4) In The Heart Of The Sea
Potential nominations: Best Picture, Cinematography
The Academy loves Ron Howard. He’s uncontroversial, reliable, and he makes solid, respectable (and sometimes a little boring) films. He’s been nominated for four Oscars and won two already. This means that there’s still a good chance his seafaring epic In the Heart of the Sea, despite the lack of buzz so far, will feature heavily in the 2016 Oscar race.
If the film’s any good, Best Picture is a good shout, and maybe Director, too. If it’s just OK, Cinematography is still a strong possibility: the film was shot by the great, Oscar-winning Anthony Dod Mantle, and the trailer for the film shows off some wonderfully weird and vibrant visuals. Visual Effects has potential too (much of the film will involve a CGI’d whale and naturally problematic ocean scenes).
If nothing else, In the Heart of the Sea is a period piece, so Hair & Makeup and Costume Design should be a virtual lock, unless the film turns out to be utter tripe.