Well it got 3 Nominations but was pipped by Mad Max Fury Road and Ex Machina in the categories it could have won in or was considered for as being strong points.
Tough competition… To be honest both Mad Max and Ex Machina are very good films alongside The Revenant.
But like you say there is a clique and some winners already seem to be dubbed a full gone conclusion before they are even announced.
I think the category it was probably closest to winning for was visual effects for the animatronics but Ex Machina was pretty amazing how they did the robot stuff… It’s a tough call I do have more of a soft spot for Ex Machina though I have to admit.
I am actually a bit surprised TFA never got nominated for production design along with Crimson Peak