A couple of hours ago The Hollywood Reporter‘s Scott Feinberg posted news that the Oscar chances of Beasts of the Southern Wild have been compromised by the Screen Actors Guild on a technicality. The Fox Searchlight release “has been ruled ineligible for the Screen Actors Guild Awards because it was not made under the terms of SAG Low Budget Feature Agreement, which mandates the use of professional actors.

“Out of financial necessity (he had a budget of just $1.3 million) and a desire for the greatest possible sense of authenticity,” director Benh Zeitlin “used locals who had never acted before and therefore were not SAG members,” Feinberg reports.

Feinberg calls this “a small roadblock” in front of the film’s Oscar chances “because the SAG Awards sometimes mirror the Academy’s selections” but I don’t know. I think this is more of a mid-sized to significant roadblock. This is a movie, remember, that was being called an “iffy” contender already. I think it should definitely be a Best Picture contender plus a Best Actress for whatsername…Quvenzhane Wallis…for Best Actress or Best Supporting Actress. Forget the guy who plays her dad…too much yelling and boozing.