Planning an Academy Awards viewing party? Check out these color schemes for your invites, ballots, table settings, and more.
The Academy Awards will take place on March 27th this year, which means you have less than two weeks to fill out your ballots and come up with epic movie-themed party dishes (Belfast tacos, anyone?).
To help you prepare, Shutterstock’s senior graphic designer Jac Castillo put together color palettes inspired by Best Picture nominees, drawing color inspiration from movie posters and stills available in the Shutterstock Editorial collection.
Use the HEX codes listed below for custom-palette perfection.
And the nominees are . . .
1. Belfast
Set in the late 1960s, Kenneth Branagh‘s semi-autobiographical film follows a working-class family as they navigate a period of violent unrest in Northern Ireland—a nationalist conflict known as The Troubles.
The movie is shown almost entirely in black-and-white, but with bursts of color—hence the look of its movie poster and our corresponding palette.
The scheme is both serious and playful, melancholic and hopeful. Just like Belfast.
Hex codes (from top down):
- #F9E390
- #FAD426
- #E7E7E8
- #2F2C2B
- #888689
2. CODA
This spectacular coming-of-age drama, directed by Sian Heder, tells the story of Ruby, a seventeen-year-old high-schooler who—as the only hearing member of a deaf family—discovers her love of singing.
The film made history on the awards circuit when actor Troy Kotsur (who plays Ruby’s father) became the first deaf man to earn an Oscar nomination for acting.
CODA also took home the top prize (best cast) at the Screen Actors Guild Awards. Accepting the trophy, actress Marlee Matlin (who portrays Ruby’s mom) said, “We, deaf actors, have come a long way. This validates the fact that we, deaf actors, can work like anybody else.”
This palette, with its blue-gray, taupe, and oatmeal colors, feels down-to-earth and welcoming.
Hex Codes (from top down):
- #658CAC
- #866042
- #D6D5CE
- #83A2B4
- #27211E
3. Don’t Look Up
Writer/director Adam McKay has some thoughts about climate change—namely, that our planet is doomed if we don’t act now—and he shares them in this satire about a comet headed toward Earth.
“I’m under no illusions that one film will be the cure to the climate crisis,” McKay told the New York Times in an email. “But, if it inspires conversation, critical thinking, and makes people less tolerant of inaction from their leaders, then I’d say we accomplished our goal.”
The movie’s all-star cast includes Leonardo DiCaprio, Jennifer Lawrence, and Meryl Streep—and this all-star color palette includes a cognac, a chambray, and a dusty rose.
Hex Codes (from top down):
- #36454F
- #99473D
- #0A0A0A
- #DCAF95
- #054C86
4. Drive My Car
An unlikely bond forms between a widowed actor and the twenty-year-old woman who becomes his chauffeur in this beautifully haunting film—a meditation on grief and love—by Ryûsuke Hamaguchi.
The palette pulls inspiration from the titular car, but in a quiet, subtle way.
Hex Codes (from top down):
- #DF8789
- #E27656
- #CFD6DD
- #191D29
- #C34246
5. Dune
With ten Oscar nominations, Denis Villeneuve‘s adaptation of Frank Herbert’s epic sci-fi novel has certainly fared better than David Lynch‘s critically-lambasted 1984 version (although, the latter was nominated for an Academy Award in best sound).
The story is set in the far future, in the midst of a war for the desert planet Arrakis—the lone source of “spice“, a highly sought-after, world-altering substance.
The Dune sequel (part-two of the same book) is due out sometime next year. Meantime, enjoy this sand-and-spice-inspired color palette.
Hex Codes (from top down):
- #493428
- #BE8464
- #7D685F
- #D2DCE5
- #483C32
6. King Richard
Venus and Serena Williams are two of the greatest athletes of all time, bar none. King Richard—produced by the tennis legends themselves—tells the story of how their father, Richard Williams, helped shape their careers with singular vision and unmatched determination.
Will Smith gives a grand-slam performance as the titular Richard, and relative newcomers Saniyya Sidney (as Venus) and Demi Singleton (as Serena) step onto the court as superstars-in-the-making.
Score your own points by using this palette—which resists the obvious acid green—in your Oscar invites.
Hex Codes (from top down):
- #9E6044
- #73942B
- #F3F2E3
- #453843
- #B59F90
7. Licorice Pizza
Paul Thomas Anderson discovered a brilliant actress in musician Alana Haim, who makes her film debut alongside the equally talented Cooper Hoffman (son of the late Philip Seymour Hoffman), in this California coming-of-age comedy about an age-inappropriate friendship and . . . well, you’ll have to see it for yourself.
Naturally, this seventies-inspired color scheme—which matches both the movie poster and the decade in which the story takes place—is best used to label your requisite Licorice Pizza party dish.
Hex Codes (from top down):
- #C8211D
- #107DCB
- #E39963
- #843B30
- #5497B6
8. Nightmare Alley
This noir melodrama by Oscar-winning director Guillermo del Toro (The Shape of Water) invites viewers into the twisty world of carnies and traveling shows, with top-of-their-game performances from Bradley Cooper, Cate Blanchett, Rooney Mara, and Toni Collette.
Bring the circus to your designs with this pop-of-red palette, anchored by shades of brown.
Hex Codes (from top down):
- #BD6536
- #C7292E
- #D1A087
- #21130C
- #88523A
9. Power of the Dog
Director Jane Campion put her stamp on the Western genre—whether Sam Elliot likes it or not—with a surprisingly eerie story of a “man’s man” rancher (Benedict Cumberbatch) who doesn’t take kindly to his brother’s new wife (Kirsten Dunst).
Transport yourself to 1925 Montana—at least aesthetically speaking—with a palette that draws on open skies and rolling fields.
Hex Codes (from top down):
- #765539
- #9B6D47
- #312A20
- #87927F
- #7C92A9
10. West Side Story
Steven Spielberg‘s West Side Story had a lot to live up to—the 1961 film adaptation wasn’t exactly lacking—and, boy, did it ever.
“West Side Story was actually the first piece of popular music our family ever allowed into the home,” Spielberg told Vanity Fair. “I absconded with it—this was the cast album from the 1957 Broadway musical—and just fell completely in love with it as a kid. West Side Story has been that one haunting temptation that I have finally given in to.”
For your part, you’ll want to give in to this vibrant-but-restrained color palette, which features a dazzling red.
Hex Codes (from top down):
- #D07237
- #CB232D
- #2E282C
- #D7B69A
- #8F625A
Cover image via Netflix/Moviestore/Shutterstock.
