Academy Awards

THE 78TH ANNUAL ACADEMY AWARDS

2006-03-13T20:39:00.000-08:00

In one of the most stunning upsets in Hollywood history, "Crash," a story of racial tensions in Los Angeles, took home the best picture prize at the 78th Academy Awards presentation Sunday night.

GEorge Clooney -Oscar 2006 ??

2006-02-13T04:12:00.000-08:00

George Clooney has three nominations, but George Clooney doesn't expect to win any Oscars this year. Clooney is a directing and screenplay nominee for "Good Night, and Good Luck" and a supporting-actor nominee for the provocative oil-industry thriller "Syriana."

"I don't think we're going to win any," a deadpan Clooney told reporters Friday, where "Syriana" was screened at Berlin's annual film festival. "There's been a lot of 'Brokeback Mountain' stuff."

His nomination in the screenplay category for "Good Night, and Good Luck" puts him up against Stephen Gaghan, who wrote and also directed "Syriana."

In "Syriana," Clooney plays a veteran CIA agent assigned to assassinate the heir to the throne in an oil-rich Persian Gulf country.

"Oscar nominations are as important as anything," he said. "The hope is that people will see this film — I don't know about wins."

Clooney grew a beard and piled on weight for the role.

"I put it on so quickly I was anxious to get it off," the 44-year-old actor-director said. "The depressing thing was that I could put on 35 pounds in 30 days."

Hollywood star George Clooney has talked down his Oscar prospects for his role as a disillusioned CIA agent in the political drama Syriana.
"I don't think we're going to win any," said Clooney, who has been nominated for three Oscars, including best director for Good Night, and Good Luck.

"The hope is that people will see this film - I don't know about wins."

"There's been a lot of Brokeback Mountain stuff," added the actor, also shortlisted for original screenplay.

His screenplay nomination, for Good Night, and Good Luck, pits him directly against Syriana director Stephen Gaghan, a previous Academy Award winner for Traffic in 2000.

Clooney gained 35 pounds to play Bob Barnes in Syriana, a veteran CIA agent assigned to assassinate the heir to the throne in an oil-rich Persian Gulf country.

Syriana focuses on US foreign policy and the oil industry

"I put it on so quickly I was anxious to get it off," said the 44-year-old, who is shortlisted for best supporting actor alongside Jake Gyllenhaal, Paul Giamatti, Matt Dillon and William Hurt.

"The depressing thing was that I could put on 35 pounds (16 kilograms) in 30 days."

Syriana is based on the 2002 memoir of real-life CIA agent Robert Baer, who joined Clooney and Gaghan at the press conference in Berlin.

Baer said he and the director toured the Middle East for two months as part of their research of the multi-layered film.

"It did get it right," he said of the film. "All those figures in this movie, I can associate with somebody real, a real political player."

The 78th Academy Award nominations

2006-02-13T04:09:00.000-08:00

Best picture
Brokeback Mountain; Capote; Crash; Good Night, and Good Luck; Munich.

Actor
Philip Seymour Hoffman, Capote; Terrence Howard, Hustle & Flow; Heath Ledger, Brokeback Mountain; Joaquin Phoenix, Walk the Line; David Strathairn, Good Night, and Good Luck.

Actress
Judi Dench, Mrs. Henderson Presents; Felicity Huffman, Transamerica; Keira Knightley, Pride and Prejudice; Charlize Theron, North Country; Reese Witherspoon, Walk the Line.

Supporting actor
George Clooney, Syriana; Matt Dillon, Crash; Paul Giamatti, Cinderella Man; Jake Gyllenhaal, Brokeback Mountain; William Hurt, A History of Violence.

Supporting actress
Amy Adams, Junebug; Catherine Keener, Capote; Frances McDormand, North Country; Rachel Weisz, The Constant Gardener; Michelle Williams, Brokeback Mountain.

Director
Ang Lee, Brokeback Mountain; Bennett Miller, Capote; Paul Haggis, Crash; George Clooney, Good Night, and Good Luck; Steven Spielberg, Munich.

Foreign film
Don't Tell, Italy; Joyeux Noel, France; Paradise Now, Palestine; Sophie Scholl - The Final Days, Germany; Tsotsi, South Africa.

Adapted screenplay
Larry McMurtry and Diana Ossana, Brokeback Mountain; Dan Futterman, Capote; Jeffrey Caine, The Constant Gardener; Josh Olson, A History of Violence; Tony Kushner and Eric Roth, Munich.

Original screenplay
Paul Haggis and Bobby Moresco, Crash; George Clooney and Grant Heslov, Good Night, and Good Luck; Woody Allen, Match Point; Noah Baumbach, The Squid and the Whale; Stephen Gaghan, Syriana.

Animated feature film
Howl's Moving Castle; Tim Burton's Corpse Bride; Wallace & Gromit in the Curse of the Were-Rabbit.

Annual Oscar Nominations

2006-02-13T04:06:00.000-08:00

List of the 78th annual Oscar nominations announced Tuesday in Beverly Hills, Calif., by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences:
1. Best Picture: "Brokeback Mountain," "Capote," "Crash," "Good Night, and Good Luck," "Munich."
2. Actor: Philip Seymour Hoffman, "Capote"; Terrence Howard, "Hustle & Flow"; Heath Ledger, "Brokeback Mountain"; Joaquin Phoenix, "Walk the Line"; David Strathairn, "Good Night, and Good Luck."
3. Actress: Judi Dench, "Mrs. Henderson Presents"; Felicity Huffman, "Transamerica"; Keira Knightley, "Pride & Prejudice"; Charlize Theron, "North Country"; Reese Witherspoon, "Walk the Line."
4. Supporting Actor: George Clooney, "Syriana"; Matt Dillon, "Crash"; Paul Giamatti, "Cinderella Man"; Jake Gyllenhaal, "Brokeback Mountain"; William Hurt, "A History of Violence."
5. Supporting Actress: Amy Adams, "Junebug"; Catherine Keener, "Capote"; Frances McDormand, "North Country"; Rachel Weisz, "The Constant Gardener"; Michelle Williams, "Brokeback Mountain."
6. Director: Ang Lee, "Brokeback Mountain"; Bennett Miller, "Capote"; Paul Haggis, "Crash"; George Clooney, "Good Night, and Good Luck"; Steven Spielberg, "Munich."
7. Foreign Film: "Don't Tell," Italy; "Joyeux Noel," France; "Paradise Now," Palestine; "Sophie Scholl - The Final Days," Germany; "Tsotsi," South Africa.
8. Adapted Screenplay: Larry McMurtry and Diana Ossana, "Brokeback Mountain"; Dan Futterman, "Capote"; Jeffrey Caine, "The Constant Gardener"; Josh Olson, "A History of Violence"; Tony Kushner and Eric Roth, "Munich."
9. Original Screenplay: Paul Haggis and Bobby Moresco, "Crash"; George Clooney and Grant Heslov, "Good Night, and Good Luck"; Woody Allen, "Match Point"; Noah Baumbach, "The Squid and the Whale"; Stephen Gaghan, "Syriana."
10. Animated Feature Film: "Howl's Moving Castle"; "Tim Burton's Corpse Bride"; "Wallace & Gromit in the Curse of the Were-Rabbit."
11. Art Direction: "Good Night, and Good Luck," "Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire," "King Kong," "Memoirs of a Geisha," "Pride & Prejudice."
12. Cinematography: "Batman Begins," "Brokeback Mountain," "Good Night, and Good Luck," "Memoirs of a Geisha," "The New World."
13. Sound Mixing: "The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe," "King Kong," "Memoirs of a Geisha," "Walk the Line," "War of the Worlds."
14. Sound Editing: "King Kong," "Memoirs of a Geisha," "War of the Worlds."
15. Original Score: "Brokeback Mountain," Gustavo Santaolalla; "The Constant Gardener," Alberto Iglesias; "Memoirs of a Geisha," John Williams; "Munich," John Williams; "Pride & Prejudice," Dario Marianelli.
16. Original Song: "In the Deep" from "Crash," Kathleen "Bird" York and Michael Becker; "It's Hard out Here for a Pimp" from "Hustle & Flow," Jordan Houston, Cedric Coleman and Paul Beauregard; "Travelin' Thru" from "Transamerica," Dolly Parton.
17. Costume: "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory," "Memoirs of a Geisha," "Mrs. Henderson Presents," "Pride & Prejudice," "Walk the Line."
18. Documentary Feature: "Darwin's Nightmare," "Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room," "March of the Penguins," "Murderball," "Street Fight."
19. Documentary (short subject): "The Death of Kevin Carter: Casualty of the Bang Bang Club," "God Sleeps in Rwanda," "The Mushroom Club," "A Note of Triumph: The Golden Age of Norman Corwin."
20. Film Editing: "Cinderella Man," "The Constant Gardener," "Crash," "Munich," "Walk the Line."
21. Makeup: "The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe," "Cinderella Man," "Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith."
22. Animated Short Film: "Badgered," "The Moon and the Son: An Imagined Conversation," "The Mysterious Geographic Explorations of Jasper Morello," "9," "One Man Band."
23. Live Action Short Film: "Ausreisser (The Runaway)," "Cashback," "The Last Farm," "Our Time Is Up," "Six Shooter."
24. Visual Effects: "The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe," "King Kong," "War of the Worlds."
---
Academy Award winners previously announced this year:
Honorary Award (Oscar statuette): Robert Altman.
The Gordon E. Sawyer award (Oscar statuette): Gary Demos.