This is just stunning. So upsetting. Completely tragic.

Heath Ledger, Oscar-nominated for his performance as a gay rancher in "Brokeback Mountain," was found dead Tuesday at a downtown Manhattan residence in a possible drug-related death, police said. He was 28.

NYPD spokesman Paul Browne said the Australian-born Ledger had an appointment for a massage at the Manhattan apartment believed to be his home. The housekeeper who went to let Ledger know the masseuse was there found him dead at 3:26 p.m.

When no one answered, the housekeeper and the masseuse opened the bedroom and found Mr. Ledger unconscious. They shook him, but he did not respond. They immediately called the authorities. The police said they did not suspect foul play and said they found pills near body."

Heath's rep called the actor's death an "accident" and asked for privacy for his family and that people avoid speculation until all the facts are known: "We are deeply saddened and shocked by this accident," said publicist Mara Buxbaum in a statement. "This is an extremely difficult time for his loved ones."

I just saw Heath's family on television where his father, Kim Ledger, bravely read a statement about his son. Here is what he said: "We would like to thank our friends and everyone around the world for their well wishes and kind thoughts at this time. Heath has touched so many people on so many different levels during his short life but few had the pleasure of truly knowing him. He was a down to earth, generous, kind-hearted, life-loving and selfless individual who was extremely inspirational to many. Please now respect our family's need to grieve and come to terms with our loss privately."

Heath's ex-girlfriend, Michelle Williams, was on location in Sweden reportedly with the former couple's 2-year-old daughter, Matilda. They fell in love on the set of "Brokeback" but their three-year relationship ended last year.

"She's devastated," says a source close to the 27-year-old actress.

This is such a sad day.

Posted by Greg Hernandez at 10:34 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

This is my Oscar story which will appear on tomorrow's front page of the LA Daily News:

By Greg Hernandez

Seconds after the Academy Award nominations were announced Tuesday morning, the questions inside the Academy’s Samuel Goldwyn Theatre immediately went from “Who’s nominated?” to “What kind of Oscar ceremony will there be?”

The protracted writers strike, now heading toward the three month mark, has cast a black cloud of uncertainty over Hollywood’s biggest awards ceremony which Academy officials insist, will go on no matter what on Feb. 24.

“Obviously, it will be a different show if the writers are on strike than it will be if they’re not on strike and we're prepared for both,” said Oscar telecast director Gil Cates. “I can’t comment on what our show is going to be like, we’re in the planning stages now and we’re going to keep on planning.”

Several nominees said that despite their desire to get giddy and glitzy on Oscar night, they are not willing to defy the Writer’s Guild of America in order to stroll down that long red carpet that leads to the Kodak Theatre a month from now.

“I won’t cross the picket line and frankly no one I know will cross the picket line,” said Michael Moore, nominated for his documentary “Sicko.” “I think that means there’s higher incentive for the studios and producers to come back to the table and be reasonable. Let’s bring this to an end, that’s what everyone wants.”

The writers went on strike Nov. 5 after talks broke down between the WGA and the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers, which negotiates on behalf of the major studios.
The stalemate is largely over how to compensate writers for use of their work on the Internet and through other forms of new technology. After a brief meeting on Dec. 7, talks were halted and have yet to resume.
Tony Gilroy, who received two Oscar nominations for writing and directing “Michael Clayton” said the issues are too important to writers to not fight for the best deal.

“I’m hoping they can work it out. There’s so many people who need to go back to work. Nobody is going to cross the picket line so with that as a given, maybe they will work it out. You want to go, but you can’t cross the picket line and whether you get to make a speech and wear a tux is subsidiary to people who are going through a lot of dark \[stuff\].”

Nancy Oliver, nominated for best original screenplay for “Lars and the Real Girl” agreed: “The issues of the strike and getting a fair deal are what is most important. My special feeling of gettng pretty and dressed-up is second to people who are losing their houses and the damage it is doing to the city’s economy. It’s a total honor to be nominated and having the ceremony would be gravy.”

Despite support for the writers, there is a growing impatience at the lack of negotiations.

“My hope is that it’s resolved as quickly as possible,” said producer Jennifer Fox, a best picture nominee for “Michael Clayton. “If this puts an arbitrary deadline on resolving \[the strike\], if it creates additional pressure, then I think that’s great. I think it’s really important that people get back to doing what they love, a lot of people are suffering from the strike and I hope it doesn’t last much longer.”
Last week, the Director’s Guild of America quickly agreed to a new tentative three-year contract which many hope will help expedite negotiations.

“I hope that the DGA deal has a positive impact on the writers but, you know, it’s the writer’s guild and they have to decide for themselves and be really comfortable with the contract that they want to sign,” said Cates, who negotiated for the DGA.

“I hope that they can do it because it would be great to get the town back to work.”
There were a few hopeful signs on Tuesday: the leadership of the WGA was expected to meet informally with a few top studio executive where they were to discuss the framework of a resumption of bargaining, according to the Wall Street Journal.

The WGA also said Tuesday that it did not plan to picket the Grammy Awards on Feb. 10 although it has not yet decided whether to grant the music industry show a waiver that would allow writers to work on the ceremony.

So far, the strike resulted in the Golden Globe Awards being reduced from a star-studded three-hour telecast to a no-frills press conference where the winners were announced. No nominees were present.
The week before, the People’s Choice Awards were presented as a two-hour telecast with clips and taped acceptance speeches.

The televised Screen Actors Guild Awards are set to take place, without pickets, on Sunday as scheduled.
Cates said the Academy Awards are one of those things that throughout history, has almost always carried on: “The first year I did the show, the Berlin Wall came down,” he said. “We did the show one year when we went to war in Iraq and we cancelled the red carpet. We’re always flexible and fluid so that we can take advantage of what’s happening in the world.”

Academy President Sid Ganis, who announced the nominees with actress Kathy Bates, said he’s looking forward to “a great show” but the reality of the situation could be read between the lines when he said of the nominees: “We hope to see them all on Feb. 24.”

Posted by Greg Hernandez at 2:02 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

The nominees for the 80th Academy Awards were announced early this morning at the Academy Theatre in Beverly Hills. I mean early: 5:30 a.m. That meant a 4 a.m. wake-up call for folks like me but hey, at least they served us breakfast. Kathy Bates, the 1991 winner for "Misery," joined Academy President Sid Ganis to announce the nominees in the major categories.

Here are some of the reactions I've received so far today from folks who will be vying for Oscar gold:

Tom Wilkinson, nominated for best supporting actor for “Michael Clayton,” got the news of his nomination at his home in England. It’s his second Oscar nod and he said the news results in a sort of excitement “I can’t really make sense of.” “Clayton” got seven nominations overall: “I’m thrilled for the film. I’m not that surprised because I think it’s a pretty damned good film. I always thought it was good.” Wilkinson was candid on his chances of winning: “I don’t think I’ll win this time either. Javier Bardem has gotten all the nods so far and I don’t mind. It’s just nice to be there. It’s a long journey but then you get to LA and everyone is very nice, you stay in nice places.”

***********************************************************

Michael Moore was at home in Northern Michigan, where there is 10 feet of snow, when he found out that his documentary “Sicko” had been nominated. “I actually overslept. I didn’t set the alarm. My last appearance at the Kodak Theatre, Steve Martin said it best: he said Teamsters were loadiung me into the trunk of a car. So I had no expectations. But I’m profoundly grateful and honored by the nomination.” Will he give another controversial speech? “I’ll always say what’s in my heart and be true to myself. I never got to finish what I was saying \[in the Oscar speech]. I left the comedy portion to the end. If I’m fortunate enough to get up there again, I’ll lead with comedy and thank my stylist and wardrobe designer.”

************************************

Jason Reitman is in Park City, Utah where he is on the jury of the Sundance Film Festival. He mainly watched the nominations telecast to see the expected announcements of Ellen Page (best actress) and screenwriter Diablo Cody. Then he heard his name as a nominee for best director.
“It’s unreal,” he said. “I know most people were surprised I was included but no one was more surprised than I was. Even as I say this to you now, it still doesn’t feel real.”
As far as the picture’s best picture nomination, Reitman said: “I thought we might have a chance, on the cusp. I’d been hoping and praying.”
Ironically, Reitman did not get Oscar nominated for his most previous film “Thank You For Smoking” despite getting nominated for virtually every other award. For “Juno,” he got no other award nominations leading up to Tuesday morning.
“It has been an enormous surprise and wonderful to experience.”

*********************************

Daniel Day-Lewis, best actor nominee for "There Will Be Blood" and widely considered the front-runner: "You put me shoulder to shoulder with a group of fine actors. I'm proud to be in their company and to have the broader recognition for the film is a lovely thing. I couldn't be happier for Paul Thomas Anderson to whom we owe everything."

Three-time nominee Paul Thomas Anderson who received producing, directing and writing nods for “There Will Blood” said in a statement: “I’m delighted that “There Will Be Blood” has been recognized by the Academy. These nominations are a testament to the cast and crew, who I am deeply grateful to, for their talent and collaboration. I am also very appreciative of the continued support from both John Lesher and Daniel Battsek and their staff. It's a thrill to be in this.”

***********************************************

Tilda Swinton, nominated for supporting actress for her performance in "Michael Clayton," was happy for herself and her nominated co-star: “I am tickled pink at the nomination – this film has been such a labor of love and I am very proud of it. I couldn’t be happier for our entire cast and crew and am thrilled for [writer and director nominee Tony [Gilroy], George [Clooney] and Tom [Wilkinson]. I’m celebrating with my family today and couldn’t think of a better place to be when I got the news.”

**********************************************

Julie Christie, considered the front-runner for best actress, got her fourth nomination for "Away From Her." She won the Oscar back in 1965 for "Darling" so it would be a record span between best actress wins. She said in a statement" "It's great that all of Sarah Polley's wonderful work on "Away from Her" is being recognized. I'm delighted that the film is being honoured in this way."

***********************************************************

Hal Holbrook has Emmys and a Tony but on Tuesday morning got his first Oscar nomination at the age of 84 for his performance in the Sean Penn-directed "Into the Wold." He released this statement: "I am grateful. Enormously grateful. Grateful to Sean Penn who gave me the role and directed this beautiful film, and grateful to Emile Hirsch-we really should share this nomination because we worked together. And grateful that after all these years of acting, I got a shot at recognition like this from the Academy. Miraculous. "

**************************************************************

Tony Gilroy was doubly happy this morning with TWO Oscar nominations for writing and directing “Michael Clayton.” He called on his cell phone from New York where he watched the nomination announcement at home after walking his daughter to the school bus: “It’s going to take me a little while time to get used ot this. I’m trying to think of different ways to say ‘blown away.’”
Does one nomination mean more than the other?
“I’ve been a writer for 20 years so peope ask me what I do and that’s what I say. I’m not used to saying I’m a director yet. \[Being nominated as a director\] is clearly beyond my comprehension. I couldn’t have been more surprised by the DGA nomination and now this.”

*******************************************************

Best Supporting Actor nominee Javier Barden, considered the front-runner for his performance in "No Country for Old Men": "Its an honor to receive this nomination, which is undoubtedly the recognition of the work and talent of all those creative and professional people from my trade, that have inspired and improved me during all these years. And especially to the Coen brothers' genius, because they have raised the character of Chigurh into a dimension that goes beyond my performance. Thanks to Scott Rudin, Miramax and Paramount Vantage for giving me the chance of working alongside such talented actors - Josh Brolin, Tommy Lee Jones and Kelly Macdonald. My gratitude to all the Academy members for this wonderful gift."

**************************************

Marjane Satrapi had a bit of a roller coaster time of it as she watched the nominations announcement from her home in Paris. Her animated film “Persepolis” - France’s official entry - didn’t make the nominations for foreign film. But then something wonderful happened: the film got an unexpected nod for best animated feature. “It is my first movie,” an enthusiastic Satrapi said after a glass of champagne. “After I wasn’t nominatedm for foreign movie I lost my hope. I am so happy you cannot imagine. For me, it was much harder to be nominated in animation, so many of the movies are so big and so good. I can’t beleive it. It’s so incredible.” So what movie did she think would take that third slot alongside “Ratatouille” and “Surf’s Up”? “I love ‘The Simpsons Movie’ and was sure they would be in. I went to see it three times in the cinema.”

*************************************************

Casey Affleck, who had a career year with stellar reviews for both "Gone Baby Gone" and The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford" got the first Oscar nomination of his career on Tuesday. He is up for best supporting actor for "Jesse James" and said in a statement: "It is an honor to be recognized by the Academy and to be included in such a talented group of actors. With the help of Andrew Dominick and Brad Pitt, JESSE JAMES was an incredible experience."

***********************************************

Acting legend Ruby Dee received her very first Oscar nomination on Tuesday for her performance as Denzel Washington's mother in "American Gangster." She said in a statement: "I am excited to be recognized. It is always a delight to work with Denzel, and I enjoyed the opportunity to get to know Ridley Scott and to be a part of such a dynamic cast and crew. Of course, Harlem is home, and its stories hold a special place in my history and my heart. "

************************************************

Composer Alan Menken had the thrill of getting three Oscar nominations for “Enchanted” in the original song category but now faces the prospect of competing against himself and splitting the vote. “I think this year it will be very tough to win with three nominations. I think the song from “Once” is going to get a lot of attention. I hope voters will coalesce around one song. But I’m focused on the honor of having three nominations and assuming there will be an Oscar telecast, That ‘Enchanted’ will get some extra attention.” Even if he doesn’t win, Menken can always go home and polish the eight Academy Awards that he has already won.

Nancy Oliver, nominated for best original screenplay for “Lars and the Real Girl” had put herself in the “no chance” category: “My head is basically exploding,” she confessed. “This movie has been one surprise after another. I was just so thrilled that it got made and that it made it into the multiplexes. I was afraid that it would be a precious little art film.”

****************************************************

Stefan Ruzowitzy was in an editing suite in Austria with CNN on watching the nominations on a 30-second delay when his wife, watching live from home, called him with the news that his movie, “The Counterfeiters,” was nominated for best foreign film.
“I was still watching the nominations of the actors and she was already yelling,” he said.
“It’s wonderful, of course. The best you can get. For me, these awards by the Academy always have much more value than let’s say a festival award. An Academy nomination, that’s some of the finest filmmakers, experts you have admired all your life. A big group of these people thinks your movie is one of the five best. Rhat means a lot.”

Producer Jennifer Fox, best picture nominee for “Michael Clayton” : “I couldn’t be more excited. It’s incredible. Hopefully I get to do more. It’s a great privledge to get to work on movies with such incredibly talented people and to deal with subject matter that’s challenging and complicated and ambitious.

Christopher Rouse, a second-time nominee in the editing category. He was nominated for “United 93” last year. This year’s nod is for “The Bourne Ultimatum.” “I’m absolutely thrilled and blown away. I’m incredibly flattered by the company I’m in. Five very distinctive film with distinctive sdtyles. I’m proud to be in their company.”

Posted by Greg Hernandez at 12:15 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

i talked to Oscar producer Gil Cates this morning about what impact the writers strike might have on the Oscar telecast next month if it is not resolved by then:

Here is some of what he said:
“Absolutely! Bring your tuxedo, bring your gown, we’re going to have a ball.”

What kind of contingency plans are being made for a strike-telecast: “The interesting thing about the Oscars is that you have to plan for everything. The first year I did the show, the Berlin Wall came down. We did the show one year when we went to war in Iraq and we cancelled the red carpet. We’re always flexible and fluid so that we can take advantage of what’s happening in the world.”
“Obviously, it will be a different show if the writers are on strike that it will be if they’re not on strike. We’re prepared for both.”

Posted by Greg Hernandez at 8:20 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Best motion picture of the year
"Atonement" (Focus Features) A Working Title Production: Tim Bevan, Eric Fellner and Paul Webster, Producers
"Juno" (Fox Searchlight) A Dancing Elk Pictures, LLC Production: Lianne Halfon, Mason Novick and Russell Smith, Producers
"Michael Clayton" (Warner Bros.) A Clayton Productions, LLC Production: Sydney Pollack, Jennifer Fox and Kerry Orent, Producers
"No Country for Old Men" (Miramax and Paramount Vantage) A Scott Rudin/Mike Zoss Production: Scott Rudin, Ethan Coen and Joel Coen, Producers
"There Will Be Blood" (Paramount Vantage and Miramax) A JoAnne Sellar/Ghoulardi Film Company Production: JoAnne Sellar, Paul Thomas Anderson and Daniel Lupi, Producers

Performance by an actor in a leading role
George Clooney in "Michael Clayton" (Warner Bros.)
Daniel Day-Lewis in "There Will Be Blood" (Paramount Vantage and Miramax)
Johnny Depp in "Sweeney Todd The Demon Barber of Fleet Street" (DreamWorks and Warner Bros., Distributed by DreamWorks/Paramount)
Tommy Lee Jones in "In the Valley of Elah" (Warner Independent)
Viggo Mortensen in "Eastern Promises" (Focus Features)

Performance by an actor in a supporting role
Casey Affleck in "The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford" (Warner Bros.)
Javier Bardem in "No Country for Old Men" (Miramax and Paramount Vantage)
Philip Seymour Hoffman in "Charlie Wilson's War" (Universal)
Hal Holbrook in "Into the Wild" (Paramount Vantage and River Road Entertainment)
Tom Wilkinson in "Michael Clayton" (Warner Bros.)

Performance by an actress in a leading role
Cate Blanchett in "Elizabeth: The Golden Age" (Universal)
Julie Christie in "Away from Her" (Lionsgate)
Marion Cotillard in "La Vie en Rose" (Picturehouse)
Laura Linney in "The Savages" (Fox Searchlight)
Ellen Page in "Juno" (Fox Searchlight)

Performance by an actress in a supporting role
Cate Blanchett in "I'm Not There" (The Weinstein Company)
Ruby Dee in "American Gangster" (Universal)
Saoirse Ronan in "Atonement" (Focus Features)
Amy Ryan in "Gone Baby Gone" (Miramax)
Tilda Swinton in "Michael Clayton" (Warner Bros.)

Best animated feature film of the year
"Persepolis" (Sony Pictures Classics): Marjane Satrapi and Vincent Paronnaud
"Ratatouille" (Walt Disney): Brad Bird
"Surf's Up" (Sony Pictures Releasing): Ash Brannon and Chris Buck

Achievement in art direction
"American Gangster" (Universal): Art Direction: Arthur Max; Set Decoration: Beth A. Rubino
"Atonement" (Focus Features): Art Direction: Sarah Greenwood; Set Decoration: Katie Spencer
"The Golden Compass" (New Line in association with Ingenious Film Partners): Art Direction: Dennis Gassner; Set Decoration: Anna Pinnock
"Sweeney Todd The Demon Barber of Fleet Street" (DreamWorks and Warner Bros., Distributed by DreamWorks/Paramount): Art Direction: Dante Ferretti; Set Decoration: Francesca Lo Schiavo
"There Will Be Blood" (Paramount Vantage and Miramax): Art Direction: Jack Fisk; Set Decoration: Jim Erickson

Achievement in cinematography
"The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford" (Warner Bros.): Roger Deakins
"Atonement" (Focus Features): Seamus McGarvey
"The Diving Bell and the Butterfly" (Miramax/Pathé Renn): Janusz Kaminski
"No Country for Old Men" (Miramax and Paramount Vantage): Roger Deakins
"There Will Be Blood" (Paramount Vantage and Miramax): Robert Elswit

Achievement in costume design
"Across the Universe" (Sony Pictures Releasing) Albert Wolsky
"Atonement" (Focus Features) Jacqueline Durran
"Elizabeth: The Golden Age" (Universal) Alexandra Byrne
"La Vie en Rose" (Picturehouse) Marit Allen
"Sweeney Todd The Demon Barber of Fleet Street" (DreamWorks and Warner Bros., Distributed by DreamWorks/Paramount) Colleen Atwood

Achievement in directing
"The Diving Bell and the Butterfly" (Miramax/Pathé Renn), Julian Schnabel
"Juno" (Fox Searchlight), Jason Reitman
"Michael Clayton" (Warner Bros.), Tony Gilroy
"No Country for Old Men" (Miramax and Paramount Vantage), Joel Coen and Ethan Coen
"There Will Be Blood" (Paramount Vantage and Miramax), Paul Thomas Anderson

Best documentary feature
"No End in Sight" (Magnolia Pictures) A Representational Pictures Production: Charles Ferguson and Audrey Marrs
"Operation Homecoming: Writing the Wartime Experience" (The Documentary Group) A Documentary Group Production: Richard E. Robbins
"Sicko" (Lionsgate and The Weinstein Company) A Dog Eat Dog Films Production: Michael Moore and Meghan O'Hara
"Taxi to the Dark Side" (THINKFilm) An X-Ray Production: Alex Gibney and Eva Orner
"War/Dance" (THINKFilm) A Shine Global and Fine Films Production: Andrea Nix Fine and Sean Fine

Best documentary short subject
"Freeheld" A Lieutenant Films Production: Cynthia Wade and Vanessa Roth
"La Corona (The Crown)" A Runaway Films and Vega Films Production: Amanda Micheli and Isabel Vega
"Salim Baba" A Ropa Vieja Films and Paradox Smoke Production: Tim Sternberg and Francisco Bello
"Sari's Mother" (Cinema Guild) A Daylight Factory Production: James Longley

Achievement in film editing
"The Bourne Ultimatum" (Universal): Christopher Rouse
"The Diving Bell and the Butterfly" (Miramax/Pathé Renn): Juliette Welfling
"Into the Wild" (Paramount Vantage and River Road Entertainment): Jay Cassidy
"No Country for Old Men" (Miramax and Paramount Vantage) Roderick Jaynes
"There Will Be Blood" (Paramount Vantage and Miramax): Dylan Tichenor

Best foreign language film of the year
"Beaufort" Israel
"The Counterfeiters" Austria
"Katyn" Poland
"Mongol" Kazakhstan
"12" Russia

Achievement in makeup
"La Vie en Rose" (Picturehouse) Didier Lavergne and Jan Archibald
"Norbit" (DreamWorks, Distributed by Paramount): Rick Baker and Kazuhiro Tsuji
"Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End" (Walt Disney): Ve Neill and Martin Samuel

Achievement in music written for motion pictures (Original score)
"Atonement" (Focus Features) Dario Marianelli
"The Kite Runner" (DreamWorks, Sidney Kimmel Entertainment and Participant Productions, Distributed by Paramount Classics): Alberto Iglesias
"Michael Clayton" (Warner Bros.) James Newton Howard
"Ratatouille" (Walt Disney) Michael Giacchino
"3:10 to Yuma" (Lionsgate) Marco Beltrami

Achievement in music written for motion pictures (Original song)
"Falling Slowly" from "Once" (Fox Searchlight) Music and Lyric by Glen Hansard and: Marketa Irglova
"Happy Working Song" from "Enchanted" (Walt Disney): Music by Alan Menken; Lyric by Stephen Schwartz
"Raise It Up" from "August Rush" (Warner Bros.): Nominees to be determined
"So Close" from "Enchanted" (Walt Disney): Music by Alan Menken; Lyric by Stephen Schwartz
"That's How You Know" from "Enchanted" (Walt Disney): Music by Alan Menken; Lyric by Stephen Schwartz

Best animated short film
"I Met the Walrus" A Kids & Explosions Production: Josh Raskin
"Madame Tutli-Putli" (National Film Board of Canada) A National Film Board of Canada Production Chris Lavis and Maciek Szczerbowski "Même Les Pigeons Vont au Paradis (Even Pigeons Go to Heaven)" (Premium Films) A BUF Compagnie Production Samuel Tourneux and Simon Vanesse
"My Love (Moya Lyubov)" (Channel One Russia) A Dago-Film Studio, Channel One Russia and Dentsu Tec Production Alexander Petrov
"Peter & the Wolf" (BreakThru Films) A BreakThru Films/Se-ma-for Studios Production Suzie Templeton and Hugh Welchman

Best live action short film
"At Night" A Zentropa Entertainments 10 Production: Christian E. Christiansen and Louise Vesth
"Il Supplente (The Substitute)" (Sky Cinema Italia) A Frame by Frame Italia Production: Andrea Jublin
"Le Mozart des Pickpockets (The Mozart of Pickpockets)" (Premium Films) A Karé Production: Philippe Pollet-Villard
"Tanghi Argentini" (Premium Films) An Another Dimension of an Idea Production: Guido Thys and Anja Daelemans
"The Tonto Woman" A Knucklehead, Little Mo and Rose Hackney Barber Production: Daniel Barber and Matthew Brown

Achievement in sound editing
"The Bourne Ultimatum" (Universal): Karen Baker Landers and Per Hallberg
"No Country for Old Men" (Miramax and Paramount Vantage): Skip Lievsay
"Ratatouille" (Walt Disney): Randy Thom and Michael Silvers
"There Will Be Blood" (Paramount Vantage and Miramax): Matthew Wood
"Transformers" (DreamWorks and Paramount in association with Hasbro): Ethan Van der Ryn and Mike Hopkins

Achievement in sound mixing
"The Bourne Ultimatum" (Universal) Scott Millan, David Parker and Kirk Francis
"No Country for Old Men" (Miramax and Paramount Vantage): Skip Lievsay, Craig Berkey, Greg Orloff and Peter Kurland
"Ratatouille" (Walt Disney): Randy Thom, Michael Semanick and Doc Kane
"3:10 to Yuma" (Lionsgate): Paul Massey, David Giammarco and Jim Stuebe
"Transformers" (DreamWorks and Paramount in association with Hasbro): Kevin O'Connell, Greg P. Russell and Peter J. Devlin

Achievement in visual effects
"The Golden Compass" (New Line in association with Ingenious Film Partners): Michael Fink, Bill Westenhofer, Ben Morris and Trevor Wood
"Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End" (Walt Disney): John Knoll, Hal Hickel, Charles Gibson and John Frazier
"Transformers" (DreamWorks and Paramount in association with Hasbro): Scott Farrar, Scott Benza, Russell Earl and John Frazier

Adapted screenplay
"Atonement" (Focus Features), Screenplay by Christopher Hampton
"Away from Her" (Lionsgate), Written by Sarah Polley
"The Diving Bell and the Butterfly" (Miramax/Pathé Renn), Screenplay by Ronald Harwood
"No Country for Old Men" (Miramax and Paramount Vantage), Written for the screen by Joel Coen & Ethan Coen
"There Will Be Blood" (Paramount Vantage and Miramax), Written for the screen by Paul Thomas Anderson

Original screenplay
"Juno" (Fox Searchlight), Written by Diablo Cody
"Lars and the Real Girl" (MGM), Written by Nancy Oliver
"Michael Clayton" (Warner Bros.), Written by Tony Gilroy
"Ratatouille" (Walt Disney), Screenplay by Brad Bird; Story by Jan Pinkava, Jim Capobianco, Brad Bird
"The Savages" (Fox Searchlight), Written by Tamara Jenkins

Posted by Greg Hernandez at 7:15 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)