Coda is giving Jane Campion's The Power of the Dog a run for its money as the Oscars near

It's the biggest weekend on the Hollywood calendar, this year's Oscars will be dished out on Sunday LA time in a lavish star-studded in-person ceremony.

If you'd asked any awards pundit worth their salt which film was a shoo-in for coveted Best Picture the answer would have been simple.

Jane Campion's repressed western The Power of the Dog tops the nominations with 12 nods including the two biggest of the night - Picture and Director.

But seemingly out of nowhere it's become a two-horse race, now vying for Best Picture honours comes a little film called Coda.

A heartwarming crowd-pleaser, Coda is the first film starring a predominantly deaf cast to receive a Best Picture nod and Troy Kotsur the first deaf male actor to receive a nomination for Best Supporting Actor.

On multiple levels, it’s a race for the history books and signals a massive shift in the Hollywood studio power balance.

Should either film win it will be the very first time a streaming service takes home the best picture Oscar - Netflix or Apple.

Whatever happens to Best Picture, with the Directors Guild Award, the BAFTA and the Critics Choice in her haul already, Campion has made history as the first woman to be nominated twice for the Best Director Oscar. 

If she wins and she remains the favourite, Dame Jane will become only the third woman in the 94-year history of the Oscars to do so.