2017 Ursa Major Awards Nominees

Image by EosFoxx

The 2017 Ursa Major Awards final ballot is open for voting from March 1 to March 31 on the UMA website.

The winners will be announced at a presentation ceremony at FurDU 2018 at Gold Coast City, Queensland, Australia on May 4-6.

Best Motion Picture
Live-action or animated feature-length movies.

  • Ferdinand (Directed by Carlos Saldanha; December 15)
  • Guardians of the Galaxy vol. 2 (Directed by James Gunn; May 5)
  • My Little Pony: The Movie (Directed by Jayson Thiessen; October 6)
  • Rock Dog (Directed by Ash Brannon; February 24)
  • War for the Planet of the Apes (Directed by Matt Reeves; July 14)

Best Dramatic Series or Short Work
TV series or one-shots, advertisements or short videos.

  • Doodle Toons (Directed by Jack C; Pilot episode to “Deleted Scene: Fast Food Follies”)
  • Duck Tales [2017 reboot] (Directed by John Aoshima, Dana Terrace; Season 1, August 12 to December 2)
  • Here’s the Plan (Directed by Fernanda Frick; April 27)
  • Kouka and Bibi (by Dan Variano; January 8)
  • Mascot Fur Life (Directed by Jens Wernstedt; December 23)
  • My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic (Directed by Jim Miller, Tim Stuby, Denny Lu, Mike Myhre; Season 7, episodes 1 to 26)
  • OK KO! Let’s Be Heroes (Directed by Hwang Ki-hoo, Chang-woo Shin, Sunjae Lee, Byungjae Oh, Eunyung Byun, Sunhung Kim; Season 1 Episode 1 to 42)

Best Novel
Written works of 40,000 words or more. Serialized novels qualify only for the year that the final chapter is published.

  • Always Gray in Winter, by Mark J. Engels (Thurston Howl Publications; August 10)
  • Black Friday, by Jan Stryvant (CreateSpace; September 8)
  • Kismet, by Watts Martin (Argyll Productions, FurPlanet Productions; January 12)
  • Otters in Space III: Octopus Ascending, by Mary E. Lowd (FurPlanet Productions; June 30)
  • The Wayward Astronomer, by Geoffrey Thomas (Corvus Publishing; May 9)

Best Short Fiction
Stories less than 40,000 words, poetry, and other short Written works.

  • Behesht, by Dwale (in ROAR volume 8; June 30)
  • Beyond the Great Divide, by S. H. Mansouri (in Cirsova Heroic Fantasy & Science Fiction Magazine #5; Spring 2017)
  • Lieutenant Kruger and the Mistress Jade Trophy Game, by Kathy Garrison Kellogg (in The Cross Time Cafe; October 5)
  • The Moon Like an Unhatched Egg, by Mary E. Lowd (in Symbol of a Nation; June 30)
  • Rickety V, by Rechan (in Intimate Little Secrets; March 24)

Best Other Literary Work
Story collections, comic collections, graphic novels, non-fiction works, and serialized online stories.

  • Arcana: A Tarot Anthology, edited by Madison Scott-Clary (anthology; Thurston Howl Publications; November 9)
  • Dogs of War, edited by Fred Patten (anthology; FurPlanet Productions; January 12)
  • Intimate Little Secrets, by Rechan (collection; FurPlanet Productions; March 24)
  • ROAR volume 8, edited by Mary E. Lowd (anthology; Bad Dog Books; June 30)
  • Symbol of a Nation, edited by Fred Patten (anthology; GoAL Publications; June 30)

Best Non-Fiction Work
Includes documentaries, opinion pieces, and news articles.

  • Furries Among Us 2; More Essays On Furries By Furries, edited by Thurston Howl (Thurston Howl Productions; August 18)
  • Furry Fandom Conventions, 1989-2015, by Fred Patten (McFarland & Co.; January 3))
  • Furry Nation, by Joe Strike (Cleis Press; October 10)
  • The Shocking Furry Fandom Conversation. Yes, Really! (on YouTube, featuring Stefan Molyneux; October 16)
  • 3 Ursa Major-ly Painful Victories, by Rooview (on YouTube; April 23)

Best Graphic Story
Includes comic books, and serialized online stories.

  • A&H Club, by Rick Griffin (Internet; January 7 to November 25)
  • DreamKeepers, by David & Liz Lillie (Internet; January 2 [#340] to December 18 [#385])
  • Endtown, by Aaron Neathery (Internet; January 2 to December 25)
  • Lackadaisy, by Tracy J. Butler (internet; Lackadaisy Gimmickry to Lackadaisy Deliria)
  • TwoKinds, by Tom Fischbach (internet; January 5 to December 28)

Best Comic Strip
Newspaper-style strips, including those with ongoing arcs.

  • Carry On, by Kathy Garrison Kellogg (Internet; January 1 to December 29)
  • Doc Rat, by Jenner (Internet; January 4 to December 29)
  • DreamKeepers Prelude, by David & Liz Lillie (Internet; January 6 [#350] to December 28 [#393])
  • Freefall, by Mark Stanley (Internet; January 2 to December 29)
  • Housepets!, by Rick Griffin (Internet; January 2 to December 29)

Best Magazine
Edited collections of creative and/or informational works by various people, professional or amateur, published in print or online in written, pictorial or audio-visual form.

  • Dogpatch Press, ed. by Patch Packrat (Internet; January 5 to December 25)
  • Flayrah, edited by GreenReaper, Sonious, and Dronon (Internet; January 1 to December 30)
  • FurryFandom.es, edited by Mike Retriever (Internet; February 19 to October 9)
  • InFurNation, ed. by Rod O’Riley (Internet; January 1 to December 31)
  • Typewriter Emergencies: A Journal of Furry Lit, edited by Weasel (Weasel Press; May)

Best Published Illustration
Illustrations for books, magazines, convention program books, cover art for such, coffee-table portfolios.

  • Bone, cover for Always Gray in Winter by Mark J. Engels (Thurston Howl Publications; August 10)
  • Baron Engel, Prepare to Engage the Enemy, cover for A Different Perspective by Bernard Doove (June 8)
  • Ashley Foy, Valentine’s Gifts (February 14)
  • Teagan Gavet, cover for Dogs of War, edited by Fred Patten (FurPlanet Productions; January 12)
  • Teagan Gavet, cover for ROAR vol, 8, edited by Mary E. Lowd (Bad Dog Books; June 30)
  • Idess, cover for Otters in Space III: Octopus Ascending, by Mary E. Lowd (FurPlanet Productions; June 30)
  • David Lillie, cover for The Wayward Astronomer, by Geoffrey Thomas (Corvus Publishing; May 9)

Best Game
Computer or console games, role-playing games, board games.

  • Cuphead (Developer and Publisher: StudioMDHR Entertainment; September 29)
  • Night in the Woods (Developer: Infinite Fall, Publisher: Finji; February 21)
  • Sonic Mania (Developer: PagodaWest Games and Headcannon, Publisher: Sega; August 15)
  • Star Fox 2 (Developer: Nintendo and Argonaut Games, Publisher: Nintendo; September 29)
  • Yooka – Laylee (Developers: Playtonic Games; April 11)

Best Website
Online collections of art, stories, and other creative and/or informational works. Includes galleries, story archives, directories, blogs, and personal sites.

  • The Cross Time Cafe (forum for comic discussions, including many on the Recommended List)
  • e621.com (art, discussions, etc.))
  • Furry Writers’ Guild (Supporting, informing, elevating, and promoting quality anthropomorphic fiction and its creators)
  • Inkbunny (furry art community)
  • WikiFur (furry fandom encyclopedia)

[Thanks to Fred Patten for the story.]