Elysia is joined by Lisa (aka RedZippy) to put her theater and costume expertise to work evaluating this year's line-up in the 2026 Oscars' three art-direction categories: Production Design, Costume Design, and Makeup & Hairstyling – the last of which especially is secretly one of the most exciting list of nominees in the race.

Note: All film discussion in this episode is spoiler-free.

Nominees Discussed:

Production Design (00:04:35)

• Marty Supreme – Production Design: Jack Fisk; Set Decoration: Adam Willis – trailer – to rent, later HBO Max 
• Sinners – Production Design: Hannah Beachler; Set Decoration: Monique Champagne – trailer – HBO Max 
• Frankenstein – Production Design: Tamara Deverell; Set Decoration: Shane Vieau – trailer – Netflix 
• Hamnet – Production Design: Fiona Crombie; Set Decoration: Alice Felton – trailer – to rent, later Peacock  
• One Battle After Another – Production Design: Florencia Martin; Set Decoration: Anthony Carlino – trailer – HBO Max 

Other films discussed: The Fantastic 4: First Steps (our coverage), Tron: Ares, Wicked: For Good (our coverage), Hedda, The Testament of Ann Lee, Kiss of the Spider Woman  

Costume Design (00:50:13)

• Avatar: Fire and Ash – Deborah L. Scott – trailer – in theaters, eventually Disney+ 
• Sinners – Ruth E. Carter – trailer – HBO Max  
• Frankenstein – Kate Hawley – trailer – Netflix 
• Marty Supreme – Miyako Bellizzi – trailer – to rent, later HBO Max 
• Hamnet – Malgosia Turzanska – trailer – to rent, later Peacock 

Makeup & Hairstyling (01:12:19)

• Sinners – Ken Diaz, Mike Fontaine, and Shunika Terry – trailer – HBO Max
• Frankenstein – Mike Hill, Jordan Samuel, and Cliona Furey – trailer – Netflix 
• The Smashing Machine – Kazu Hiro, Glen Griffin, and Bjoern Rehbein – trailer – HBO Max 
• Kokuho – Kyoko Toyokawa, Naomi Hibino, and Tadashi Nishimatsu – trailer – in theaters 
• The Ugly Stepsister – Thomas Foldberg and Anne Cathrine Sauerberg –  trailer – Hulu, Shudder, Mubi, AMC+  

The 98th Academy Awards will air Sunday, March 15, 2025 at 7 pm ET (on ABC/Hulu in the US) – where it's aired around the world (last year's link)

Check how many Oscar nominees you've seen at OscarsDeathRace.com – or with extended stats and access to the animated shorts via DeathRaceTracking.com

Oscars 2026 coverage

Nominations + Best Picture preview

Live-Action, Animated, & Documentary Shorts 

Production Design, Costumes, Makeup & Hair (this episode)

International Features

Documentary Features

Score & Original Song

Animated Features

Cinematography, VFX, Editing, Sound

Adapted & Original Screenplay, Director

Lead & Supporting Actor & Actress, Casting

Ceremony reactions + Best Picture rankings

Deep dives into 2026 Oscar nominees

Sinners

One Battle After Another – pt. 1, pt. 2, pt. 3

Frankenstein

Weapons

Shorts: “Two People Exchanging Saliva,” “Jane Austen’s Period Drama,” “The Singers,” “Retirement Plan,” and “The Girl Who Cried Pearls”

For subscribers: Leiden IFF – WhachaWachin (Sentimental Value, If I Had Legs I Would Kick You, and Arco)

Additional awards coverage

BAFTAs shorts

BAFTAs features

Independent Spirit Awards

Revisit Oscars 2024 & 2025: links in these show notes

Contact Us

Questions or comments? Visit us at our website where you can use the contact form or use the voicemail feature. Or, send an email to [email protected].

Links to Patreon, Supercast, Discord, and Network Affiliates

linktr.ee/thelorehounds

Any opinions stated are ours personally and do not reflect the opinion of or belong to any employers or other entities.