81st annual Academy Awards 2/22

[ALIASd]

Oscar ballots to be mailed out Friday

Academy members to determine '09 nominees

By Variety Staff
Posted: Tue., Dec. 23, 2008, 4:29pm PT

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences is readying a post-Christmas gift for its 5,810 voting members. Oscar ballots are set to be mailed out on Friday.

Ballots must be returned to PriceWaterhouseCoopers by Jan. 12 at 5 p.m. PT. Nominations will be unveiled on Jan. 22 at the Acad's Samuel Goldwyn Theater. The 81st annual Academy Awards ceremony is set for Feb. 22 at the Kodak Theater.

Oscar ballots to be mailed out Friday - Entertainment News, Award Central News, Media - Variety

14 films submit for Best Animated Feature Oscar - 11/10/08
14 films submit for Best Animated Feature Oscar

Hugh Jackman: Sexiest Oscars host alive! - 12/13/08
Hugh Jackman: Sexiest Oscars host alive!

49 eligible songs submitted for Best Original Song Oscar - 12/16/08
49 eligible songs submitted for Best Original Song Oscar

[ALIASd]

'Journey' at center of visual f/x race


Posted: Tue., Jan. 6, 2009, 9:32am PT
By David S. Cohen

Variety

In an upset, modestly budgeted 3-D kidpic “Journey to the Center of the Earth” has advanced to the Oscar visual effects bakeoff — and created a logistics headache for the Academy in the process.

“Journey,” one of the last hits from New Line, will compete for an Oscar nomination with six other films: Fox’s “Australia,” Paramount’s “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button,” Warner’s “The Dark Knight,” Universal’s “Hellboy II,” Par’s “Iron Man” and U’s "The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor."

“Journey” beat out several costly vfx tentpoles, including Par’s “Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull,” which featured vfx from Industrial Light and Magic; Sony’s hit “Hancock”; and Disney’s “The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian.”

The inclusion of “Journey,” the first all-digital 3-D live-action feature, is a problem for the Academy because it has not yet installed a digital projector in its Goldwyn Theater, where the competish will be held. A digital projector is required for modern-day 3-D. While the Academy will install some sort of temporary 3-D system for the bakeoff, there already has been one high-profile failure for such a digital setup this season: The abortive debut screening of “Benjamin Button” at the DGA.

Among visual effects shops, the list was especially good news for Digital Domain, which is represented on “Benjamin Button” and “Mummy,” and London’s Double Negative, which worked on “The Dark Knight” and “Hellboy II.”

Rhythm & Hues, which took an Oscar last year for “The Golden Compass,” is also in the running for “Mummy.” ILM is competing with “Iron Man.” The list shows the growing decentralization and globalization of digital production.

The seven semifinalists will present their 15-minute highlight reels to the Acad’s vfx branch at the Jan. 15 bakeoff. The members will vote immediately after for the three Oscar nominees.

The visual effects bakeoff, which is open to the public, will be held Thursday, Jan. 15 at 7:30 p.m. at the Goldwyn.

'Journey' at center of visual f/x race - Entertainment News, Oscar News, Media - Variety

[ALIASd]

Seven films in running for makeup Oscar

'Dark Knight,' 'Benjamin Button' on shortlist

By Gregg Kilday
The Hollywood Reporter
Jan 6, 2009, 08:10 PM ET

Three effects-heavy movies, three intimate dramas and one satirical comedy are among the seven films in the running for consideration in the best makeup category at the 81st annual Academy Awards.

"The Curious Case of Benjamin Button," "The Dark Knight" and "Hellboy II: The Golden Army" all made the makeup shortlist, announced Tuesday, the same day on which they were shortlisted in the visual effects category.

They will compete against the dramas "The Reader," "Synecdoche, New York" and "The Wrestler" as well as the comedy "Tropic Thunder," in which Robert Downey Jr. appeared as an Australian method actor playing a black soldier.

On Jan. 17, the members of the academy's makeup branch will view 10-minute excerpts from the shortlisted films and then will vote to nominate three films for final Oscar consideration.

Nominations will be announced Jan. 22, and the Oscars will take place Feb. 22.

Seven films in running for makeup Oscar

[ALIASd]

Pixar Animation pioneer Catmull earns Oscar

Posted 5h 4m ago

LOS ANGELES (AP) — One of the digital wizards behind such cartoon smashes as WALL-E,Ratatouille and Finding Nemo is getting an Academy Award.

Pixar Animation co-founder Ed Catmull is receiving the Gordon E. Sawyer Award, an honorary Oscar statuette, for lifetime achievement in computer graphics for filmmaking.

Catmull is receiving the prize at the academy's Scientific and Technical Awards ceremony Feb. 7, which precedes the Feb. 22 Oscars.

It's the second honorary Oscar for Catmull. He's a previous recipient in 2000 for developing Pixar's RenderMan software, which has been used in digital imagery for 45 of the last 50 films nominated for the visual-effects Oscar.

Catmull also has three past scientific and technical awards from the academy.

Pixar Animation pioneer Catmull earns Oscar - USATODAY.com

[Aladdin]

The Journey Digital 3D dilema brings up another question, since some of the nominated Animated movies were release in Digital 3D, will they be screened in the 3D version, or just the plain 2D? Seems like if they did have digital 3D version released, they should be screened that way.

[ALIASd]

81st Academy Awards® Nominations Announced

Beverly Hills, CA (January 22, 2009) — Nominations for the 81st Academy Awards were announced today (Thursday, January 22) by Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences President Sid Ganis and Oscar® winner Forest Whitaker.

Ganis and Whitaker, who won an Academy Award® for his lead performance in “The Last King of Scotland” (2006), announced the nominees in 10 of the 24 categories at a 5:38 a.m. PT live news conference attended by more than 400 international media representatives. Lists of nominations in all categories then were distributed to the news media in attendance and via the Internet on the official Academy Awards Web site, www.oscar.com.

Best animated feature film of the year

• “Bolt” (Walt Disney), Chris Williams and Byron Howard
• “Kung Fu Panda” (DreamWorks Animation, Distributed by Paramount), John Stevenson and Mark Osborne
• “WALL-E” (Walt Disney), Andrew Stanton

Achievement in music written for motion pictures (Original score)

• “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” (Paramount and Warner Bros.), Alexandre Desplat
• “Defiance” (Paramount Vantage), James Newton Howard
• “Milk” (Focus Features), Danny Elfman
• “Slumdog Millionaire” (Fox Searchlight), A.R. Rahman
• “WALL-E” (Walt Disney), Thomas Newman

Achievement in music written for motion pictures (Original song)

• “Down to Earth” from “WALL-E” (Walt Disney), Music by Peter Gabriel and Thomas Newman, Lyric by Peter Gabriel
• “Jai Ho” from “Slumdog Millionaire” (Fox Searchlight), Music by A.R. Rahman, Lyric by Gulzar
• “O Saya” from “Slumdog Millionaire” (Fox Searchlight), Music and Lyric by A.R. Rahman and Maya Arulpragasam

Best animated short film

• “La Maison en Petits Cubes” A Robot Communications Production, Kunio Kato
• “Lavatory - Lovestory” A Melnitsa Animation Studio and CTB Film Company Production, Konstantin Bronzit
• “Oktapodi” (Talantis Films), A Gobelins, L’école de l’image Production, Emud Mokhberi and Thierry Marchand
• “Presto” (Walt Disney), A Pixar Animation Studios Production, Doug Sweetland
• “This Way Up” A Nexus Production, Alan Smith and Adam Foulkes

Achievement in sound editing

• “The Dark Knight” (Warner Bros.), Richard King
• “Iron Man” (Paramount and Marvel Entertainment), Frank Eulner and Christopher Boyes
• “Slumdog Millionaire” (Fox Searchlight), Tom Sayers
• “WALL-E” (Walt Disney), Ben Burtt and Matthew Wood
• “Wanted” (Universal), Wylie Stateman

Achievement in sound mixing

• “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” (Paramount and Warner Bros.), David Parker, Michael Semanick, Ren Klyce and Mark Weingarten
• “The Dark Knight” (Warner Bros.), Lora Hirschberg, Gary Rizzo and Ed Novick
• “Slumdog Millionaire” (Fox Searchlight), Ian Tapp, Richard Pryke and Resul Pookutty
• “WALL-E” (Walt Disney), Tom Myers, Michael Semanick and Ben Burtt
• “Wanted” (Universal), Chris Jenkins, Frank A. Montaño and Petr Forejt

Original screenplay

• “Frozen River” (Sony Pictures Classics), Written by Courtney Hunt
• “Happy-Go-Lucky” (Miramax), Written by Mike Leigh
• “In Bruges” (Focus Features), Written by Martin McDonagh
• “Milk” (Focus Features), Written by Dustin Lance Black
• “WALL-E” (Walt Disney), Screenplay by Andrew Stanton, Jim Reardon, Original story by Andrew Stanton, Pete Docter

81st Academy Awards® Nominations Announced | Press Release | AMPAS

[ALIASd]

Final 2008 Oscar® Ballots Mailed to Academy Members

Beverly Hills, CA (January 28, 2009) — Final ballots for the 81st Academy Awards® were mailed today (January 28) to the 5,810 voting members of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

Completed ballots must be returned to PricewaterhouseCoopers by 5 p.m. Tuesday, February 17. Ballots received after the deadline will not be counted.

Listed on the ballots are nominees in 19 Awards categories. Separate ballots for 5 categories (Documentary Feature, Documentary Short Subject, Foreign Language Film, Animated Short Film and Live Action Short Film) will be distributed after verification of mandatory member attendance at screenings.

Following the tabulation of the votes, the winners’ names will be placed in sealed envelopes to be opened on Oscar Night®, Sunday, February 22.

Academy Awards for outstanding film achievements of 2008 will be presented on Sunday, February 22, 2009, at the Kodak Theatre at Hollywood & Highland Center®, and televised live by the ABC Television Network. The Oscar presentation also will be televised live in more than 200 countries worldwide.

Final 2008 Oscar® Ballots Mailed to Academy Members | Press Release | AMPAS

[ALIASd]

Academy chief promises 'truly different' Oscars

Sid Ganis warns nominees that show will take 'risks'

By Gregg Kilday
The Hollywood Reporter
Feb 2, 2009, 08:41 PM ET

Promising an Oscar show that will be "truly different," Academy president Sid Ganis used the annual Nominees Luncheon to put this year's awards hopefuls on notice.

Teasingly withholding actual specifics, Ganis on Monday warned that "it's going to be a show that takes some risks." Speaking directly to the actors, he warned, "Your categories are being presented in a completely different way. Heads up."

Turning to the entire room full of 112 nominees gathered at the Beverly Hilton's International Ballroom, he added, "Cinematographers, editors, composers. All of you guys. You're in for a big surprise."

In hopes of stemming a ratings decline, the Academy has enlisted a new team, headed by producer Laurence Mark and exec producer Bill Condon, to give the 81st annual Academy Awards a makeover. ABC will broadcast the show live from the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood on Feb. 22.

In an effort to build suspense, the producers are attempting to withhold details about the event, which will be hosted by Hugh Jackman. This year, for example, the names of the celebrity presenters are not being announced ahead of the broadcast in hopes of piquing viewers' interest.

Academy chief promises 'truly different' Oscars

[moodringer10]

im going for slumdog millionaire i hope they win some awards

[ALIASd]

Peter Gabriel withdraws from Oscars

Musician will not perform nominated song

Posted: Thurs., Feb. 12, 2009, 5:19pm PT

Gabriel

By Phil Gallo
Variety

Peter Gabriel has withdrawn from performing at the Academy Awards, hoping the Soweto Gospel Choir will be booked to perform his nominated song "Down to Earth" from "Wall-E."

Gabriel was told he would perform for only 60-65 seconds in a medley of the nominated songs. When he said yes to performing the song he co-wrote with Thomas Newman he was under the impression they would be able to perform the song in its entirety. He does not believe the song will work in such a truncated form.

"It's a bit unfortunate," he said in a video on his website. "The songwriters are a very small part of the filmmaking process but we still work bloody hard and deserve (a bigger part in the ceremony)."

Calling himself "an old fart" who can afford to "make a little protest," Gabriel's hope is that the Oscarcast producers will reconsider the move next year and reinstate full performances of songs.

The Feb. 22 show is a maiden voyage for producers Laurence mark and Bill Condon. Gabriel still intends to attend the ceremony.

The Academy had no comment.

Peter Gabriel withdraws from Oscars - Entertainment News, Oscar News, Media - Variety

[Angie_Duke]

60-65 seconds for each song? That's only 3 1/4 min tops out of the entire show. Must be begin done to reduce length of overall show (or give more time for poorly written jokes). This is disappointing news for me.

[ALIASd]

Hugh Jackman Reveals Not-So-Secret Oscar Pick

By Stephen M. Silverman
People
Originally posted Saturday February 14, 2009 07:40 AM EST
Hugh Jackman Photo by: Jon Furniss / WireImage

Details about this year's Oscarcast – from the presenters to how the stage will be set – are all being kept under tight wraps by the show's producers, though the ceremony's host, Hugh Jackman, can't be silent about one thing: his choice for Best Supporting Actor.

And the Oscar should go to … the late Heath Ledger, for The Dark Knight.

"I can't hide the fact that I would really love for that honor to be bestowed upon him," Jackman, speaking to he Associated Press, said of his fellow Australian, who died from an accidental overdose of prescription drugs on Jan. 22, 2008. "It would be fitting and I think he deserves it."

As for what viewers will see on TV – the 81st Academy Awards air live Feb. 22 on ABC from the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood – Jackman did let slip a few particulars.

"The look of the theater is very different," said Jackman, admitting, too, that he's chatted with former Oscar host Steve Martin. "It's more like the nightclub of your dreams. It's very intimate,"

Regarding the stage set, "It's got to be a lot closer [to the audience]. It's been a little austere in the past. You know, there's that stage, the host being up above the [orchestra seats], looking down at everybody," he said.

"But this is a lot more intimate. It's still spectacular, being in the Kodak Theatre. But it's a real difference in the way things are laid out."

Hugh Jackman Reveals Not-So-Secret Oscar Pick - Oscars 2009, Heath Ledger, Hugh Jackman : People.com

[ALIASd]

Final Oscar® Ballots Due Tuesday by 5 p.m.

Beverly Hills, CA (February 16, 2009) — Voting members of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences must return their completed final Oscar ballots to PricewaterhouseCoopers by 5 p.m. on Tuesday, February 17.

Ballots received after the 5 p.m. deadline will not be counted.

Final ballots were mailed to the 5,810 voting members of the Academy on Wednesday, January 28.

Once PricewaterhouseCoopers has tabulated the votes, the winners’ names will be placed in sealed, foil-lined envelopes.

Brad Oltmanns and Rick Rosas, the lead balloting partners, will be the only people to know the results prior to the envelopes being opened on Oscar Night®.

Academy Awards for outstanding film achievements of 2008 will be presented on Sunday, February 22, 2009, at the Kodak Theatre at Hollywood & Highland Center®, and televised live by the ABC Television Network. The Oscar presentation also will be televised live in more than 200 countries worldwide.

Final Oscar Ballots Due Tuesday by 5 p.m. | Press Release | AMPAS

[ALIASd]

I predict a 'Sexiest Man Alive' off during tonight's telecast, may the best hunk win!

[pixie chick]

Yeah, I'm a little worried when the Academy president said it's going to be "completely different." Remember the year they didn't let the winners of the "lesser" categories walk up on stage to save time? I hope it's not something ridiculous like that. I mean, we all know it's a long show. That's one of the things I like about it. It's an all-night event for me. People who care that it's long won't watch it anyway.

I am confused about Hugh Jackman, though. Does he have some sort of stand-up/comedy background I'm not aware of? I don't get it. :confused:

I'm still excited...it's the OSCARS! The Oscars are my Superbowl. Bring on the red carpet!!