The 83rd Academy Awards-The Verdict

The 83rd Annual Academy Awards were hosted by actor James Franco and actress Anne Hathaway and was held at Kodak Theatre in Hollywood, California on February 27,2011. The Oscars were distributed in 24 categories.It is interesting to see that "The King’s Speech" won 4 major awards. "Inception" too won 4 major awards,but it was all in the technical category."The Social Network" won 3 awards.

The winners for the 24 categories:

Best Picture: "The King’s Speech"
Best Direction: Tom Hooper for "The King’s Speech"
Best Actor: Colin Firth for "The King’s Speech"
Best Actress: Natalie Portman for "Black Swan"
Best Supporting Actor: Christian Bale for "The Fighter"
Best Supporting Actress: Melissa Leo for "The Fighter"
Best Adapted Screenplay: Aaron Sorkin for "The Social Network"
Best Original Screenplay: David Seidler for "The King’s Speech"
Best Cinematography: "Inception"
Best Film Editing: "The Social Network"
Best Sound Mixing: "Inception"
Best Original Score: Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross for "The Social Network"
Best Original Song: Randy Newman for 'We Belong Together' from "Toy Story 3"
Best Sound Editing: "Inception"
Best Visual Effects: "Inception"
Best Art Direction : "Alice in Wonderland"
Best Animated Feature Film: "Toy Story 3"
Best Animated Short Film: "The Lost Thing"
Best Makeup: "The Wolfman"
Best Costume Design: "Alice in Wonderland"
Best Live Action Short Film: "God of Love"
Best Documentary Feature: "Inside Job"
Best Documentary (short subject): "Strangers No More"
Best Foreign Language Film: "In a Better World", Denmark

Interesting Facts Regarding Oscars 2011

With the 83rd Academy Awards round the corner, its time to get to know some of the fascinating facts regarding Oscars...

Joel and Ethan Coen's remake of the Western 'True Grit' has earned 10 Oscar nominations that includes best picture. The original 1969 version of the film obtained just 2 nominations that includes lead actor for John Wayne, who won the award, and best song.

Two lead performer nominees - Jesse Eisenberg,27 ('The Social Network'), and Jennifer Lawrence,20 ('Winter's Bone') would be the youngest ever to succeed in their categories. Adrien Brody has the record for youngest lead actor for his victory for 2002's The Pianist at age 29; Marlee Matlin was 21 when she won lead actress for 1986's Children of a Lesser God.

If Colin Firth gets the award for lead actor for his portrayal as King George VI in The King's Speech, he will be the first actor to win playing a king of England since Charles Laughton in 1932-33's The Private Life of Henry VIII.

Prior to 'Black Swan', just 2 films set in the world of ballet had been nominated for the best film Oscar - 1948's 'The Red Shoes' and 1977's 'The Turning Point'.

Scott Rudin with 'The Social Network' and 'True Grit' becomes the first producer since 1974 to have 2 films in the best picture race.Previously, Francis Ford Coppola and Fred Roos had done it with 'The Godfather 2' and 'The Conversation'.

Oscars 2011 : Animated Feature Films

'Toy Story 3', 'How to Train Your Dragon' and 'The Illusionist' are the entries in this incredibly strong field.

A decade ago, when the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) formed the Oscar for animated feature, the new category's nominees included "Jimmy Neutron : Boy Genius," a Nickelodeon-produced movie memorable for little more than its belch jokes.

Ten years since then, the competition has become much fiercer. This year, the three films competing for the prize are all significant darlings that had to beat out 2 other well-reviewed box-office hits to obtain a nomination.

The three nominees include Pixar's "Toy Story 3," the highest-grossing animated movie of all time and the conclusion of a franchise that revolutionized the way animated films are created; DreamWorks Animation's "How to Train Your Dragon," another computer-graphics blockbuster that set a new standard for 3-D with its extensive flying sequences; and "The Illusionist," an independently produced French film with very little dialogue that's a love letter to the fading art of hand-drawn animation.

2011 Academy Award Nominations - The Other Nominations

Best Actor In A Supporting Role :
Christian Bale(The Fighter)
John Hawkes(Winter's Bone)
Jeremy Renner(The Town)
Mark Ruffalo(The Kids Are All Right)
Geoffrey Rush(The King's Speech)

Best Actress In A Supporting Role :
Amy Adams(The Fighter)
Helena Bonham Carter (The King's Speech)
Melissa Leo(The Fighter)
Hailee Steinfeld(True Grit)
Jacki Weaver(Animal Kingdom)

Best Original Screenplay :
Mike Leigh(Another Year)
Screenplay by Scott Silver and Paul Tamasy & Eric Johnson.
Story by Keith Dorrington & Paul Tamasy & Eric Johnson(The Fighter)
Christopher Nolan(Inception)
Lisa Cholodenko & Stuart Blumberg(The Kids Are All Right)
David Seidler(The King's Speech)

Best Adapted Screenplay :
Danny Boyle & Simon Beaufoy(127 Hours)
Aaron Sorkin (The Social Network)
Screenplay by Michael Arndt. Story by John Lasseter, Andrew Stanton and Lee Unkrich(Toy Story 3)
Written for the screen by Joel Coen & Ethan Coen(True Grit)
Adapted for the screen by Debra Granik & Anne Rosellini(Winter's Bone)