The ballots and the guild awards are in, and there’s no more campaigning left to do for the 2015 Academy Awards. So here, before the big day, Variety’s own Tim Gray, Jenelle Riley and Ramin Sedooteh put their heads together to come up with their final and completely unscientific predictions. Will “Birdman” continue its sweep with a best picture win? Or will critical fave and Bafta winner “Boyhood” swoop in to take the prize? Or maybe we should be keeping an eye on “American Sniper” and “Selma.” See the consensus our experts came to in the main categories and maybe get some help in your office pool.
PICTURE: It’s going to be a close call, but with the guild sweep, Tim and Jenelle are predicting “Birdman,” with Ramin holding out hope for Bafta winner “Boyhood.”
Our pick: “Birdman”
DIRECTOR: Again, there is a split, with Tim and Jenelle picking DGA winner Alejandro G. Inarritu for “Birdman” and Ramin betting on Richard Linklater for “Boyhood.”
Our pick: Alejandro G. Inarritu, “Birdman”
ACTOR: Jenelle and Ramin are going with SAG/Bafta winner Eddie Redmayne, while Tim is sticking with Michael Keaton for “Birdman.” But everyone agrees that a Bradley Cooper upset in this category isn’t out of the question.
Our pick: Eddie Redmayne, “The Theory of Everything”
ACTRESS: All three agree: Julianne Moore is a lock for “Still Alice.”
Our pick: Julianne Moore, “Still Alice”
SUPPORTING ACTOR: Nothing to argue about here, with all three predicting J.K. Simmons for “Whiplash.” But an Edward Norton victory isn’t out of the question.
Our pick: J.K. Simmons, “Whiplash”
SUPPORTING ACTRESS: Another consensus, as everyone expects Patricia Arquette to take home the gold for “Boyhood.” Anything else would be a giant upset.
Our pick: Patricia Arquette, “Boyhood”
ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY: Tim and Jenelle think this is Wes Anderson’s chance to finally win an Oscar, while Ramin is betting “Birdman” lands the script award as a consolation prize since he’s betting on “Boyhood” to win picture/director.
Our pick: Wes Anderson, “The Grand Budapest Hotel”
ADAPTED SCREENPLAY: Tim and Jenelle think this is the best shot for “The Imitation Game,” while Ramin believes this is “American Sniper’s” best shot at a top prize.
Our pick: Graham Moore, “The Imitation Game”
ANIMATED MOVIE: Another agreement – all three predict Golden Globe and Annie Award winner “How to Train Your Dragon 2” to win.
Our pick: “How to Train Your Dragon 2”
DOCUMENTARY: While Jenelle is predicting a last-second surge for “Virunga,” Tim and Ramin are going with the powerhouse “Citizenfour,” which has picked up most precursor awards.
Our pick: “Citizenfour”
FOREIGN-LANGUAGE FILM: Tim and Jenelle are betting on “Ida,” while Ramin votes for the outrageous crowd-pleaser “Wild Tales.”
Our pick: “Ida”
CINEMATOGRAPHY: Another easy call — all three pick last year’s winner for “Gravity,” Emmanuel Lubezki.
Our pick: Emmanuel Lubezki, “Birdman”
EDITING: Jenelle and Ramin think the 12 years in the making narrative of “Boyhood” is tough to beat, while Tim is betting on the high tension action of “American Sniper.”
Our pick: Sandra Adair, “Boyhood”
VISUAL EFFECTS: While Ramin picks the jaw-dropping effects of “Interstellar,” Tim and Jenelle bet the effects of “Dawn of the Planet of the Apes” will rise to the win.
Our pick: Joe Letteri , Dan Lemmon, Daniel Barrett, Erik Winquist, “Dawn of the Planet of the Apes”
ORIGINAL SCORE: Tim thinks double nominee Alexandre Desplat will finally win for “The Grand Budapest Hotel,” while Jenelle and Ramin lean towards Jóhann Jóhannsson for “The Theory of Everything.”
Our pick: Jóhann Jóhannsson, “The Theory of Everything”
COSTUME DESIGN:
Our pick: Milena Canonero, “The Grand Budapest Hotel”
MAKEUP/HAIRSTYLING:
Our pick: Bill Corso, Dennis Liddiard, “Foxcatcher”
ORIGINAL SONG:
Our pick: “Glory” from “Selma”
PRODUCTION DESIGN:
Our pick: Adam Stockhausen, “The Grand Budapest Hotel”
SOUND EDITING:
Our pick: Alan Robert Murray, Bub Asman, “American Sniper”
SOUND MIXING:
Our pick: John Reitz, Gregg Rudloff, Walt Martin, “American Sniper”
ANIMATED SHORT:
Our pick: “Feast”
DOCUMENTARY SHORT:
Our pick: “Joanna”
LIVE-ACTION SHORT:
Our pick: “The Phone Call”
The 87th Academy Awards air Sunday night at 8:30 p.m. ET/5:30 p.m. PT on ABC.