It's January, which is good news and bad news for film buffs. The bad news: Hollywood tends to pump out some pretty lazy filmmaking efforts this time of year, including low-budget horror flicks, below-average animated family films and under-the-radar dramas. The good news: movies of higher quality from December carry over into the new year, some of which are up for major awards. Speaking of awards, perhaps the best news for movie fans during this lackluster time of year is the announcement of the nominees for the upcoming Academy Awards ceremony.

No matter who and what makes the cut every year, the Oscar nominations have always been subject to controversy. While I do acknowledge that certain people and certain films may have been more deserving of recognition in major categories (i.e. "Creed," "Straight Outta Compton," Ridley Scott, Michael B. Jordan, Will Smith and Oscar Isaac), it really isn't my place to say who is worthy of Mr. Oscar. It's easy to point fingers and accuse Academy members of being biased towards certain kinds of movies, being racially prejudiced and so on, but the hard truth is that since we'll never know precisely how the Academy selects the nominees and the winners each year, there isn't much point in arguing over who was snubbed and what is overrated.

Even though the Oscars are the most coveted awards in the film industry, I feel it is important to take their level of prestige with a grain of salt. Many of my favorite films each year normally go unrecognized by the Academy, and I am completely fine with that. Films are subjective after all; your favorite film of 2015 might be a comedy, mine might be a drama. At the end of the day, however, I still enjoy selecting my own Oscar winners every year.

Below are my personal picks for this year's Academy Awards, save for the following categories: Foreign Language Film, Documentary Feature, Documentary Short, Live Action Short and Animated Short.

BEST PICTURE
"The Big Short"
"Bridge of Spies"
"Brooklyn"
"Mad Max: Fury Road"
"The Martian"
"The Revenant"
"Room"
"Spotlight"

BEST DIRECTOR
Lenny Abrahamson … "Room"
Alejandro González Iñárritu … "The Revenant"
Tom McCarthy … "Spotlight"
Adam McKay … "The Big Short"
George Miller … "Mad Max: Fury Road"

BEST ACTOR
Bryan Cranston … "Trumbo"
Matt Damon … "The Martian"
Leonardo DiCaprio … "The Revenant"
Michael Fassbender … "Steve Jobs"
Eddie Redmayne … "The Danish Girl"

BEST ACTRESS
Cate Blanchett … "Carol"
Brie Larson … "Room"
Jennifer Lawrence … "Joy"
Charlotte Rampling … "45 Years"
Saoirse Ronan … "Brooklyn"

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
Christian Bale … "The Big Short"
Tom Hardy … "The Revenant"
Mark Ruffalo … "Spotlight"
Mark Rylance … "Bridge of Spies"
Sylvester Stallone … "Creed"

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS (Tie)
Jennifer Jason Leigh … "The Hateful Eight"
Rooney Mara … "Carol"
Rachel McAdams … "Spotlight"
Alicia Vikander … "The Danish Girl"
Kate Winslet … "Steve Jobs"

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY (Tie)
"Bridge of Spies"
"Ex Machina"
"Inside Out"
"Spotlight"
"Straight Outta Compton"

BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
"The Big Short"
"Brooklyn"
"Carol"
"The Martian"
"Room"

BEST ANIMATED FEATURE
"Anomalisa"
"Boy & the World"
"Inside Out"
"Shaun the Sheep"
"When Marnie Was There"

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE (Three-way Tie)
"Bridge of Spies"
"Carol"
"The Hateful Eight"
"Sicario"
" Star Wars: Episode VII – The Force Awakens"

BEST ORIGINAL SONG
"Earned It" (from "Fifty Shades of Grey")
"Manta Ray" (from "Racing Extinction")
"Simple Song #3" (from "Youth")
"Till It Happens to You" (from "The Hunting Ground")
"Writing's on the Wall" (from "Spectre")

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY (Tie)
"Carol"
"The Hateful Eight"
"Mad Max: Fury Road"
"The Revenant"
"Sicario"

BEST FILM EDITING
"The Big Short"
"Mad Max: Fury Road"
"The Revenant"
"Spotlight"
"Star Wars: Episode VII – The Force Awakens"

BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN
"Bridge of Spies"
"The Danish Girl"
"Mad Max: Fury Road"
"The Martian"
"The Revenant"

BEST COSTUME DESIGN
"Carol"
"Cinderella"
"The Danish Girl"
"Mad Max: Fury Road"
"The Revenant"

BEST MAKEUP AND HAIRSTYLING
"Mad Max: Fury Road"
"The Hundred-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out the Window and Disappeared"
"The Revenant"

BEST SOUND EDITING
"Mad Max: Fury Road"
"The Martian"
"The Revenant"
"Sicario"
"Star Wars: Episode VII – The Force Awakens"

BEST SOUND MIXING (Tie)
"Bridge of Spies"
"Mad Max: Fury Road"
"The Martian"
"The Revenant"
"Star Wars: Episode VII – The Force Awakens"

BEST VISUAL EFFECTS
"Ex Machina"
"Mad Max: Fury Road"
"The Martian"
"The Revenant"
"Star Wars: Episode VII – The Force Awakens"