oscars are the biggest night in Hollywood. It’s no surprise that the oldest awards in Hollywood have lost none of their prestige and significance.

After the disappointing lack of diversity and inclusion of the Oscars for the past two years, we are proud to say that this year (and hopefully for years to come) the Academy has taken the initiative to recognize talent within the industry that so often goes unnoticed and unrecognized.

In fact, the announcement of the nominations made history. This is the first year in Oscars history where six black actors (from four critically acclaimed films) were nominated in the acting categories.

Viola Davis and Denzel Washington were nominated for Best Actor and Best Supporting Actress respectively for their moving performances in Fences. While Denzel received his seventh nomination, extending his lead as the most nominated black actor in history, Viola Davis became the most nominated black actress in history, and the first black actress to be nominated for three Academy Awards. Considering the unparalleled acting skills Viola has shown for years, we’re surprised that this is even a thing.

We also can’t forget about Naomie Harris and Mahershala Ali, who were nominated for Best Supporting Actress and Best Supporting Actor respectively for their performances in Moonlight. Lastly, Ruth Negga received a nomination for Best Actress for her understated performance in Loving, the only nomination for the film.

For the ceremony’s highest honor of Best Picture, three films (Fences, Moonlight, and Hidden Figures) whose stories focused primarily on people of color, were nominated. Barry Jenkins, the director of Moonlight, was nominated for Best Director and Best Adapted Screenplay. August Wilson, the playwright who wrote Fences, received a posthumous nomination for Best Adapted Screenplay as well.

While artists of color had an impression in all of the major categories, they also had an impact on several of the lesser known categories as well. Ava DuVernay – director of Selma – was nominated for Best Documentary for The 13th, a gripping examination of the complex racial inequalities and injustices of the U.S. prison system. In addition, I am Not Your Negro and O.J.: Made in America, two other documentaries that examine race in America were also nominated in a landmark year of artistic works that painted a picture of the reality of race relations in America today.

In addition, Lin Manuel-Miranda, the man responsible for the musical masterpiece that is Hamilton, was nominated for penning Best Original Song for “How Far I’ll Go” the standout song from the animated film Moana (which also received a nomination for Best Animated Film). If Manuel-Miranda wins the Oscar, he’ll be one of the few people who can claim the title of an EGOT winner.

Finally, Bradford Young, a Howard University graduate and the cinematographer of the alien-invasion drama Arrival, became the first African-American to be nominated for Best Cinematography. Even if he doesn’t claim the award, we’re happy to see artists of color being recognized in front and behind the camera.

Congrats to all the nominees in all 24 categories. We wish you all the best on Oscar night. You can watch the ceremony on ABC Sunday, February 26th, 2017 hosted by Jimmy Kimmel. We at Black Chick Media will be live-tweeting the Oscars and we hope you’ll tune in and join us!

Find the full list of nominees below!

Best Picture:

“Arrival”
“Fences”
“Hacksaw Ridge”
“Hell or High Water”
“Hidden Figures”
“La La Land”
“Lion”
“Manchester by the Sea”
“Moonlight”

Best Actor:

Casey Affleck, “Manchester by the Sea”
Andrew Garfield, “Hacksaw Ridge”
Ryan Gosling, “La La Land”
Viggo Mortensen, “Captain Fantastic”
Denzel Washington, “Fences”

Best Actress:

Isabelle Huppert, “Elle”
Ruth Negga, “Loving”
Natalie Portman, “Jackie”
Emma Stone, “La La Land”
Meryl Streep, “Florence Foster Jenkins”

Best Supporting Actor:

Mahershala Ali, “Moonlight”
Jeff Bridges, “Hell or High Water”
Lucas Hedges, “Manchester by the Sea”
Dev Patel, “Lion”
Michael Shannon, “Nocturnal Animals”

Best Supporting Actress:

Viola Davis, “Fences”
Naomie Harris, “Moonlight”
Nicole Kidman, “Lion”
Octavia Spencer, “Hidden Figures”
Michelle Williams, “Manchester by the Sea”

Best Director:

“Arrival,” Denis Villeneuve
“Hacksaw Ridge,” Mel Gibson
“La La Land,” Damien Chazelle
“Manchester by the Sea,” Kenneth Lonergan
“Moonlight,” Barry Jenkins

Best Original Screenplay:

“Hell or High Water,” Taylor Sheridan
“La La Land,” Damien Chazelle
“The Lobster,” Yorgos Lanthimos, Efthimis Filippou
“Manchester by the Sea,” Kenneth Lonergan
“20th Century Women,” Mike Mills

Best Adapted Screenplay:

“Arrival”
“Fences”
“Hidden Figures”
“Lion”
“Moonlight”

Best Foreign Language Film:

“Land of Mine”
“A Man Called Ove”
“The Salesman”
“Tanna”
“Toni Erdmann”

Best Cinematography: 

“Arrival”
“La La Land”
“Lion”
“Moonlight”
“Silence”

Best Costume Design:

“Allied”
“Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them”
“Florence Foster Jenkins”
“Jackie”
“La La Land”

Best Makeup and Hairstyling:

“A Man Called Ove”
“Star Trek Beyond”
“Suicide Squad”

Best Original Score:

”Jackie,” Mica Levi
“La La Land,” Justin Hurwitz
“Lion,” Dustin O’Halloran and Hauschka
“Moonlight,” Nicholas Britell
“Passengers,” Thomas Newman

Best Animated Feature Film:

“Kubo and the Two Strings”
“Moana”
“My Life as a Zucchini”
“The Red Turtle”
“Zootopia”

Best Animated Short Film:

“Blind Vaysha”
“Borrowed Time”
“Pear Cider and Cigarettes”
“Pearl”
“Piper”

Best Documentary Feature: 

“Fire at Sea”
“I Am Not Your Negro”
“Life Animated”
“O.J.: Made in America”
“13th”

Best Documentary Short Subject: 

“Extremis”
“4.1 Miles”
“Joe’s Violin”
“Watani: My Homeland”
“The White Helmets”

Best Film Editing:

“Arrival”
“Hacksaw Ridge”
“Hell or High Water”
“La La Land”
“Moonlight”

Best Original Song:

“Audition (The Fools Who Dream)” from “La La Land”
“Can’t Stop the Feeling” from “Trolls”
“City of Stars” from “La La Land”
“The Empty Chair” from “Jim: The James Foley Story”
“How Far I’ll Go” from “Moana”

Best Production Design:

“Arrival”
“Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them”
“Hail, Caesar!”
“La La Land”
“Passengers”

Best Live Action Short Film:

“Ennemis Interieurs”
“La femme et Le TGV”
“Silent Nights”
“Sing”
“Timecode”

Best Sound Editing:

“Arrival”
“Deepwater Horizon”
“Hacksaw Ridge”
“La La Land”
“Sully”

Best Sound Mixing: 

“Arrival”
“Hacksaw Ridge”
“La La Land”
“Rogue One: A Star Wars Story”
“13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi”

Best Visual Effects:

“Deepwater Horizon”
“Doctor Strange”
“The Jungle Book”
“Kubo and the Two Strings”
“Rogue One: A Star Wars Story”