Nine films will advance to the next round of voting in the Foreign Language Film category for the 81st Academy Awards. Sixty-five films had originally qualified in the category.

The films, listed in alphabetical order by country, are:

Austria, REVANCHE, Gotz Spielmann, director
Canada, THE NECESSITIES OF LIFE, Benoit Pilon, director
France, THE CLASS, Laurent Cantet, director
Germany, THE BAADER MEINHOF COMPLEX, Uli Edel, director
Israel, WALTZ WITH BASHIR, Ari Folman, director
Japan, DEPARTURES, Yojiro Takita, director
Mexico, TEAR THIS HEART OUT, Roberto Sneider, director
Sweden, EVERLASTING MOMENTS, Jan Troell, director
Turkey, 3 MONKEYS, Nuri Bilge Ceylan, director.

Foreign Language Film nominations for 2008 are being determined in two phases.

The Phase I committee, consisting of several hundred Los Angeles-based members, screened the 65 eligible films between mid-October and January 10. That group's top six choices, augmented by three additional selections voted by the Academy's Foreign Language Film Award Executive Committee, constitute the shortlist.

The shortlist will be winnowed down to the five 2008 nominees by specially selected committees in New York and Los Angeles. The committee members will spend this Friday, Saturday and Sunday viewing three of the films each day.

The 81st Academy Awards nominations will be announced on Thursday, January 22, 2009, at 5:30 a.m. PT in the Academy's Samuel Goldwyn Theater.

Academy Awards for outstanding film achievements of 2008 will be presented on Sunday, February 22, 2009, at the Kodak Theatre at Hollywood & Highland Center, and televised live by the ABC Television Network. The Oscar presentation also will be televised live in more than 200 countries worldwide.