It’s that time of year again, and the nominations are in!
It’s movie award season and with The 90th Academy Awards 第九十届奥斯卡金像奖 (dì jiǔ shí jiè aò sī kǎ jīn xiàng jiǎng) just around the corner, we thought we’d give you a rundown of the Oscar 奥斯卡 (aò sī kǎ) nominations and their Chinese translations.
Oscar Nominations 奥斯卡提名 (aò sī kǎ tí míng):
Best Picture 最佳影片 (zuì jiā yǐng piàn)
The Shape of Water 水形物语 (shuǐ xíng wù yù)
Dunkirk 敦刻尔克 (dūn kè ěr kè)
Darkest Hour 至暗时刻 (zhì àn shí kè)
Phantom Thread 魅影缝匠 (mèi yǐng féng jiàng)
Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri 三块广告牌 (sān kuài guǎng gào pái)
Get Out 逃出绝命镇 (táo chū jué mìng zhèn)
The Post 华盛顿邮报 (huá shèng dùn yóu bào)
Call Me By Your Name 请以你的名字呼唤我 (qǐng yǐ nǐ de míng zi hū huàn wǒ)
Lady Bird 伯德小姐 (bó dé xiǎo jie)
Best Writing Adapted Screenplay 最佳改编剧本 (zuì jiā gǎi biān jù běn)
Mudbound 泥土之界 (ní tǔ zhī jiè)
The Disaster Artist 灾难艺术家 (zāi nàn yì shù jiā)
Molly’s Game 茉莉牌局 (mò lì pái jú)
Call Me By Your Name 请以你的名字呼唤我 (qǐng yǐ nǐ de míng zi hū huàn wǒ)
Logan 金刚狼3:殊死一战 (jīn gāng láng3: shū sǐ yī zhàn)
Best Visual Effects 最佳视觉效果 (zuì jiā shì jué xiào guǒ)
Star Wars: The Last Jedi 星球大战8:最后的绝地武士 (xīng qiú dà zhàn 8: zuì hòu de jué dì wǔ shì)
Kong: Skull Island 金刚:骷髅岛 (jīn gāng kū lóu dǎo)
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 2 银河护卫队2 (yín hé hù wèi duì 2)
War of the Planet of the Apes 猩球崛起3:终极之战 (xīng qiú jué qǐ 3: zhōng jí zhī zhàn)
Blade Runner 2049 银翼杀手2049 (yín yì shā shǒu 2049)
Since there isn’t really a ‘standard’ way to right western names in Chinese, you may find variants of the names below. Additionally, when talking about an actor, director etc on social media, most Chinese people use nicknames instead.
You may have heard of Benedict Cumberbatch being referred to as ‘Curly Fu’ 卷福 (juǎn fú) which is a name based on his hair and 福 from the first character in the transliteration of ‘Holmes’. Cute and amusing nicknames are a common way for Chinese netizens to talk about their favourite western stars, including many of those nominated for the 2018 Academy Awards.
Best Actress in a leading role 最佳女主角 (zuì jiā nǚ zhǔ jué)
Sally Hawkins 莎莉·霍金斯 (shā lì huò jīn sī)
Also referred to as 霍姑娘 (huò gū niang) ‘Miss Huo’ or 霍呆 (huò dāi) ‘adorable’ or ‘dorky’. 霍 comes from the transliteration of ‘Haw’ in Hawkins, whilst 呆 presumably comes from her role as Mrs Brown in Paddington.
Meryl Streep 梅丽尔•斯特里普 (méi lì ěr sī tè lǐ pǔ)
Streep is often referred to as 梅姨 (méi yí) meaning ‘aunt Mei’ or 梅太后 (méi tài hòu) ‘Empress Dowager Mei. 梅 comes from the transliteration of her first name, whilst ‘aunt’ and ‘empress dowager’ comes from her many years of experience as an actress.
Frances McDormand 弗兰西斯·麦克多蒙德 (fú lán xī sī mài kè duō mēng dé)
Frances McDormand is commonly known as 科恩嫂 (kē ēn sǎo) Sister (in-law) Coen from her many roles in the Coen Brothers’ movies.
Margot Robbie 玛格特·罗比 (mǎ gé tè luó bǐ)
Whilst not her best role, Margot Robbie is most famously known for playing Harley Quinn in the Suicide Squad movie and is nicknamed 小丑女 (xiǎo chǒu nǚ) ‘clown girl’ by Chinese netizens.
Saoirse Ronan 西尔莎·罗南 (xī ěr shā luó nán)
Saoirse Ronan is known as 鸟小姐 (niǎo xiǎo jie) ‘Miss bird’, and my favourite 爱尔兰的精灵 (ài ěr lán de jīng líng) ‘The Elf of Ireland’.
Best Actor in a leading role 最佳男主角 (zuì jiā nán zhǔ jué)
Daniel Day-Lewis 丹尼尔·戴-刘易斯 (dān ní ěr dài liú yì sī)
Daniel Day-Lewis has several nicknames in China, including 丹叔 (dān shū) ‘Uncle Dan’, DDL and 刘皇叔 (liú huáng shū) Uncle of Emperor Liu. In ancient China, 刘皇叔 referred to 刘备 (liú bèi), who was the uncle of 刘协 (liú xié) Emperor Xian
Timothée Chalamet 提莫西·查拉梅 (tí mò xī chá lā méi)
Timothée Chalamet is known on Chinese social media as 甜茶 (tián chá) meaning ‘Sweet Tea’. Sweet, from his demeanour, and tea from the transliteration of his surname.
Daniel Kaluuya 丹尼尔·卡卢亚 (dān ní ěr kǎ lú yà)
Denzel Washington 丹泽尔·华盛顿 (dān zé ěr huá shèng dùn)
Denzel Washington is referred to as 丹哥 (dān gē) ‘Brother Dan’ or 老丹 (lǎo dān) ‘Old Dan’.
Gary Oldman 加里·奥德曼 (jiā lǐ ào dé màn)
Gary Oldman has several Chinese nicknames: 狗叔 (gǒu shū) ‘GO 叔’ meaning ‘Uncle Dog’, 狗爹 (gǒu diē) ‘GO 爹’ meaning ‘Father Dog’ and also 加爷 (jiā yé) Uncle Jia, 加 from the transliteration of Gary.
Best Supporting Actor 最佳男配角 (zuì jiā nán pèi jué)
Sam Rockwell 山姆·洛克威尔 (shān mǔ luò kè wēi ěr)
Woody Harrelson 伍迪·哈里森 (wǔ dí hā lǐ sēn)
Christopher Plummer 克里斯托弗·普卢默 (kè lǐ sī tuō fú pǔ lú mò)
Willem Dafoe 威廉·达福 (wēi lián dá fú)
Richard Jenkins 理查德·詹金斯 (lǐ chá dé zhān jīn sī)
Best Supporting Actress 最佳女配角 (zuì jiā nǚ pèi jué)
Lesley Manville 莱丝利·曼维尔 (lái sī lì màn wéi ěr)
Allison Janney 艾莉森·珍妮 (ài lì sēn zhēn nī)
Laurie Metcalf 劳里·梅特卡夫 (láo lǐ méi tè kǎ fū)
Mary J. Blige 玛丽·布莱姬 (mǎ lì bù lái jī)
Octavia Spencer 奥克塔维亚·斯宾瑟 (ào kè tǎ wéi yà sī bīn sè)
Best Director 最佳导演 (zuì jiā dǎo yǎn)
Guillermo del Toro 吉尔莫·德尔·托罗 (jí ěr mò dé ěr tuō luó)
Jordan Peele 乔丹·皮尔 (qiáo dān pí ěr)
Greta Gerwig 格蕾塔·葛韦格 (gé lěi tǎ gě wéi gé)
Christopher Nolan 克里斯托弗·诺兰 (kè lǐ sī tuō fú nuò lán)
Paul Thomas Anderson 保罗·托马斯·安德森 (bǎo luó tuō mǎ sī ān dé sēn)
Other Academy Award Categories and Vocabulary
Awards
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences 美国电影艺术与科学学院奖 (měi guó diàn yǐng yì shù yù kē xué xué yuàn jiǎng)
Best Animated Feature 最佳动画长片 (zuì jiā dòng huà cháng piàn)
Best Original Song 最佳原创歌曲 (zuì jiā yuán chuàng gē qǔ)
Academy Honorary Awards 奥斯卡荣誉奖 (aò sī kǎ róng yù jiǎng)
Special Achievement Academy Award 奥斯卡特别成就奖 (aò sī kǎ tè bié chéng jiù jiǎng)
Best Original Screenplay 最佳原创剧本 (zuì jiā yuán chuàng jù běn)
Best Foreign Language Film 最佳外语片 (zuì jiā wài yǔ piàn)
Best Documentary–Feature 最佳纪录长片 (zuì jiā jì lù cháng piàn)
Best Documentary–Short Subject 最佳纪录短片 (zuì jiā jì lù duǎn piàn)
Best Live Action Short Film 最佳实景短片 (zuì jiā shí jǐng duǎn piàn)
Best Animated Short Film 最佳动画短片 (zuì jiā dòng huà duǎn piàn)
Best Original Score 最佳原创音乐 (zuì jiā yuán chuàng yīn yuè)
Best Original Song 最佳原创歌曲 (zuì jiā yuán chuàng gē qǔ)
Best Sound Editing 最佳音效剪辑 (zuì jiā yīn xiào jiǎn jí)
Best Sound Mixing 最佳混音 (zuì jiā hùn yīn)
Best Production Design 最佳美术设计 (zuì jiā měi shù shè jì)
Best Cinematography 最佳摄影 (zuì jiā shè yǐng)
Best Makeup and Hairstyling 最佳化妆与发型设计奖 (zuì jiā huà zhuāng yǔ fà xíng shè jì jiǎng)
Best Costume Design 最佳服装设计 (zuì jiā fú zhuāng shè jì)
Best Film Editing 最佳剪辑 (zuì jiā jiǎn jí)
Best Visual Effects 最佳视觉效果 (zuì jiā shì jué xiào guǒ)
Oscar Vocabulary
Acceptance speech 获奖感言 (huò jiǎng gǎn yán)
Red carpet 红毯 (hóng tǎn)
Finalists 入围者 (rù wéi zhě)
Award Presenter 颁奖人 (bān jiǎng rén)
To broadcast 转播 (zhuǎn bō)
To nominate 提名 (tí míng)
The Nominees 被提名者 (bèi tí míng zhě)
Film critic 电影评论家 (diàn yǐng píng lùn jiā)
Premiere (of a movie) 首映式 (shǒu yìng shì)
Award ceremony 颁奖仪式 (bān jiǎng yí shì)
Oscar-talk Chinese Dialogues
你看了《敦刻尔克》吗？(nǐ kàn le <dūn kè ěr kè> ma?) Did you see Dunkirk?
看了，超感人的！(kàn le, chāo gǎn rén de) Yes, it was so moving!
我还看了《至暗时刻》，我希望狗叔可以拿到奥斯卡最佳男主角。(wǒ hái kàn le <zhì àn shí kè>, wǒ xī wàng ‘gǒu shū’ kě yǐ ná dào aò sī kǎ zuì jiā nán zhǔ jué) I saw Darkest Hour too, I really hope Gary Oldman wins best actor!
没错，他有这实力。(méi cuò, tā yǒu zhè shí lì) Yeah, he really deserves it.
上帝保佑希望格蕾塔·葛韦格能凭借《伯德小姐》拿到最佳导演奖。(shàng dì bǎo yòu xī wàng gé lěi tǎ gě gé wéi gé néng píng jiè <bó dé xiǎo jie> ná dào zuì jiā dǎo yǎn jiǎng) I really have my fingers crossed that Greta Gerwig will win best director for Lady Bird.
你知道吗？她是有史以来第五名提名奥斯卡最佳导演的女性！(nǐ zhī dao ma? tā shì yǒu shǐ yǐ lái dì wǔ míng tí míng aò sī kǎ zuì jiā dǎo yǎn de nǚ xìng) Did you know she’s only the fifth woman to be nominated for best director, ever?!
哇喔，你不说我都不知道这个。(wā ō , nǐ bù shuō wǒ dōu bù zhī dao zhè ge) Wow, I didn’t know that.
不过，我认为吉尔莫·德尔·托罗会胜出，因为《水形物语》太棒了。(bù guò, wǒ rèn wéi jí ěr mò dé ěr tuō luó huì shèng chū, yīn wèi, <shuǐ xíng wù yù> tài bàng le) I think Guillermo del Toro will win though, I thought The Shape of Water was amazing.
他的电影能很奇幻。(tā de diàn yǐng néng hěn qí huàn) His movies are so fantastical!
最佳女演员呢？(zuì jiā nǚ yǎn yuán ne?) What about best actress?
啊，我觉得科恩嫂能拿。(ā, wǒ jué de kē ēn sǎo néng ná) Oh, I think Frances McDormand should get it.
我喜欢她所有的作品，尤其是《冰血暴》。(wǒ xǐ huan tā suǒ yǒu de zuò pǐn, yóu qí shì <bīng xuè xuè>. I love her in everything, especially Fargo.
你觉得《三块广告牌》怎么样？(nǐ jué de sān kuài guǎng gào pái zěn me yàng?) What did you think of Three Billboards?
它太深刻了，看得我又哭又笑。我很喜欢山姆·洛克威尔的表演。(tā tài shēn kè le, kàn de wǒ yòu kū yòu xiào. wǒ hěn xǐ huan shān mǔ luò kè wēi ěr de biǎo yǎn) It was deep. I cried and laughed at the same time and I enjoyed Sam Rockwell’s performance.
没错，他入围了最佳男配角。(méi cuò, tā rù wéi le zuì jiā nán pèi jué.) Oh yeah, he’s nominated for best-supporting actor.
对了，我觉得《伯德小姐》能拿下最佳影片。(duì le, wǒ jué de <bó dé xiǎo jie> néng ná xià zuì jiā yǐng piàn) Anyway, I think Lady Bird will get best movie.
是吗？难道你忘了《魅影缝匠》？(shì ma? nán dào nǐ wàng le <mèi yǐng féng jiàng>?) Really? Don’t you think it’ll be Phantom Thread?
这可是刘皇叔的最后一部电影。(zhè kě shì liú huáng shū de zuì hòu yī bù diàn yǐng) It’s Daniel Day-Lewis’s last film.
那又怎么样？《伯德小姐》唤醒我所有青春期的记忆和情绪。(nà yòu zěn me yàng? <bó dé xiǎo jie> huàn xǐng wǒ suǒ yǒu qīng chūn qī de jì yì hé qíng xù) So, what?! Lady Bird just made me think of my teenage years and all those emotions.
我已经等不及要和我妈妈一起再看一遍了。(wǒ yǐ jīng děng bù jí yào hé wǒ mā ma yī qǐ zài kàn yī biàn le) I can’t wait to watch it again with my mum!
If you have any comments or questions, please leave them below!