The directors nod to why this piece is a forward-thinking when they told The Creators Project, "All art is technology, technology that shares an experience or an idea.
Prinne Eberle, the School for the Deaf's athletic director, nodded in agreement.
The directors' nods later today could provide oxygen to "Walk the Line" and "The Constant Gardener".
Ridley Scott is already a firm favourite for a Best Director nod, having never won the accolade before.
In other categories, Martin Scorsese collected a best director nod for his efforts on the mafia-cop thriller The Departed.
Should he be nominated by the Academy, Scorsese would be picking up his fifth best director nod.
As well as best film and director nods for Todd Haynes, Blanchett is in the leading actress category and her co-star is nominated for supporting actress.
The HFPA are altogether blase about The Master, previously tipped as an awards frontrunner, which now crucially misses out on a best film or director nod.
A director nod for Todd Haynes is uncertain, as he didn't make the cut for the Directors Guild of America's nominations, which usually serve as a good indicator.
Benh Zeitlin, Michael Haneke and David O Russell's best director nods look to have pushed out Tom Hooper, Kathryn Bigelow and Quentin Tarantino, all of whom started the season looking the more likely picks.
