Categories

The Oscars honor the entire spectrum of filmmaking, from acting to technical achievement. There are now 15 Academy branches in all:

  • actors
  • art directors
  • cinematographers
  • directors
  • documentary
  • executives
  • film editors
  • makeup
  • music
  • producers
  • public relations
  • short films and feature animation
  • sound
  • visual effects
  • writers

There are now 24 competitive Oscar® categories, and a handful of special-recognition Oscars every year. This year, awards will be given for:

  • Actor in a Leading Role
  • Actor in a Supporting Role
  • Actress in a Leading Role
  • Actress in a Supporting Role
  • Animated Feature Film
  • Art Direction
  • Cinematography
  • Costume Design
  • Directing
  • Documentary Feature
  • Documentary Short Subject
  • Film Editing
  • Writing (Original Screenplay)
  • Writing (Adapted Screenplay)
  • Visual Effects
  • Sound Editing
  • Sound
  • Short Film - Live Action
  • Short Film - Animated
  • Best Picture
  • Music (Song)
  • Music (Score)
  • Makeup
  • Foreign Language Film

After all the ballots are in, and the votes are counted, it all comes down to the big night itself. The Oscars is a night of honoring big-budget entertainment, and, appropriately, it is big-budget entertainment event, itself. Every year, hundreds of workers, including carpenters, artists, musicians, cameramen and chefs, work days on end preparing for the big show. The result, in a good year, is a vibrant, glamorous celebration of all things Hollywood. (See Los Angeles Almanac: Locations of the Academy Awards Ceremony to check out the past and present locations for the big event.)

And the Nominees Are ...

Best Picture:

  • "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button"
  • "Frost/Nixon"
  • "Milk"
  • "The Reader"
  • "Slumdog Millionaire"

Foreign Language Film:

  • "The Baader Meinhof Complex" - Germany
  • "The Class" - France
  • "Departures" - Japan
  • "Revanche" - Austria
  • "Waltz with Bashir" - Israel

Actor in a Leading Role:

  • Richard Jenkins in "The Visitor"
  • Frank Langella in "Frost/Nixon"
  • Sean Penn in "Milk"
  • Brad Pitt in "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button"
  • Mickey Rourke in "The Wrestler"

Actress in a Leading Role:

  • Anne Hathaway in "Rachel Getting Married"
  • Angelina Jolie in "Changeling"
  • Melissa Leo in "Frozen River"
  • Meryl Streep in "Doubt"
  • Kate Winslet in "The Reader"
Actor in a Supporting Role:
  • Josh Brolin in "Milk"
  • Robert Downey Jr. in "Tropic Thunder"
  • Philip Seymour Hoffman in "Doubt"
  • Heath Ledger in "The Dark Knight"
  • Michael Shannon in "Revolutionary Road"

Actress in a Supporting Role:

  • Amy Adams in "Doubt"
  • Penelope Cruz in "Vicky Cristina Barcelona"
  • Viola Davis in "Doubt"
  • Taraji P. Henson in "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button"
  • Marisa Tomei in "The Wrestler"

Source: Oscar.com

For much more information about the Oscars and their history, check out the links on the next page.