At least 83 countries have entered films for the 2027 best international feature Oscar, including new work from Lee Chang-dong (South Korea's Possible Love), Ryusuke Hamaguchi (Japan's All of a Sudden) and Andrey Zvyagintsev (France's Minotaur). Cyprus and El Salvador are submitting for the first time.
Submissions closed on September 30, 2026. The Academy is expected to cut the field to a shortlist in December.
Oscars 2027 international feature: key facts
| Ceremony | 99th Academy Awards, early 2027 |
| Submissions | 83 and counting |
| First-time entrants | Cyprus, El Salvador |
| Submission deadline | September 30, 2026 |
| Eligibility window | Released at home between October 1, 2025 and September 30, 2026 |
| Next step | Shortlist, expected in December |
Which films have been submitted?
These are some of the most notable submissions, from Screen Daily's tracker and the published list of entries.
| Country | Film | Director |
|---|---|---|
| South Korea | Possible Love | Lee Chang-dong |
| Japan | All of a Sudden | Ryusuke Hamaguchi |
| France | Minotaur (Russian language) | Andrey Zvyagintsev |
| Italy | The Spiral | Paolo Strippoli |
| Germany | Everytime | Sandra Wollner |
| Spain | La bola negra | Javier Calvo and Javier Ambrossi |
| Norway | Growth of the Soil | Hans Petter Moland |
| Brazil | Gugu's World | Allan Deberton |
| Mexico | On the Road | David Pablos |
| India | Gondhal (Marathi) | Santosh Davakhar |
| Ukraine | Traces | Alisa Kovalenko |
| Singapore | We Are All Strangers | Anthony Chen |
| Thailand | 9 Temples to Heaven | Sompot Chidgasornpongse |
Screen Daily also reported entries from Ireland (Aontas), Sweden (Adult Supervision), Denmark (Woman Unknown), Poland (Fatherland), Montenegro (To Hold a Mountain), Hungary (Silent Friend), the Philippines (Filipiñana), the Czech Republic (If Pigeons Turned to Gold) and Cambodia (Becoming Human).
Which submissions are the early contenders?
It's early, but a few entries stand out on pedigree alone:
- Japan, All of a Sudden: Hamaguchi won this category with Drive My Car in 2022.
- South Korea, Possible Love: Lee's Burning reached the shortlist in 2019. He was honoured at TIFF's Tribute Awards in September.
- France, Minotaur: Zvyagintsev has been nominated twice before, for Leviathan and Loveless.
- Thailand, 9 Temples to Heaven: fresh from winning the Sutherland Award for best first feature at the London Film Festival.
What are the rules for best international feature?
- The film must be predominantly in a language other than English.
- It must have opened theatrically in its home country between October 1, 2025 and September 30, 2026.
- Each country may submit one film, chosen by an approved national selection committee.
- A film can come from any country, in any language that isn't English, which is how France can submit a Russian-language film.
When are the Oscar nominations?
The Academy typically announces a 15-film shortlist in mid-December and the five nominees in late January, ahead of a ceremony in early spring. Exact dates for the 99th Oscars' shortlist and nominations had not been widely publicized at the time of writing.
