Anyone who may happen to know a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, now is the time to start advocating your favorite movies and performances of the 2013 calendar year.  Today, December 27th marks the beginning of voting for the nominations for the 86th Academy Awards. 

In what has been described as one of the most competitive Oscar seasons in recent memory, the onslaught of awards campaigning will reach its zenith throughout the voting period that starts today and end at 5:00 PM on January 8th.  There are 289 movies eligible for this years Best Picture Oscar on which the 6,000-plus members of the Academy will have to pummel through.  This season is especially competitive seeing as there are a plethora of options considered “frontrunner” status, even as organizations such as Golden Globes, Critics’ Choice, SAG and other critical and guild-led voting bodies have already made their claims of the best of 2013.

Steve McQueen’s 12 Years a Slave has led so far in the content, amassing the highest number of critics prizes, having starting its awards dominance early in the season after capturing the People’s Choice Award at the Toronto Film Festival and earning the most nods from the Screen Actors Guild and the Independent Spirit Awards.  However David O. Russell’s 1970s era con film American Hustle tied the sobering slavery drama with the most Golden Globe nominations, and has earned itself a place at the table among the great many films that have Oscar ambitions including Gravity, Captain Phillips, Her, The Wolf of Wall Street, Nebraska and Dallas Buyers Club.

Nominations will be announced on January 16th, with polls closing on February 25th, where Academy members will vote upon the winners, of which will announced at the ceremony on March 2nd.