All things considered, 2013 was a great year for movies but in the end, there will only be a handful of nominees--and only one winner.

The buzz about Awards season is getting louder as the year ends. Actors, studios and agents are making their campaigns because, admittedly, it is not all about the film onscreen. Taking all possible factors, Indiewire has categorized some of this year's outstanding films in an Academy nomination context.

There are absolute locks which mean it would be a shock not to see them in the nomination list(they played it safe and placed only two films on this category), there are strong candidates(likely to be nominated but not exactly a lock) and a couple of films that would be 'long shots' and surprises.

The absolute locks for a nomination would be Alfonso Cuaron's "Gravity" and Steve McQueen's "12 Years A Slave." They have posted strong reviews all throughout their theatrical run and have numerous awards tucked in their belts.

"12 Years A Slave" has the People's Choice Award in the Toronto International Film Festival and best film from critics societies and associations from Boston, Detroit and Washington Dc. "Gravity" recently took Best Film (tied with "Her") from the LA Film Critics Association. All these accolades are hard to ignore.

Citing the Academy members getting tired of 'formula' Oscar films-meaning films which seem like they were made to win the Oscars, "Captain Phillips" from Paul Greengrass was relegated to the long shot category. By all means, it can still make it, but Indiewire sees other films having better chances. The pirate-hostage drama based on a true story starring Tom Hanks (how Oscar formula can you get?) is almost a textbook awardee, but recently, Academy voters opted for 'quirkier' choices-and there's a lot of that this year.

There's a film on the other side of the spectrum-the anti Oscar formula. "Her" from Spike Jonze recently tied with "Gravity" for the LA Critics' best film, and it features a man who falls in love with his -operating system voice. It also stars Joaquin Phoenix who once badmouthed the Oscars. It seems like they're daring the Academy not to nominate them. Thus, it would be a big surprise (spoiled it) if they made the nominees' list, let alone win the biggest annual award in all of Hollywood.