Wisconsin has had ties to many Oscar-winning movies over the years, and the 98th Academy Awards will hopefully continue the trend. With the Oscars right around the corner on March 15, we’re looking at which nominated films have Oscar ties – real or fictional – to Wisconsin.
Song Sung Blue
Kate Hudson is nominated for a Best Actress award for her role as Claire Sardina in Song Sung Blue. This film has the ultimate tie to Wisconsin, honoring the real lives and careers of two Milwaukeeans. “Lightning” and “Thunder,” or Mike and Claire Sardina, were a local Neil Diamond tribute band that played in the greater Milwaukee area in the ‘80s and ‘90s. The film depicts the couple’s hardships and struggles, from battling addiction to overcoming a life-altering accident. Hudson’s performance in the film was widely praised, with reviewers saying she “sings the lyrics ecstatically, like a psalm of hope for a tragic soul,” per The Times.
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One Battle After Another
Paul Thomas Anderson’s epic One Battle After Another is up for a handful of Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Actor in a Leading Role, Actress in a Supporting Role, Directing and Cinematography. If the film snags the Best Cinematography award, one more Wisconsinite will have won an Oscar. Cinematographer Michael Bauman is from Wisconsin. The UW-Oshkosh alum was also the cinematographer for Ryan Murphy’s Monster, which tells the story of Wisconsin serial killer Ed Gein. “Right off the bat, it was an interesting bit of material,” Bauman said in an interview with Gold Derby. “Also, my folks retired in Wisconsin. When I told them I was doing the project, they told some of their friends in their retirement community [about it] and at least three of those friends had some sort of interaction with Ed Gein.”
Bugonia
This Wisconsin connection is a bit of an “honorable mention.” Yorgos Lanthimos’ Bugonia, which is nominated for four Academy Awards, including Best Picture, was written by screenwriter Will Tracy. Tracy is not from nor has ever lived in Wisconsin, as far cursory internet searches can tell. However, he does have one small but strong tie to the Dairy State – at one point, Tracy was the editor in chief of the Onion, the famous satirical magazine and website that started right in our state’s capital.
