MAX MARA dress and JUDE shoes. Photographed by Greg Swales for the March 2025 Issue of Vogue Philippines
Although Filipino films have yet to be nominated for the Oscars, Filipinos have consistently made the cut throughout the decades.
Since the inception of the Academy Award for Best International Feature Film in 1956, the Philippines has submitted films for the category and became the first independent nation in Southeast Asia to join the competition. From Lamberto V. Avellana’s Child of Sorrow (1956) to Lav Diaz’s Magellan (2025), Filipino films have yet to make it to the Oscars nomination list; however, Filipinos continue to display excellence on the global stage.
Below, take a look at the Filipinos who have been nominated for the prestigious Academy Award through the years.
Ariel Velasco-Shaw
Nominee, The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993)
If you’ve seen Beauty and the Beast (1991), Contact (1997), and The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993), then you’ve seen the works of Filipino American Ariel Velasco-Shaw, a known visual effects supervisor and producer. In 1994, Shaw, along with The Nightmare Before Christmas visual effects team, Pete Kozachik, Eric Leighton, and Gordon Baker, was nominated for the Oscars’ Visual Effects category. The film competed against Jurassic Park and Cliffhanger, with the Oscar going to the former. These days, Velasco is still working in film, with recent works being The Color Purple (2023) and Mercy (2026).
Paul Denham Austerberry
Winner, The Shape of Water (2017)
Known for his work in Twilight Saga: Eclipse (2010), 30 Days of Night, and The Shape of Water (2017), Paul Denham Austerberry is a Canadian production designer who is part-British and Filipino. In 2018, Austerberry won the Academy Award for Best Production Design for The Shape of Water. Additionally, he also won a BAFTA for the same film and a Canadian Screen Award for Pompeii (2014). He is also the production designer behind the hit TV series, IT: Welcome to Derry (2025).
Matthew Libatique
Nominee, Black Swan (2010), A Star is Born (2018), and Maestro (2023)
Born to Filipino immigrant parents, Matthew Libatique is a Filipino American cinematographer who worked on films such as Pi (1998), Requiem for a Dream (2000), Black Swan (2010), and Mother! (2017). He has been nominated three times for the Oscars’ Best Cinematography category, for the films Black Swan, A Star is Born (2018), and Maestro (2023). While he fell short of winning, he has won two Independent Spirit Awards for Best Cinematography for the films Requiem for a Dream and Black Swan.
Frederic Aspiras
Nominee, House of Gucci (2021)
Frederic Aspiras may be best known for being Lady Gaga’s go-to hairstylist, but he has also been Oscar-nominated. For his work in the film House of Gucci (2021), Aspiras earned a nomination for Best Makeup and Hairstyling for the 94th Academy Awards. Aspiras has also worked on the film A Star Is Born and the TV series American Horror Story (2011). When he’s not working on a film set, Aspiras’ wig creations and hair styling can be found on red carpets and on the glossy pages of magazines.
Pia Clemente
Nominee, Our Time Is Up (2004)
Born in the Philippines, Pia Clemente sought to conquer Hollywood. The Filipino American producer is known for being the first of her kind to be nominated for an Oscar, for Our Time Is Up (2004) in the live-action short film category in 2005. She is also the producer of The Debut, which was the first major Filipino American film to be shown in national theaters. Her most recent works include To Live and Die and Live (2023), and TV series Bite Size Halloween (2020) and Voyageurs – Ultra Runner (2005).
Ronnie del Carmen
Nominee, Inside Out (2015)
Ronnie del Carmen is a Filipino writer, director, storyboard artist, illustrator, and voice actor from Cavite City, Philippines. Del Carmen’s first foray into the industry happened after high school; he worked as a painter on the set of Francis Ford Coppola’s Apocalypse Now (1979), which was filming in the Philippines. Since then, he has worked on films such as The Prince of Egypt (1998), Finding Nemo (2003), Ratatouille (2007), and several other beloved animated films. At the 2016 Oscars, del Carmen was nominated for Best Original Screenplay for Inside Out (2015), and the film won Best Animated Feature.
Trevor Jimenez
Nominee, Weekends (2017) and Elio (2025)
Filipino Canadian animator Trevor Jimenez has worked on Pixar’s biggest films: Soul (2020), Finding Dory (2016, Turning Red (2022), Inside Out 2 (2024), and most recently, Elio (2025). In this year’s Academy Awards, Elio has been nominated for Best Animated Feature, alongside Arco, Kpop Demon Hunters, Little Amélie or the Character of Rain, and Zootopia 2. However, before Elio, Jimenez was also nominated for Best Animated Short Film for Weekends (2017).
Bobby Pontillas
Nominee, One Small Step (2018)
In the same year as Jimenez, another Filipino animator earned a nomination for Best Animated Short Film. One Smell Step (2018), directed by Andrew Chesworth and Bobby Pontillas, is a story dedicated to Pontillas’ Filipino mother. The Filipino American director and artist is known for his work in the animation and games industries, working as an animator, character designer, art director, and director for studios such as Disney, Taiko, Blue Sky, and more.
Robert Lopez
Winner, Frozen (2013)
Robert Lopez has worked on musicals all his life. The Filipino American songwriter and playwright has worked on shows such as The Book of Mormon and Avenue Q, and co-wrote songs for the animated films Frozen (2013), Frozen 2 (2019), and Coco (2017), with his wife Kristen Anderson-Lopez. In 2014, the song “Let It Go” won the Academy Award for Best Original Song. “Remember Me” from Coco and “Into the Unknown” from Frozen II were also nominated for the same category in their respective years. Lopez is also one of the twenty-seven people who have received an EGOT, and is also the first to receive all four awards twice.
H.E.R.
Winner, Judas and the Black Messiah (2021)
At the 2021 Oscars, Filipino American singer-songwriter H.E.R. won the Academy Award for Best Original Song for “Fight For You,” from the film Judas and the Black Messiah (2021). H.E.R. has also appeared as an actress in The Color Purple (2023), playing the role of Squeak. To date, H.E.R. has received five Grammy Awards, an Academy Award, and a Children’s and Family Emmy.
Hailee Steinfeld
Nominee, True Grit (2010)
In 2011, Hailee Steinfeld was nominated for Best Supporting Actress for her performance in True Grit (2010). She also received a BAFTA nomination for the same role, for Best Actress in a Leading Role, and won Best Young Performer at the Critics’ Choice Awards. This year, although Steinfeld was not nominated, she starred in Sinners (2025), which received a record-breaking 16 nominations in the upcoming Academy Awards.
Zinzi Coogler
Nominee, Sinners (2025)
Speaking of Sinners, Zinzi Coogler, along with her spouse Ryan Coogler and producing partner Sev Ohanian, are nominated for Best Picture for the film. Zinzi may be popularly known for her work in Sinners, but the producer has also worked on films such as Rampage (2018), Creed III (2023), and Judas and the Black Messiah. This year, Sinners is nominated alongside Bugonia, F1, Frankenstein, Hamnet, Marty Supreme, One Battle After Another, The Secret Agent, Sentimental Value, and Train Dreams for Best Picture.
Autumn Durald Arkapaw
Nominee, Sinners (2025)
Also coming from the Sinners crew is Filipino American filmmaker Autumn Durald Arkapaw, who makes history as the first Woman of Color nominated for Best Cinematography at the Oscars. Arkapaw, who has worked on films such as The Last Show Girl (2024), Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (2022), and The Sun Is Also A Star (2019), receives recognition as the director of photography of Sinners. Arkapaw is nominated alongside Dan Laustsen for Frankenstein, Darius Khondji for Marty Supreme, Michael Bauman for One Battle After Another, and Adolpho Veloso for Train Dreams.
