This year’s Oscar nominations have proven to be big time conventional crowd-pleasers, ignoring the less commercial, artistic leaning cinematic explorations, like “Inside Llewyn Davis”, “Her”, or “Fruitvale Station”.

Last year’s “Argo” taking the surprise win for Best Picture seemed to be an indication that Academy tastes were headed in that blockbuster direction, while just a few short years ago, an unlikely candidate, a silent black-and-white film about old Hollywood, “The Artist” took the top prize.

This year, forget the artist, it’s all about the show.

With David O. Russell’s splashy conman caper “American Hustle” raking in 10 Oscar nominations, alongside the big budget futuristic space drama “Gravity” taking in an equal number of nominations (according to CBS news), smaller films with wide critical acclaim seem noticeably missing from the list.

Are the nominations boosts to already best-selling pictures?

Academy favorite Alfonso Cuaron directed the 3-D spectacle starring Sandra Bullock and George Clooney, both major box office draws, in any country. Forbes reported that the spacey drama pulled in large audiences, earning an estimate $675 million at the global box office. With the Oscar-nominated films re-entering theaters, it could mean an even bigger boost for “Gravity” sales.

Meanwhile, David O. Russell has taken his star-studded cast, which includes Academy darling and last year’s Best Actress winner, Jennifer Lawrence, right to the top of the list. Crowd favorite Lawrence is competing against Meryl Streep again, though we expect this time she won’t make the same mistake in quoting “The First Wives’ Club” in her acceptance speech. Fellow cast members, Bradley Cooper, Christian Bale, and Amy Adams have all received Oscar nods for their performances in “American Hustle”.

Noticeably missing from the ranks of the prestigious Best Picture queue are films that have been celebrated over the past year for their distinctive voice and risks in artistry.

Most notably, The Coen brothers’ introspective portrait of a wandering artist “Inside Llewyn Davis” received seemingly conciliatory nominations for cinematography and sound mixing; none of the big awards came its way. Even cameos by Justin Timberlake and John Goodman couldn’t give this movie a commercial edge. Unlike its blockbuster counterparts, this film’s rambling, moody unfolding delivers a feeling more than a concrete suspenseful plot payoff. In fact, as described by film review Flavorwire, the climax of the film issues its post poignant line of dialogue, delivered by F. Murray Abraham’s nightclub owner. After hearing Llewyn play, straight from the heart, he responds: “I don’t see a lot of money here.” Neither did the Academy voters.

When Jennifer Lawrence proclaimed at the Golden Globes that she had seen “all of the films this year. Well, most of them,” she probably wasn’t referring to a little known albeit well-regarded indie drama “Fruitvale Station”.

Actor Michael B. Jordan has received his share of deserved praise for this gritty, realistic portrayal of a young man who dies tragically by the hand of police, in Oakland. Headed up by USC graduate Ryan Coogler, “Fruitvale Station” received backing from Forest Whitaker and Octavia Spencer, who joined the cast. Unfortunately, despite winning the award for Best First Film at the 66^th Cannes Film Festival and being swooped up by the Weinstein Co. at Sundance for a cool $2 million, the film remained off the Academy radar, this year.

Lastly, Spike Jonze’s foray into the psychic world of Joaquin Phoenix’s Theodore in “Her” seemed perfunctorily asked the Oscar ball. While it did receive a nomination for Best Picture, Best Original Screenplay, Best Production Design and two Music noms, the top tier categories, including Best Actor and Best Director were completely left off the ballot. A film that receives nods for Best Picture and Best Original Screenplay, surely might have been carried by a Best Actor, or directed by a Best Director, no? Unfortunately, Joaquin Phoenix became unpopular amongst Academy voters after his outlandish affront to the institution, markedly demonstrated in his controversial film, “I’m Not There” in which he spoofs the entertainment industry, as a whole. As for Spike Jonze, he’s up against some heavy hitters with 8-time nominee Martin Scorcese and Academy favorites Alfonso Cuaron, David O. Russell, and Alexander Payne.

Another film that bears mentioning as missing from the list was Palme D’Or Winner “Blue is the Warmest Color” in the category of Best Foreign Language Film. (Possibly because it wasn’t even allowed to be shown in some states.)

While the top contenders certainly have major Hollywood talent and some serious movie muscle operating the behind the scenes, the content and perspective of these films aims to appeal to a broader, more commercial audience.

As an HBO executive once told me: “In show business, it’s the business that runs the show.”

The Academy Awards is the biggest, splashiest show of the year!