Best Director may not be the top prize — but it’s the category that sparks the loudest arguments.

In Episode 8 of Below the Line’s 2026 Oscar series, Skid is joined by Katie Carroll, Bill Hardy, and Shaun O’Banionto break down the nominees for the Academy Award for Best Director at the 98th Academy Awards. With years of shared on-set experience and a long-running panel dynamic, the conversation is sharp, occasionally irreverent, and grounded in what it actually takes to steer a production at this level.

As with the rest of this year’s Oscar series, the conversation is available both as an audio podcast and as a full video episode on YouTube.

Our discussion ranges across:

• Chloé Zhao’s restraint in Hamnet, and how stillness and intimacy compete against larger canvases in this category
• The spirited (and sometimes hilarious) divide over Marty Supreme — its length, its chaos, and the argument over what discipline looks like on screen
• Paul Thomas Anderson’s command of tone in One Battle After Another, and the logistical confidence required to orchestrate narrative sprawl
• Joachim Trier’s delicate handling of memory and performance in Sentimental Value, and the quiet authority behind that control
• Ryan Coogler’s genre-blending ambition in Sinners, and the risks that come with expanding the boundaries of a franchise
• The case for Frankenstein as a nomination that could have reshaped the race — and why its absence sparked genuine debate at the table

The episode carries the easy banter of collaborators who’ve spent years dissecting this category together — complete with side bets, mock outrage, and the occasional good-natured jab — but underneath the laughs is a serious respect for the director’s role: holding the vision, protecting performance, and keeping a sprawling production aligned from prep through post.

🎧 Press play — or watch the full conversation on YouTube — and join us Below the Line for Episode 8 of our 2026 Oscar series. For more, visit belowtheline.biz.

Sound is where performance, environment, and emotion converge — shaped first on set and refined in the mix.

In Episode 7 of Below the Line’s 2026 Oscar series, Skid is joined by Steve Morrow (Production Sound Mixer) and Don Sylvester (Sound Editor) to examine the nominees for Achievement in Sound at the 98th Academy Awards. Together, they explore how production and post-production intersect to support performance, pacing, and dramatic tension.

As with the rest of this year’s Oscar series, the conversation is available both as an audio podcast and as a full video episode on YouTube.

Our discussion explores:

• The immersive racing soundscape of F1, and how layered engine recording, ambisonics, and dynamic mixing place audiences inside the cockpit
• The evolving vocal treatment and tonal balancing in Frankenstein, where horror, romance, and creature design must coexist within a unified sonic world
• How One Battle After Another uses vehicles, space, and environmental texture to reinforce character perspective
• Capturing live musical performance and choreographed chaos in Sinners, where production sound and post must move in lockstep
• The blurred boundary between music and environment in Sirāt, and how subtle soundscapes shape perception as much as spectacle
• Why production sound and sound editing are inseparable disciplines when it comes to protecting performance
• A brief look at shortlist contender Warfare, and what makes immersive combat sound both technically complex and emotionally overwhelming

Throughout the conversation, Steve and Don reflect on the practical realities of their craft — from mic placement and set noise to mix decisions and audience psychology — offering a detailed look at how sound both grounds and elevates cinematic storytelling.

🎧 Press play — or watch the full conversation on YouTube — and join us Below the Line for Episode 7 of our 2026 Oscar series. For more, visit belowtheline.biz.

Judging production design means considering not just what we see, but how an entire world was constructed to function on screen.

This week on Below the Line, Skid is joined by Bob Shaw (Production Designer), Regina Graves (Set Decorator), and Kerry Weeks (Leadman) to examine the nominees for Achievement in Production Design at the 98th Academy Awards. Representing three distinct roles within the art department, they offer a grounded, practical look at how these films constructed their environments — from large-scale builds to the smallest graphic detail.

As with the rest of this year’s Oscar series, the conversation is available both as an audio podcast and as a full video episode on YouTube.

Our discussion ranges across:

• The operatic scale and extensive builds of Frankenstein, from castle interiors to laboratory design — and whether grandeur ultimately serves or overwhelms the story
• The period authenticity of Hamnet, including the recreation of Shakespeare’s Globe and the delicate balance between research and creative interpretation
• The layered Lower East Side streets of Marty Supreme, where signage, storefront graphics, and textural detail quietly anchor a frenetic narrative
• The cohesive, character-driven environments of One Battle After Another, where homes, dojos, and lived-in interiors feel organic rather than theatrical
• The tonal shift in Sinners, and the ongoing challenge of aging sets just enough — especially when audience expectations of “period” don’t always align with historical reality
• How decisions about wear, grit, and cleanliness can subtly shape credibility without drawing attention to themselves
• Why contemporary or less “showy” films like Black Bag are often overlooked despite meticulous design work
• Additional standouts from the year, including Train Dreams and Song Sung Blue, which demonstrate how tonal precision and environmental detail can carry as much weight as larger-scale builds

Across the conversation, the three perspectives reveal how production design succeeds not only through bold visual statements, but through coordination — between design, dressing, graphics, lighting, and performance — so that nothing feels isolated from the world of the film.

🎧 Press play — or watch the full conversation on YouTube — and join us Below the Line for another chapter in our 2026 Oscar series. For more, visit belowtheline.biz.