Award-winning film distribution studio NEON, an affiliate of The Friedkin Group, made an impressive showing during the announcement of the 2020 Oscar nominations on Monday, with eight selections for cinema’s most prestigious accolades.
“Parasite,” which has been lauded by audiences and critics since winning the Palme D’Or at the 2019 Cannes Film Festival, was nominated for six awards. The South Korean movie is a contender for two of the most prominent Academy Awards – Best Picture and Best Director for Bong Joon-ho. It was also nominated for Best Original Screenplay, Best Production Design, Best Film Editing, and Best International Feature Film, where it is considered the front-runner.
The film focuses on the Park family, who are the picture of aspirational wealth, and the Kim family, rich in street smarts but not much else. When these two houses are brought together, the Kims sense a golden opportunity. Masterminded by college-aged Ki-woo, the Kim children expediently install themselves as tutor and art therapist, to the Parks. Soon, a symbiotic relationship forms between the two families. The Kims provide “indispensable” luxury services while the Parks obliviously bankroll their entire household. When a parasitic interloper threatens the Kims’ newfound comfort, a savage, underhanded battle for dominance breaks out, threatening to destroy the fragile ecosystem between the two families.
In addition to its six Oscar nods, “Parasite” is nominated for four BAFTA awards including Best Film, Best Film Not in the English Language, Best Director, and Best Original Screenplay. It also recently won the Golden Globe for Best Motion Picture – Foreign Language.
“Parasite,” the first South Korean movie to be nominated for Best Picture or Best International Film, is showing in theaters nationwide.
Acclaimed documentary “Honeyland” was also nominated for Best International Feature Film, as well as Best Documentary Feature. The movie tells the story of a family who practices ancient beekeeping traditions in the mountains of Macedonia. However, they see their traditional livelihood upended when a family moves in next door with new ideas of how honey should be harvested.
“Honeyland” previously won numerous awards at the prestigious Sundance Film Festival, where it was acquired by NEON. It is currently streaming on Hulu, Amazon Prime, YouTube, Google Play and iTunes.
NEON has been behind some of the most celebrated documentaries in recent years, including “Apollo 11,” “The Biggest Little Farm,” and “Three Identical Strangers,” all of which are available on Hulu and other major streaming services.
