Well, time sure does move fast when you don’t pay much attention to it. How To Train Your Dragon 2 just came out and we are already halfway through the year. We still have quite a handful of movies left to go, but it still got me thinking about the 2015 Annie Awards.

With Pixar out of the game (at least till next year), we’ve seen a myriad of other animated companies stepping up to the plate. While we await the rest of the year’s offerings, let’s have ourselves a gander at who might take the top spot at the Annies this coming winter.

In no particular order:

How To Train Your Dragon 2

This probably goes without saying, but this is most definitely the BIG one of 2014. Only a few other animated films this year will challenge that position. If all goes well, expect this to win big at the Annies.

Most likely to win: Best Animated Feature, Directing in a Feature Production, Writing in a Feature Production, Music in a Feature Production, Character Animation in a Feature Production, Production Design in a Feature Production, Animated Effects, Voice Acting in a Feature Production.

Rio 2

The sequel to 2011’s Rio, which won an Annie for Best Character Animation. This was rather typical sequel territory, although the colorful visuals and production design should strike a few notes at the Annies.

Most likely to win: Music in a Feature Production, Production Design in a Feature Production.

Mr. Peabody & Sherman

Regardless of its commercial performance, this was one of the better animated comedies to come from DreamWorks Animation. Its character animation and production design should be big advantages.

Most likely to win: Character Animation in a Feature Production, Production Design in a Feature Production.

The Lego Movie

The first big surprise of 2014, it wowed audiences with a clever script, great vocal performances, and colorful cast of characters. This should be one of the few ‘serious’ competitors at the Annies.

Most likely to win: Character Animation in a Feature Production, Animated Effects, Writing in a Feature Production, Voice Acting in a Feature Production, Best Animated Feature, Directing in a Feature Production.

The Book Of Life

The directorial debut of Jorge Gutierrez, who won several Annies for his work on Nickelodeon’s El Tigre. This is most definitely his passion project and it shows in the beautiful trailer that came out for it weeks ago. Depending on how it does, this could be Reel FX’s redemption film at the Annies after Free Birds.

Most likely to win: Character Animation in a Feature Production, Character Design in a Feature Production, Directing in a Feature Production, Best Animated Feature.

The Boxtrolls

The third outing from Laika, all signs seem to point to a charming adventure that continues the company’s winning streak (three Annies for Coraline, two for ParaNorman).

Most likely to win: Character Animation in a Feature Production, Character Design in a Feature Production, Storyboarding in a Feature Production.

Big Hero 6

Coming off of Frozen, this unique blend of Disney-fied superheroics and an anime/manga-influenced animation style will make for Disney’s riskiest bet on almost all fronts. The Annies are known for being far more lenient towards genre offerings than the Academy Awards (DWA’s Megamind was nominated for an award), so Big Hero 6, depending on critical and commercial performance, might be able to hold some ground.

Most likely to win: Character Design in a Feature Animation, Character Design in a Feature Animation, Animated Effects, Production Design in a Feature Animation.

And that’s about it for my (very) early predictions for the upcoming 42nd Annual Annie Awards!

(Also, a side note: yes, I did leave out some of the ‘other’ animated films to come out this year. That was completely intentional and you’ll know why when you see my next article.)

What are your early Annie Award predictions?