Although the Academy Awards are not until March, Iowa State professors of film and theater already are thinking about which movies deserve the industry’s highest honor.

Loring Silet, professor of English, teaches film and pop culture courses. He said he is pleased with the nominees for Best Picture, which include “Saving Private Ryan,” “Shakespeare in Love,” “The Thin Red Line,” “Life is Beautiful” and “Elizabeth.”

“I think it’s a very strong list of films,” he said.

Silet had some trouble coming up with a favorite in the category.

“I like all of them for different reasons. They do very different kinds of things,” he said, though he finally decided on “Elizabeth.”

However, he doesn’t think it will take home the Oscar.

“My guess is that ‘Saving Private Ryan’ probably has the best chance at this point, partly because of [director] Steven Spielberg, partly because the smaller films … might end up canceling each other out,” he said.

Silet said “Ryan” has a “much more accessible plot line.”

“[It] was generally more appealing to audiences,” he said.

Jane Cox, associate professor of performing arts, predicted that “Ryan” and director Spielberg both will take home Oscars.

“[‘Ryan’] is such a powerful film, and Steven Spielberg … has such a commitment to historical detail and mood,” she said, although the five movies nominated for Best Picture “all have something to say, and they’re all strong films.”

Silet found history to be a theme linking all the Best Picture nominees, pointing out that both “Elizabeth” and “Shakespeare in Love” are set in the Elizabethan period, while “Ryan,” “Line” and “Life” take place during World War II.

“Certainly, ‘Elizabeth’ and ‘Shakespeare in Love’ were costume dramas,” he said.

Gregg Henry, director of theater, agreed that the nominations are strong, but he is “surprised by some of the omissions.”

He lists “The Truman Show” star Jim Carrey and “Rushmore” star Bill Murray as actors he thought were shut out.

Cox, however, wasn’t surprised that the two actors weren’t nominated.

“I think it’s much harder for actors who are essentially known for comedy roles to get nominated,” she said.

She also thought that the summer film “Truman” might have received more nominations had it come out later in the year. She said films do better when their impact is still fresh in the voters’ memories.

“That may be one reason they’re re-releasing ‘Saving Private Ryan,'” Cox said.

The professors had their preferences for the acting categories.

Silet was split on picking a favorite for Best Actress.

“It’s really a toss-up between [‘Elizabeth’ star] Cate Blanchett and [‘One True Thing’ star] Meryl Streep,” he said.

Henry said he hopes “Shakespeare in Love” star Judi Dench will take home a Best Supporting Actress statue for her commanding performance as Queen Elizabeth.

“She’s one of the greatest actresses alive,” he said, adding that he thought she deserved the Oscar for “Mrs. Brown” last year.

In the male categories, Henry predicted Nick Nolte and James Coburn will win Best Actor and Best Supporting Actor, respectively.

“They’re two grizzled veterans [that] have finally gotten the right nominations,” he said.