Animated films seek to find a place in Best Picture Oscar race

The filmmakers of "Inside Out 2", the highest-grossing animated film of all time, are aiming to be included to the Oscar's Best Picture race as experts in the animation industry strive for more recognition.

"Inside Out 2" was the highest grossing film of 2024 and is the highest grossing animated film of all time, but it was shut out of the best picture Oscar race along with acclaimed animated films "The Wild Robot" and "Flow."

"In general, animation is just in its little corner on its own, so we'd love to champion it to be considered for best film," said Merlin Crossingham, who co-directed "Wallace and Gromit: Vengence Most Fowl."

Among the top 10 grossing films in 2024, five were animated sequel movies: Disney's "Moana 2" and "Mufasa: The Lion King," Universal Pictures' and DreamWorks' "Kung Fu Panda 4," and Universal Pictures "Despicable Me 4," Box Office Mojo said.

"I think more and more that we're being considered in that area, it's a little bit of a glass ceiling for us," said Bonnie Arnold, veteran film executive who worked for Disney Animation, Pixar Animation and DreamWorks Animation.

While there have been some animated films nominated for best picture, including "Beauty and the Beast" in 1991, "Up" in 2009 and "Toy Story 3" in 2010, they have been overlooked in recent years.

There is a stigma that animated films are just for children, rather than audiences of all ages.

Arnold also said that while animated theatrical releases are frequently family-oriented in her opinion, versus adult animation with a stronger streaming presence, she does not believe family inclusive elements limit audience.

By contrast, "Inside Out" director Peter Docter believes that sometimes animated films do not meet the expectations of a best picture contender due to low humor.

"There is a certain caliber that people are looking for in a best picture, so we gotta step it up," Docter told Reuters.

Breaking those barriers, Screen Australia's adult stop-motion animated film "Memoir of a Snail" is the second R-rated animated film ever to receive an Oscar nomination.

The movie follows a girl named Grace growing up in 1970s Melbourne, Australia, as she uses an obsession with snails to cope with the traumas of life.

The 2024 Disney and Pixar movie "Inside Out 2" crossed the $1 billion (AED 3.67 billion) mark at the worldwide box office in less than three weeks of its release, reaching that level in the fastest time of any animated film in history.

"Inside Out 2" is a sequel to Docter's 2015 film, which follows five humanoid emotions inside the mind of a girl named Riley.