Academy Awards

81st Academy Awards

February 22, 2009Kodak TheatreFilms from 200827 categories
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Best Picture Winner

Slumdog Millionaire

Slumdog Millionaire

Best Picture

Director: Danny Boyle

Studio: Fox Searchlight

A Mumbai teenager reflects on his life after being accused of cheating on the Indian version of 'Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?'

All Categories (27)

Animated Feature Film

WALL-EAndrew Stanton
Winner
BoltChris Williams and Byron Howard
Kung Fu PandaJohn Stevenson and Mark Osborne

Best Picture

Slumdog MillionaireChristian Colson, Producer
Winner
Frost/NixonBrian Grazer, Ron Howard and Eric Fellner, Producers
MilkDan Jinks and Bruce Cohen, Producers
The Curious Case of Benjamin ButtonKathleen Kennedy, Frank Marshall and Ceán Chaffin, Producers
The ReaderAnthony Minghella, Sydney Pollack, Donna Gigliotti and Redmond Morris, Producers

Actor In A Leading Role

Sean PennMilk {"Harvey Milk"}
Winner
Brad PittThe Curious Case of Benjamin Button {"Benjamin Button"}
Frank LangellaFrost/Nixon {"Richard Nixon"}
Mickey RourkeThe Wrestler {"Randy"}
Richard JenkinsThe Visitor {"Walter"}

Actor In A Supporting Role

Heath LedgerThe Dark Knight {"Joker"}
Winner
Josh BrolinMilk {"Dan White"}
Michael ShannonRevolutionary Road {"John Givings"}
Philip Seymour HoffmanDoubt {"Father Brendan Flynn"}
Robert Downey Jr.Tropic Thunder {"Kirk Lazarus"}

Actress In A Leading Role

Kate WinsletThe Reader {"Hanna Schmitz"}
Winner
Angelina JolieChangeling {"Christine Collins"}
Anne HathawayRachel Getting Married {"Kym"}
Melissa LeoFrozen River {"Ray Eddy"}
Meryl StreepDoubt {"Sister Aloysius Beauvier"}

Actress In A Supporting Role

Penélope CruzVicky Cristina Barcelona {"Maria Elena"}
Winner
Amy AdamsDoubt {"Sister James"}
Marisa TomeiThe Wrestler {"Cassidy"}
Taraji P. HensonThe Curious Case of Benjamin Button {"Queenie"}
Viola DavisDoubt {"Mrs. Miller"}

Directing

Slumdog MillionaireDanny Boyle
Winner
Frost/NixonRon Howard
MilkGus Van Sant
The ReaderStephen Daldry

Writing (Adapted Screenplay)

Slumdog MillionaireScreenplay by Simon Beaufoy
Winner
DoubtWritten by John Patrick Shanley
Frost/NixonScreenplay by Peter Morgan
The Curious Case of Benjamin ButtonScreenplay by Eric Roth; Screen story by Eric Roth and Robin Swicord
The ReaderScreenplay by David Hare

Writing (Original Screenplay)

MilkWritten by Dustin Lance Black
Winner
Frozen RiverWritten by Courtney Hunt
Happy-Go-LuckyWritten by Mike Leigh
In BrugesWritten by Martin McDonagh
WALL-EScreenplay by Andrew Stanton, Jim Reardon; Original story by Andrew Stanton, Pete Docter

Cinematography

Slumdog MillionaireAnthony Dod Mantle
Winner
ChangelingTom Stern
The Curious Case of Benjamin ButtonClaudio Miranda
The Dark KnightWally Pfister
The ReaderChris Menges and Roger Deakins

Music (Original Score)

Slumdog MillionaireA.R. Rahman
Winner
DefianceJames Newton Howard
MilkDanny Elfman
The Curious Case of Benjamin ButtonAlexandre Desplat
WALL-EThomas Newman

Music (Original Song)

"Jai Ho" from Slumdog MillionaireMusic by A.R. Rahman; Lyric by Gulzar
Winner
"Down To Earth" from WALL-EMusic by Peter Gabriel and Thomas Newman; Lyric by Peter Gabriel
"O Saya" from Slumdog MillionaireMusic and Lyric by A.R. Rahman and Maya Arulpragasam

Art Direction

The Curious Case of Benjamin ButtonArt Direction: Donald Graham Burt; Set Decoration: Victor J. Zolfo
Winner
ChangelingArt Direction: James J. Murakami; Set Decoration: Gary Fettis
Revolutionary RoadArt Direction: Kristi Zea; Set Decoration: Debra Schutt
The Dark KnightArt Direction: Nathan Crowley; Set Decoration: Peter Lando
The DuchessArt Direction: Michael Carlin; Set Decoration: Rebecca Alleway

Visual Effects

The Curious Case of Benjamin ButtonEric Barba, Steve Preeg, Burt Dalton and Craig Barron
Winner
Iron ManJohn Nelson, Ben Snow, Dan Sudick and Shane Mahan
The Dark KnightNick Davis, Chris Corbould, Tim Webber and Paul Franklin

Film Editing

Slumdog MillionaireChris Dickens
Winner
Frost/NixonMike Hill and Dan Hanley
MilkElliot Graham
The Curious Case of Benjamin ButtonKirk Baxter and Angus Wall
The Dark KnightLee Smith

Sound Editing

The Dark KnightRichard King
Winner
Iron ManFrank Eulner and Christopher Boyes
Slumdog MillionaireGlenn Freemantle and Tom Sayers
WALL-EBen Burtt and Matthew Wood
WantedWylie Stateman

Sound Mixing

Slumdog MillionaireIan Tapp, Richard Pryke and Resul Pookutty
Winner
The Curious Case of Benjamin ButtonDavid Parker, Michael Semanick, Ren Klyce and Mark Weingarten
The Dark KnightLora Hirschberg, Gary Rizzo and Ed Novick
WALL-ETom Myers, Michael Semanick and Ben Burtt
WantedChris Jenkins, Frank A. Montaño and Petr Forejt

Costume Design

The DuchessMichael O'Connor
Winner
AustraliaCatherine Martin
MilkDanny Glicker
Revolutionary RoadAlbert Wolsky
The Curious Case of Benjamin ButtonJacqueline West

Makeup

The Curious Case of Benjamin ButtonGreg Cannom
Winner
Hellboy II: The Golden ArmyMike Elizalde and Thom Floutz
The Dark KnightJohn Caglione, Jr. and Conor O'Sullivan

Documentary (Feature)

Man on WireJames Marsh and Simon Chinn
Winner
Encounters at the End of the WorldWerner Herzog and Henry Kaiser
The Betrayal (Nerakhoon)Ellen Kuras and Thavisouk Phrasavath
The GardenScott Hamilton Kennedy
Trouble the WaterTia Lessin and Carl Deal

Documentary (Short Subject)

Smile PinkiMegan Mylan
Winner
The Conscience of Nhem EnSteven Okazaki
The Final InchIrene Taylor Brodsky and Tom Grant
The Witness - From the Balcony of Room 306Adam Pertofsky and Margaret Hyde

Short Film (Animated)

La Maison en Petits CubesKunio Kato
Winner
Lavatory - LovestoryKonstantin Bronzit
OktapodiEmud Mokhberi and Thierry Marchand
PrestoDoug Sweetland
This Way UpAlan Smith and Adam Foulkes

Short Film (Live Action)

Spielzeugland (Toyland)Jochen Alexander Freydank
Winner
Auf der Strecke (On the Line)Reto Caffi
Manon on the AsphaltElizabeth Marre and Olivier Pont
New BoySteph Green and Tamara Anghie
The PigTivi Magnusson and Dorte Høgh

Foreign Language Film

DeparturesJapan
Winner
RevancheAustria
The Baader Meinhof ComplexGermany
The ClassFrance
Waltz with BashirIsrael

Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award

Jerry Lewis
Winner
Ed Catmull
GORDON E. SAWYER AWARD

Scientific And Technical Award (Scientific And Engineering Award)

To ERWIN MELZNER for the overall concept including the optical and cooling systems, VOLKER SCHUMACHER for the optical design, and TIMO MÜLLER for the mechanical design, of the Arrimax 18/12 lighting fixture for use in motion picture production. With its choice of vari-focus and specular reflectors, the superior optical and mechanical design of this lighting fixture allows it to operate at 18,000 watts, producing unsurpassed light quality while its innovative cooling system keeps the housing safe to touch. [Lighting]
Winner
To BRUNO COUMERT and JACQUES DEBIZE for the optical design, and DOMINIQUE CHERVIN and CHRISTOPHE REBOULET for the mechanical design, of the compact and lightweight Angenieux 15-40 and 28-76 zoom lenses for handheld motion picture photography. With focus and zoom functions that can be easily controlled by either the operator or focus puller while filming handheld, these lightweight zoom lenses demonstrate a very high degree of engineering, supporting both ease of use and quick interchange. [Lenses and Filters]
To JACQUES DELACOUX for the concept and electronic design, and ALEXANDRE LEUCHTER for the software and electronic design, of the Transvideo video-assist monitors for the motion picture industry. Using color LCD screens, the Transvideo monitors provide flicker-free video assist bright enough for use in sunlight and have become a ubiquitous tool in both spherical and anamorphic cinematography. [Systems]

Scientific And Technical Award (Technical Achievement Award)

To STEVE HYLÉN for the concept and his continued leadership in the further development of the Hylén Lens System for motion picture effects photography. When attached to a film or digital production camera, this versatile aerial image device can produce a wide variety of optical effects interactively, on set and in real time without post-production image manipulation. [Lenses and Filters]
Winner
JOHN A. BONNER MEDAL OF COMMENDATION
To Mark Kimball in appreciation for outstanding service and dedication in upholding the high standards of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.
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