Oscars Best Foreign Language race begins

World
Europe

The race for the Oscars has officially begun. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, which awards the prestigious gold statues, is currently taking submissions for the Best Foreign Language Film Category.

So far, 17 countries have submitted their official selection to be considered for Academy Award nomination. Among those already vying for a chance to be featured on Hollywood’s biggest night is South Korea with “A Taxi Driver,” Germany with “In the Fade,” and Sweden with “The Square.”

Four of the films submitted are from Asia. In addition to S. Korea’s submission, Japan has selected “Her Love Boils Bathwater,” Thailand picked “By the Time It Gets Dark,” and Nepal submitted “White Sun.”

China has yet to submit a selection to this season’s race.

Chinese nominees

While China's submissions and wins have not been overwhelming, the Chinese films that have been celebrated are much beloved by critics and audiences alike.

"Ju Dou" 菊豆 was the first Chinese film to be nominated for an Oscar. The 1990 art house drama received mass critical praise when it was nominated for an Academy Award.

Several years later, "Farewell My Concubine" 霸王別姬 (1994) (Hong Kong) won the Palme d’Or at the 1993 Cannes Film Festival and numerous awards around the world.

Je Li’s "Hero" 英雄 (2002) was the last Chinese film to be nominated in the Best Foreign Language Category. The martial arts hit was one of the highest-grossing foreign language films and martial arts films in North American box office history.

#OscarsSoWhite controversy

In recent years the Oscars have come under fire for their lack of diversity. This outcry sparked the hashtag #OscarsSoWhite in 2016, which has continued to haunt the Academy for the past two award seasons.

Since then, the Academy has been working to repair its tarnished image by extending membership invitations to the most diverse group of candidates in history. In 2016, Idris Elba, Daniel Dae Kim, and Frieda Pinto were welcomed. While this year’s class included Maggie Cheung, Priyanka Chopra and John Cho.

These strides are a big improvement from when white actors earned Oscars for playing Latino and Asian characters. Warner Baxter won the Best Actor award for his portrayal of the Mexican Cisco Kid in 1928’s “In Old Arizona.” And Austrian Luise Rainer won her second Best Actress Oscar playing Chinese peasant O’Lan in 1937’s “The Good Earth.”

Last year, 85 films from around the world were submitted for one of the 5 coveted spots. The official Oscar Best Foreign Film Category nominees will be revealed in January of next year.

Here's a list of all the submissions so far: