The Directors Guild of America ruled this week that You Can See Everything cannot compete for Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Theatrical Feature Film. Directors Nathan Fielder and Lance Oppenheim will instead compete in the documentary category only. Per the DGA's eligibility rules, "re-releases, animated films and documentaries are not eligible."
The ruling carries strategic weight. The DGA feature award has predicted the Best Director Oscar winner in all but eight years, making it one of the most reliable momentum-builders in the awards season. Without that platform, the film's campaign loses a bellwether before the nomination window opens.
A24 launched its Oscar campaign in September, submitting the film in eleven categories for the 99th Academy Awards. The studio is pursuing Best Picture, Best Director, Best Documentary Feature, and Best Supporting Actress for Amanda Seyfried. A Best Picture nomination for a documentary would be a first. No documentary has ever appeared on the Academy's final ballot for the top prize.
Seyfried appears in the film's second half playing both herself and Elizabeth Holmes in reenactments. She won an Emmy for her portrayal of Holmes in the Hulu series The Dropout. No performer has ever received an Academy Award nomination for a role in a documentary. Seyfried and the film are also ineligible at the Golden Globes and SAG Awards, which accept only scripted projects.
You Can See Everything opened domestically to $15 million, according to multiple trade reports, making it the second-biggest debut for a non-musical documentary behind Michael Moore's Fahrenheit 9/11 in 2004. Press screenings for the 99th Academy Awards are still ahead. The DGA ruling removes one road. Whether the Academy takes a different one is the question that carries the next four months.
