19 Sep – It's official! Angelina Jolie's "First They Killed My Father" has been selected as Cambodia's Best Foreign Language Film submission for the Academy Awards. This also marks the first time that an American director has been made the representative for another country in another language, as reported by Deadline. "This means a great deal to all of us involved in making the film. To work with local artists to bring this story forward has been a moving and humbling experience," Jolie said in response to the news.
Annually, countries across the globe will submit what they consider as their best film of the year to the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS), with only one film being accepted per country. Although the official Oscar nominations will only be announced on 23 January 2018, the race has already started for the Best Foreign Language category. There are 48 entries submitted so far including Thailand's "By The Time It Gets Dark" by Anocha Suwichakornpong, Vietnam's "Father And Son" by Lương Đình Dũng, Japan's "Her Love Boils Bathwater" by Ryota Nakano and South Korea's "A Taxi Driver" by Jang Hoon. There are countries such as Malaysia and Singapore, however, that have yet to submit their entries for Oscar's Best Foreign Language category. The 90th Academy Awards will be held at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California on 4 March 2018.