Archive for the ‘Oscars’ Category

15 Documentary Features Continue in 2009 Oscar(R) Race

Thursday, November 19th, 2009

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences today announced that 15 films in the Documentary Feature category will advance in the voting process for the 82nd Academy Awards®. Eighty-nine pictures had originally qualified in the category.

The 15 films are listed below in alphabetical order by title, with their production company:

  • “The Beaches of Agnes,” Agnès Varda, director (Cine-Tamaris)
  • “Burma VJ,” Anders Østergaard, director (Magic Hour Films)
  • “The Cove,” Louie Psihoyos, director (Oceanic Preservation Society)
  • “Every Little Step,” James D. Stern and Adam Del Deo, directors (Endgame Entertainment)
  • “Facing Ali,” Pete McCormack, director (Network Films Inc.)
  • “Food, Inc.,” Robert Kenner, director (Robert Kenner Films)
  • “Garbage Dreams,” Mai Iskander, director (Iskander Films, Inc.)
  • “Living in Emergency: Stories of Doctors Without Borders,” Mark N. Hopkins, director (Red Floor Pictures LLC)
  • “The Most Dangerous Man in America: Daniel Ellsberg and the Pentagon Papers,” Judith Ehrlich and Rick Goldsmith, directors (Kovno Communications)
  • “Mugabe and the White African,” Andrew Thompson and Lucy Bailey, directors (Arturi Films Limited)
  • “Sergio,” Greg Barker, director (Passion Pictures and Silverbridge Productions)
  • “Soundtrack for a Revolution,” Bill Guttentag and Dan Sturman, directors (Freedom Song Productions)
  • “Under Our Skin,” Andy Abrahams Wilson, director (Open Eye Pictures)
  • “Valentino The Last Emperor,” Matt Tyrnauer, director (Acolyte Films)
  • “Which Way Home,” Rebecca Cammisa, director (Mr. Mudd)
  • 20 Animated Features Line Up for 2009 Oscar(R) Race

    Wednesday, November 11th, 2009

    Twenty features have been submitted for consideration in the Animated Feature Film category for the 82nd Academy Awards®.

    The 20 submitted features are:

    “Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel”
    “Astro Boy”
    “Battle for Terra”
    “Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs”
    “Coraline”
    “Disney’s A Christmas Carol”
    “The Dolphin – Story of a Dreamer”
    “Fantastic Mr. Fox”
    “Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs”
    “Mary and Max”
    “The Missing Lynx”
    “Monsters vs. Aliens”
    “9”
    “Planet 51”
    “Ponyo”
    “The Princess and the Frog”
    “The Secret of Kells”
    “Tinker Bell and the Lost Treasure”
    “A Town Called Panic”
    “Up”

    “Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel,” “The Dolphin – Story of a Dreamer,” “Fantastic Mr. Fox,” “Planet 51,” “The Princess and the Frog,” “The Secret of Kells” and “A Town Called Panic” have not yet had their required Los Angeles qualifying run. Submitted features must fulfill the theatrical release requirements and meet all of the category’s other qualifying rules before they can advance in the voting process.

    Under the rules for this category, a maximum of 5 features can be nominated in a year in which the field of eligible entries numbers at least 16.

    Films submitted in the Animated Feature Film category also may qualify for Academy Awards in other categories, including Best Picture, provided they meet the requirements for those categories.

    Steve Martin and Alec Baldwin to Host Oscar® Show

    Wednesday, November 4th, 2009

    Steve Martin and Alec Baldwin will serve as co-hosts of the 82nd Academy Awards®, Oscar telecast producers Bill Mechanic and Adam Shankman announced today.

    “We think the team of Steve and Alec are the perfect pair of hosts for the Oscars,” said Shankman and Mechanic. “Steve will bring the experience of having hosted the show in the past and Alec will be a completely fresh personality for this event.”

    “I am happy to co-host the Oscars with my enemy Alec Baldwin,” said Martin.

    “I don’t play the banjo but I’m thrilled to be hosting the Oscars – it’s the opportunity of a lifetime,” said Baldwin.

    Martin hosted the 73rd and 75th Academy Awards shows, earning an Emmy nomination for the first stint. He has also served as a presenter on the show several times, most recently at the ceremony in February when he appeared with Tina Fey. He is currently touring with the bluegrass band Steep Canyon Rangers in support of his latest album “The Crow: New Songs for the Five String Banjo.” In 1977 and 1978 Martin won Grammys for Best Comedy Recording. He earned a third Grammy in 2001 in the Best Country Instrumental Performance category. In 2007 Martin earned a Kennedy Center Honor.

    Baldwin was nominated for an Academy Award in 2003 for his supporting role in “The Cooler.” That year also marked his most recent appearance as a presenter on the show. Baldwin currently stars as Jack Donaghy on the comedy “30 Rock,” a role for which he has won two Emmys (in 2008 and 2009). Baldwin earned a Tony nomination in 1992 for his performance in “A Streetcar Named Desire.”

    Academy Awards for outstanding film achievements of 2009 will be presented on Sunday, March 7, 2010, 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.

    Demme, Douglas, Huston, Tarantino To Present At Governors Awards

    Friday, October 30th, 2009

    Oscar® winners Jonathan Demme, Anjelica Huston and Quentin Tarantino, along with past Honorary Award recipient Kirk Douglas, will be among the presenters at the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences’ inaugural Governors Awards event on November 14, Academy President Tom Sherak announced today. The evening will feature presentations of the Irving G. Thalberg Memorial Award to producer-executive John Calley, and Honorary Awards to actress Lauren Bacall, producer-director Roger Corman and cinematographer Gordon Willis.

    Demme, Douglas, Huston and Tarantino will join 600 invited guests at the Grand Ballroom at Hollywood & Highland Center® to celebrate the careers of Bacall, Calley, Corman and Willis, who each have made lasting contributions to the motion picture industry.

    The black-tie dinner event will include film clips as well as remarks from the honorees, their colleagues and admirers.

    The Honorary Award, an Oscar statuette, is given to an individual for “extraordinary distinction in lifetime achievement, exceptional contributions to the state of motion picture arts and sciences, or for outstanding service to the Academy.”

    The Thalberg Award, a bust of the legendary motion picture executive, is given to “a creative producer whose body of work reflects a consistently high quality of motion picture production.”

    The Governors Awards presentation is being produced for the Academy by Oscar-winning producer Bruce Cohen in association with Emmy®-winning producer Don Mischer.

    Academy and mtvU Launch Second Annual “Oscar® Correspondent Contest” for College Journalists

    Wednesday, October 28th, 2009

    The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences and mtvU, MTV’s 24-hour college network, today announced their second annual “Oscar Correspondent Contest,” giving college journalists nationwide the chance to win a trip to Los Angeles to cover red carpet festivities and backstage activities at the 82nd Academy Awards.

    From October 26 through December 18, college students are invited to submit a video at http://oscars.mtvu.com, showcasing their broadcast journalism skills and proving why they deserve to cover the Oscars®. All videos submitted must be from teams made up of one anchor and one videographer. The Academy and mtvU will select the top ten videos to be posted online at mtvU.com, where students and other viewers can watch and vote for their favorite journalists from January 20 through February 10.

    The three teams whose videos capture the most votes will advance to the final round of online voting from February 16 through March 2. All three teams will be flown to Los Angeles to cover Academy Awards pre-events, including the Animated Feature Symposium, Foreign Language Film Award press event, the Makeup Artist and Hairstylist Symposium and the Governors Ball preview.

    The Grand Prize-winning team will be revealed on Saturday, March 6, at an Academy press conference. The anchor and videographer will be awarded a spot on the red carpet for the 82nd Academy Awards arrivals, as well as credentials for access to backstage press rooms. The winning team’s coverage will be aired on MTV News and mtvU. The two finalist teams will receive bleacher seats along the red carpet and admission to an Oscar viewing party.

    Last year, Faheem Ahmed and Anish Patel from Rice University captured the Grand Prize and covered the red carpet at the 81st Academy Awards. Runners-up Megan Telles and Andrew Huse of San Diego State University, and Justin Shackil and Garry Van Genderen of Fordham University earned bleacher seats along the red carpet along with admission to an Oscar viewing party.

    For a complete list of rules and regulations for the “Oscar Correspondent Contest,” please visit http://oscars.mtvu.com.

    Academy Awards for outstanding film achievements of 2009 will be presented on Sunday, March 7, 2010, at the Kodak Theatre at Hollywood & Highland Center®, and televised live by the ABC Television Network beginning at 5 p.m. PT/8 p.m. ET. The Oscar presentation also will be televised live in more than 200 countries worldwide.