20 Dec – "Okja", the Netflix serving directed by South Korean filmmaker Bong Joon-ho, is one of the ten films shortlisted in the visual effects category of the upcoming Academy Awards. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) announced the good news, saying that five of the ten shortlisted film, which will be announced on 23 January 2018, will then compete for the 90th Academy Awards' Best Visual Effects. The fantasy drama film utilised the assistance of Erik-Jan de Boer's team in its special effects, the same team that won an Oscar for Ang Lee's "Life of Pi".
Revolving around the friendship between a young South Korean girl and her genetically modified pet pig, "Okja" was released on Netflix in 28 June 2017 and stars Ahn Seo-hyun, Tilda Swinton, Jake Gyllenhaal, Paul Dano, Lily Collins and Steven Yuen. It is the only Asian film in the category that is vying for the Best Visual Effects nomination amongst the Hollywood and European films in the longlist. Other movies in the category include "Kong: Skull Island", "The Shape of Water". "Star Wars: The Last Jedi", "Dunkirk", "Alien: Covenant", "Blade Runner 2049", "Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2", "Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets" and War for the Planet of the Apes". The 90th Academy Awards ceremony will take place on 4 March in Hollywood.