Nominees for the 72nd Annual Golden Globe Awards have been announced, with unlikely contender Birdman continuing to soar, Aussie hopefuls receiving recognition and Angelina Jolie being notably snubbed.

The Thursday announcement, which typically acts a preview for the Academy Awards, appeared to shatter Oscar hopes for Jolie’s Australian-made war epic Unbroken.

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Jolie and Unbroken failed to pick up a single nomination.

Golden Globe nominations for director Jolie and the film, about US Olympian and World War II hero Louis Zamperini, were considered a sure thing.

In a double blow, Jolie, Unbroken and its cast led by English actor Jack O’Connell were also snubbed by the HFPA and the Screen Actors Guild Awards on Wednesday.

However, there was still some positive news for the Australian entertainment industry – Adelaide singer-songwriter Sia Furler, Perth actress Frances O’Connor and Sydney-made The Lego Movie all picked up Globe nods.

Naomi Watts in ‘St Vincent’.

Australian actress Naomi Watts was a surprise nominee for a SAG when she picked up a supporting actress nod for her role as a pregnant Russian prostitute in the comedy-drama St Vincent, but failed to score a Globes nod.

Furler, meanwhile, has a busy awards season ahead.

Less than a week after picking up four Grammy Award nominations the prolific South Australian received a Globe nomination, and is on track for an Academy Award nod, for her original song Opportunity in the Cameron Diaz, Jamie Foxx-starring update on the classic musical, Annie.

Furler will battle New Zealander Lorde’s song Yellow Flicker Beat from The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part I for the Globe.

O’Connor was nominated for a best actress in a mini-series or TV movie Globe for her performance in The Missing, where she plays a mother suffering from the abduction of her young son during a family vacation in France.

The Lego Movie, made in Sydney by studio Animal Logic, is up against Big Hero 6, The Book of Life, The Boxtrolls and How To Train Your Dragon 2 in the animated movie category.

The overall Globe nomination winner was the drama Birdman, starring Michael Keaton as a washed up movie superhero, which led all films with seven nominations.

Rival best picture hopefuls Boyhood and The Imitation Game followed with five nods each.

While Jolie didn’t get a Globe invite, Brad Pitt’s ex Jennifer Aniston did.

Aniston is firming as a solid shot at a best actress Oscar with a Globe drama nod for her performance as a woman suffering from chronic pain in Cake.

The Globes winners will be announced on February 11.

The Oscar nominations will be announced on January 15 and the winners revealed on February 22.

— with AAP

The full list of nominees

Movies

Best motion picture – drama

“Boyhood”
“Foxcatcher”
“The Imitation Game”
“Selma”
“The Theory of Everything”

Best motion picture – musical or comedy

“Birdman”
“The Grand Budapest Hotel”
“Into the Woods”
“Pride”
“St. Vincent”

Best actress in a motion picture – drama

Jennifer Aniston, “Cake”
Felicity Jones, “The Theory of Everything”
Julianne Moore, “Still Alice”
Rosamund Pike, “Gone Girl”
Reese Witherspoon, “Wild”

Best actor in a motion picture – drama

Steve Carell, “Foxcatcher”
Benedict Cumberbatch, “The Imitation Game”
David Oyelowo, “Selma”
Eddie Redmayne, “The Theory of Everything”
Jake Gyllenhaal, “Nightcrawler”

Best actor in a motion picture – musical or comedy

Ralph Fiennes, “The Grand Budapest Hotel”
Michael Keaton, “Birdman”
Bill Murray, “St. Vincent”
Joaquin Phoenix, “Inherent Vice”
Christoph Waltz, “Big Eyes”

Best actress in a motion picture – musical or comedy

Amy Adams, “Big Eyes”
Emily Blunt, “Into the Woods”
Helen Mirren, “The Hundred-Foot Journey”
Julianne Moore, “Maps to the Stars”
Quvenzhane Wallis, “Annie”

Best supporting actor in a motion picture

Robert Duvall, “The Judge”
Ethan Hawke, “Boyhood”
Edward Norton, “Birdman”
Mark Ruffalo, “Foxcatcher”
J.K. Simmons, “Whiplash”

Best supporting actress in a motion picture

Patricia Arquette, “Boyhood”
Jessica Chastain, “A Most Violent Year”
Emma Stone, “Birdman”
Meryl Streep, “Into the Woods”
Keira Knightley, “The Imitation Game”

Best animated feature film

“Big Hero 6”
“The Book of Life”
“The Boxtrolls”
“How to Train Your Dragon 2”
“The Lego Movie”

Best director

Wes Anderson, “The Grand Budapest Hotel”
Ava DuVernay, “Selma”
David Fincher, “Gone Girl”
Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu, “Birdman”
Richard Linklater, “Boyhood”

Best screenplay

Wes Anderson, “The Grand Budapest Hotel”
Gillian Flynn, “Gone Girl”
Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu, “Birdman”
Richard Linklater, “Boyhood”
Graham Moore, “The Imitation Game”

Best original score

Alexandre Desplat, “The Imitation Game”
Johann Johannsson, “The Theory of Everything”
Trent Reznor, Atticus Ross, “Gone Girl”
Antonio Sanchez, “Birdman”
Hans Zimmer, “Interstellar”

Best original song

“Big Eyes,” from “Big Eyes”
“Glory,” from “Selma”
“Mercy Is,” from “Noah”
“Opportunity,” from “Annie”
“Yellow Flicker Beat,” from “The Hunger Games: Mockingjay — Part I”

Best foreign language film

“Force Majeure Turist” (Sweden)
“Gett: The Trial of Viviane Amsalem Gett” (Israel)
“Ida” (Poland/Denmark)
“Leviathan” (Russia)
“Tangerines Mandariinid” (Estonia)

Television

Best TV series – drama

“The Affair”
“Downton Abbey”
“Game of Thrones”
“The Good Wife”
“House of Cards”

Best actor in a TV series – drama

Clive Owen, “The Knick”
Liev Schreiber, “Ray Donovan”
Kevin Spacey, “House of Cards”
James Spader, “The Blacklist”
Dominic West, “The Affair”

Best actress in a TV series – drama

Claire Danes, “Homeland”
Viola Davis, “How to Get Away With Murder”
Julianna Margulies, “The Good Wife”
Ruth Wilson, “The Affair”
Robin Wright, “House of Cards”

Best TV series – comedy

“Girls”
“Jane the Virgin”
“Orange is the New Black”
“Silicon Valley”
“Transparent”

Best actor in a TV series – comedy

Louis C.K., “Louie”
Don Cheadle, “House of Lies”
Ricky Gervais, “Derek”
William H. Macy, “Shameless”
Jeffrey Tambor, “Transparent”

Best actress in a TV series – comedy

Lena Dunham, “Girls”
Edie Falco, “Nurse Jackie”
Julia Louis-Dreyfus, “Veep”
Gina Rodriguez, “Jane the Virgin”
Taylor Schilling, “Orange is the New Black”

Best TV movie or mini-series

“Fargo”
“The Missing”
“The Normal Heart”
“Olive Kitteridge”
“True Detective”

Best actor in a mini-series or TV movie

Martin Freeman, “Fargo”
Woody Harrelson, “True Detective”
Matthew McConaughey, “True Detective”
Mark Ruffalo, “The Normal Heart”
Billy Bob Thornton, “Fargo”

Best actress in a mini-series or TV movie

Maggie Gyllenhaal, “The Honorable Woman”
Jessica Lange, “American Horror Story: Freak Show”
Frances McDormand, “Olive Kitteridge”
Frances O’Connor, “The Missing”
Allison Tolman, “Fargo”

Best supporting actor in a series, mini-series or TV movie

Matt Bomer, “The Normal Heart”
Alan Cumming, “The Good Wife”
Colin Hanks, “Fargo”
Bill Murray, “Olive Kitteridge”
Jon Voight, “Ray Donovan”

Best supporting actress in a series, mini-series or TV movie

Uzo Aduba, “Orange is the New Black”
Kathy Bates, “American Horror Story: Freak Show”
Allison Janney, “Mom”
Michelle Monaghan, “True Detective”
Joanne Froggatt, “Downton Abbey”