16 Animated Features Submitted for Oscar Consideration

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced today that 16 films have been submitted for consideration in the Best Animated Feature category of the 88th Academy Awards.

Here's the complete list:

Anomalisa
The Boy and the Beast
Boy and the World
The Good Dinosaur
Home
Hotel Transylvania 2
Inside Out
Kahlil Gibran's The Prophet
The Laws of the Universe – Part 0
Minions
Moomins on the Riviera
The Peanuts Movie
Regular Show: The Movie
Shaun the Sheep Movie
The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge out of Water
When Marnie Was There

Anomalisa: Official synopsis: Michael Stone, husband, father and respected author of "How May I Help You Help Them?" is a man crippled by the mundanity of his life. On a business trip to Cincinnati, where he's scheduled to speak at a convention of customer service professionals, he checks into the Fregoli Hotel. There, he is amazed to discover a possible escape from his desperation in the form of an unassuming Akron baked goods sales rep, Lisa, who may or may not be the love of his life. A beautifully tender and absurdly humorous dreamscape, from the brilliant minds of Charlie Kaufman (SYNECDOCHE, NEW YORK) and Duke Johnson ("Community" episode, Abed's Uncontrollable Christmas), this stop-motion animation wonder features the vocal cast of Jennifer Jason Leigh, Tom Noonan and David Thewlis and a stirring strings-based score by Carter Burwell.



The Boy and the Beast: From director Mamoru Hosoda (Wolf Children & Summer Wars) and Studio Chizu comes The Boy and the Beast. Kyuta, a boy living in Shibuya, and Kumatetsu, a lonesome beast from Jutengai, an imaginary world. One day, Kyuta forays into the imaginary world and, as he's looking for his way back, meets Kumatetsu who becomes his spirit guide. That encounter leads them to many adventures.



The Good Dinosaur: The Good Dinosaur asks the question: What if the asteroid that forever changed life on Earth missed the planet completely and giant dinosaurs never became extinct? Pixar Animation Studios takes you on an epic journey into the world of dinosaurs where an Apatosaurus named Arlo makes an unlikely human friend. While traveling through a harsh and mysterious landscape, Arlo learns the power of confronting his fears and discovers what he is truly capable of.



Home: When Oh, a loveable misfit from another planet, lands on Earth and finds himself on the run from his own people, he forms an unlikely friendship with an adventurous girl named Tip who is on a quest of her own. Through a series of comic adventures with Tip, Oh comes to understand that being different and making mistakes is all part of being human, and together they discover the true meaning of the word HOME.



Hotel Transylvania 2: Dracula's rigid monster-only hotel policy has finally relaxed, opening up its doors to human guests. But behind closed coffins, Drac is worried that his adorable half-human, half-vampire grandson, Dennis, isn't showing signs of being a vampire. So while Mavis is busy visiting her human in-laws with Johnny – and in for a major cultural shock of her own – "Vampa" Drac enlists his friends Frank, Murray, Wayne and Griffin to put Dennis through a "monster-in-training" boot camp. But little do they know that Drac's grumpy and very old, old, old school dad Vlad is about to pay a family visit to the hotel. And when Vlad finds out that his great-grandson is not a pure blood – and humans are now welcome at Hotel Transylvania – things are going to get batty!



Inside Out: Do you ever look at someone and wonder what's going on inside their head? Disney-Pixar's Inside Out takes an exciting and hilarious journey into the mind to find the answer. Based in Headquarters, the control center of 11-year-old Riley's mind (Kaitlyn Davis), five emotions are hard at work, led by lighthearted optimist Joy (Amy Poehler). She strives to make sure Riley stays happy as she operates alongside fellow emotions Fear (Bill Hader), Anger (Lewis Black), Disgust (Mindy Kaling) and Sadness (Phyllis Smith).



Kahlil Gibran's The Prophet: Inspired by the classic book by Kahlil Gibran, The Prophet is an animated feature film written and directed by Roger Allers (The Lion King), with animated "chapters" from award-winning animation directors from around the world, and featuring world-class musicians, singers, and composers.



The Laws of the Universe – Part 0: Strange and mysterious events are cropping up at NAZCA Academy – reports of students blacking out, waking up in strange places, and in one special case, a group academic misfits have become star students. When one student confides in her sister, Halle, about her blackout, Halle and her friends, Ray, Anna, Tyler, and Eisuke turn to the one person they trust, their professor, Suguru Yoake. In order to get to the bottom of these mysteries, Professor Yoake hypnotizes Halle's sister, discovering that the blackouts and disappearances are all linked to one thing – an Alien invasion. The students discover that a race of aliens, the Reptilians, have infiltrated NAZKA Academy…and they definitely don't come in peace. Professor Yoake confides in the students that he has developed a machine to contact peaceful Alien races. Using the mystical law of "like attracts like," Yoake's machine attempts contact with the Unmite Alien, who takes the students on an amazing adventure in his spacecraft, where they discover the hidden secrets of several planets. Upon their return to earth, the students stumble upon a deadly trap set by the Alien Messenger from the Flip-Side Universe. Will Ray and his friends be able to save Earth before it's destroyed for good?



Minions: The story of Universal Pictures and Illumination Entertainment's Minions begins at the dawn of time. Starting as single-celled yellow organisms, Minions evolve through the ages, perpetually serving the most despicable of masters. Continuously unsuccessful at keeping these masters—from T. rex to Napoleon—the Minions find themselves without someone to serve and fall into a deep depression. But one Minion named Kevin has a plan, and he—alongside teenage rebel Stuart and lovable little Bob—ventures out into the world to find a new evil boss for his brethren to follow. The trio embark upon a thrilling journey that ultimately leads them to their next potential master, Scarlet Overkill (Academy Award-winner Sandra Bullock), the world's first-ever female super-villain. They travel from frigid Antarctica to 1960s New York City, ending in 'mod' London, where they must face their biggest challenge to date: saving all of Minionkind...from annihilation.



Moomins on the Riviera: In search of adventures, the Moomins, Snorkmaiden and Little My set sail for the French Riviera. After a perilous journey, they reach their dream destination where Snorkmaiden is dazzled by the attentions of a playboy leaving Moomin consumed by jealousy. When Moominpappa befriends an aristocrat and adopts the name 'de Moomin', an exasperated Moominmamma retreats to the calm of their trusty old boat, to wait for her family to come to their senses and to remember their motto: "Live in peace, plant potatoes and dream."



The Peanuts Movie: For the first time ever, Snoopy, Charlie Brown and the rest of the gang we know and love from Charles Schulz's timeless "Peanuts" comic strip will be making their big-screen debut; like they've never been seen before in a CG-Animated Feature film in 3D.



Regular Show: The Movie: Best friends, Mordecai (a six-foot-tall blue jay) and Rigby (a hyperactive raccoon), are groundskeepers at a park. The job is so deadly dull that the two friends will do anything they can to avoid it, often resulting in inane escapades.



Shaun the Sheep Movie: From Aardman, the creators of Wallace & Gromit and Chicken Run, Shaun the Sheep The Movie is now available to purchase on Blu-Ray. In this trailer, watch more of Shaun and The Flock's hilarious adventures in the Big City as they search for the missing Farmer! When Shaun decides to take the day off and have some fun, he gets a little more action than he bargained for! Shaun's mischief inadvertently leads to The Farmer being taken away from the farm, to the Big City. Join Shaun, Bitzer and The Flock on their hilarious, action-packed adventure as they make plans to rescue the missing Farmer. A story about how we sometimes forget to appreciate the things we have in life, and the people who love us. Shaun the Sheep The Movie introduces us to two new Aardman characters; Trumper the animal warden who rules the city's animal shelter with a rod of iron and Slip, an inner city orphan dog who helps Shaun save the day.



The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge out of Water: On a mission to save his world, SpongeBob SquarePants is headed to ours. When pirate Burger Beard (Antonio Banderas) steals the secret recipe for the beloved Krabby Patties, SpongeBob and friends come ashore to bring back the missing formula. To succeed, they must team up with former rival, Plankton, but soon realize that to defeat a super-villain, they must unleash their inner superheroes.



When Marnie Was There: When shy, artistic Anna moves to the seaside to live with her aunt and uncle, she stumbles upon an old mansion surrounded by marshes, and the mysterious young girl, Marnie, who lives there. The two girls instantly form a unique connection and friendship that blurs the lines between fantasy and reality. As the days go by, a nearly magnetic pull draws Anna back to the Marsh House again and again, and she begins to piece together the truth surrounding her strange new friend. Based on the beloved young adult novel by Joan G. Robinson and directed by Yonebayashi (The Secret World of Arrietty), the film is a haunting tale gorgeously rendered with its moonlit seascapes, glowing orchestral score, and powerful portrayals of friendship and belonging.