Oscars: ‘Frozen,’ ‘Despicable Me 2’ and ‘The Croods’ make Animated Features shortlist

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences has announced the list of 19 animated films that will be eligible for the Best Animated Feature Oscar. The list includes many of the top-grossing films of the year like Despicable Me 2, as well as the highly anticipated Disney film Frozen.

In a statement today, the Academy noted that even if a film did make the shortlist, it still has to make its qualifying theatrical run in Los Angeles and New York before the end of the year. Some on the list haven’t had that yet, including Frozen, which hits theaters on Nov. 27. You can check out a newly released trailer here. The film is considered the frontrunner for the Oscar.

Disney has two other films in the race, including Pixar’s Monsters University and the Cars spin-off Planes. Planes was initially slated for a straight-to-video release, but it ended up grossing $212 million worldwide. While it’s not likely to get nominated, Monsters University has a chance, as Pixar movies have dominated the category. The studio’s Brave won the award last year, despite mediocre reviews.

Other big studio releases on the list include DreamWorks’ Turbo and The Croods; Sony’s Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs 2 and Smurfs 2; and Universal’s Despicable Me 2.

Here’s the full list:

“Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs 2”
“The Croods”
“Despicable Me 2”
“Epic”
“Ernest and Celestine”
“The Fake”
“Free Birds“
“Frozen”
“Khumba”
“The Legend of Sarila”
“A Letter to Momo”
“Monsters University”
“O Apóstolo”
“Planes”
“Puella Magi Madoka Magica the Movie – Rebellion”
“Rio: 2096 A Story of Love and Fury”
“The Smurfs 2”
“Turbo”
“The Wind Rises”

The Oscars are set for March 2, 2014 and nominees are announced on Jan. 16. The Academy has already announced the Foreign Language and Documentary Short shortlists.

image: Universal/image.net