'Precious' cast, director, Push author Sapphire, Lenny Kravitz, Mariah Carey NY Film Fest screening 2009

So I'm watching the Academy Award nominations broadcast on TV yesterday morning - to see which nominees I have pictures of / which films I've seen. Of course there were those that were expected - Kathryn Bigelow (The Hurt Locker), Lee Daniels and Gabourey Sidibe (Precious), and the Dude Jeff Bridges (Crazy Heart).

And in the Foreign Film category, the odds on winner is - 'The White Ribbon' by Michael Haneke. This film is a pre-Nazi Germany 'Children of the Damned' Protestants creepy whodunnit. Before the film screened at the NY Film Fest last fall, director Haneke told the very uptown Lincoln Center audience, with a smile on his face, "I wish you a disturbing screening". Don't miss seeing this film on the large screen. For me, just the black and white cinematography was worth the price of admission.

But the most unexpected nomination yesterday - and I'll tell you why in a moment - was also in the Foreign Film category. The Milk of Sorrow was directed by Claudia Llosa. I saw it last spring at the New Directors/New Films Festival here in NYC. I photographed the Peruvian director that same night, and then went in to see the film which was quite good. But I have to tell you that the plot revolves around - and this is a SPOILER ALERT of sorts - a main character who has a potato growing inside her vagina. I'll say that again - she has a potato growing out of her vagina. Really.

Michael Haneke and Claudia Llosa