Hollywood’s awards season kicked into high gear this morning with the announcement of the 86th annual Academy Awards nominations.
There's no doubt that this is a big year for black actors, actresses and directors. Steve McQueen’s critically-acclaimed motion picture “12 Years A Slave” was among the top three films to net the most nods with nine nominations.
But there were also some African-American stars who noticeably didn't make the cut, including Oprah Winfrey for her role in “The Butler” and Idris Elba for his performance in “Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom”.
So we decided that it would be appropriate to highlight some of our very own nominees from last year’s black film renaissance.
Check out our picks below, and share some of your favorites in the comments section.

"12 Years a Slave"
"Fruitvale Station"

Ryan Coogler – "Fruitvale Station"
Lee Daniels – "Lee Daniels' The Butler"

Idris Elba – "Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom"
Michael B Jordan – "Fruitvale Station"

Noamie Harris – "Mandela: Long Walk To Freedom"

Terrence Howard – "The Best Man Holiday"
Lenny Kravitz – "Lee Daniels' The Butler"

Oprah Winfrey – "Lee Daniels' The Butler"
Monica Calhoun – "The Best Man Holiday"

"The Best Man Holiday" (Written by: Malcolm D. Lee)
"Fruitvale Station" (Written by: Ryan Coogler)