Pakistani film ‘Joyland’ advances in Oscars shortlist 

Karachi: In a proud moment for Pakistani moviegoers, Saim Sadiq's Joyland has been shortlisted for the 95th Academy Awards. This is the first time that a movie from Pakistan has been on the roster. 

The movie— starring Aleena Khan, Ali Junejo, Rasta Farooq, Sarwat Geelani, Salman Pirzada, and Sania Saeed— was announced as the country’s official submission in the 95th run of the biggest film awards in September.  

In May, Joyland debuted at Cannes as the first Pakistani movie ever in Official Selection and won the Jury Prize in Un Certain Regard. 

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has recently revealed its shortlist for Oscars 2023 across 10 categories – documentary, animated short, international features, original song, documentary short subject, original score, makeup and hairstyling, live-action short, and sound and visual effects. 

This is a respectable international feature longlist, pleasing in its relative geographical diversity. A few rote selections I could do without, but very glad SAINT OMER, RETURN TO SEOUL, THE QUIET GIRL, CORSAGE, DECISION TO LEAVE and JOYLAND all made it. Wish SAFE PLACE had too. pic.twitter.com/5D53Qln9ff

— Guy Lodge (@GuyLodge) December 21, 2022

Voting for nominations will take place from January 12-14 and nominations will be announced on January 24. 

The 95th Academy Awards will be held at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, USA on March 12. 

Elaborating on the decision-making process, the Oscars 2023 website read, “Academy members from all branches were invited to participate in the preliminary round of voting and must have met a minimum viewing requirement to be eligible to vote in the category. In the nominations round, Academy members from all branches are invited to opt-in to participate and must view all 15 shortlisted films to vote”.

Elsewhere, Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu’s Bardo, False Chronicle of a Handful of Truths is in the mix for Mexico, marking his third time on the shortlist.

‘Joyland’ has been collecting critical acclaim on the international film festival circuit, picking up the Queer Palm. 

The film tells the story of the male lead who while working as a background dancer falls in love with a transgender person.

On November 12, the government of Pakistan banned the film’s release in the country, citing ‘highly objectionable’ material.