Meryl Streep, Benjamin Button Highlights of Academy Awards Nominations for 2009

On February 22, 2009 the Kodak Theater at Hollywood and Highland Center will be a-buzz with anxious anticipation as the 81^st Academy Awards will be presented to those writers, directors and actors who have achieved that level of greatness that merits an Academy Award. For more than 80 years, receiving an Academy Award has been a symbol of superior achievement.

As November begins, so does the race for the much coveted Academy Award. There are 6000 voting members of the voting process who see the films at special screenings, free admission to commercial runs of the films and watching DVD's that have been mailed out specially to each member. Ballots are mailed to these members in late December, and are due back by a specific date in January. There are up to 25 categories that will be voted on.

After all the ballots are counted, only two people know the results until the famous "opening of the envelope" on stage at the Academy Awards Presentation.

This year's most nominated film is "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button," with 13 nominations. Meryl Streep has extended he lead as the most nominated performer at 15 nominations.

The Academy Award, better known as the "Oscar" is itself, a 13 ½ inch statue that weighs a hefty 8 ½ pounds. These are the categories and nominations that will be receiving the coveted award for 2009.

Performance by an 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"

Performance by an 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"

Performance by an 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"

Performance by an 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"

Best animated feature film of the year

"Bolt" - Chris Williams and Byron Howard

"Kung Fu Panda" - John Stevenson and Mark Osborne

"WALL-E" - Andrew Stanton

Achievement in art direction

"Changeling (Universal) Art Direction: James J. Murakami, Set Decoration: Gary Fettis

"The Curious Case of Benjamin Button" (Paramount and Warner Bros.) Claudio Miranda

"The Dark Knight" (Warner Bros.) Wally Pfister

"The Reader" (The Weinstein Company) Chris Menges and Roger Deakins

"Slumdog Millionaire" (Fox Searchlight) Anthony Dod Mantle

Achievement in costume design

"Australia" Catherine Martin"

"The Curious Case of Benjamin Button" Jacqueline West

"The Duchess" Michael O'Connor

"Milk" Danny Glicker

"Revolutionary Road" Albert Wolsky

Achievement in Directing

"The Curious Case of Benjamin Button" David Fincher

"Frost/Nixon" Ron Howard

"Milk" Gus Van Sant

"The Reader" Stephen Daldry

"Slumdog Millionaire" Danny Boyle

Best documentary feature

"The Betrayal (Nerakhoon)" A Pandiniao Films Production - Ellen Kuras and Thavisou Phrasavath

"Encounters at the End of the World" A Creative Differences Production - Werner Herzog and Henry Kaiser

"The Garden" A Black Valley Films Production - Scott Hamilton Kennedy

"Man on Wire" A Wall to Wall Production - James Marsh and Simon Chinn

"Trouble the Water" An Elsewhere Films Production - Tia Lessin and Carl Deal

Best documentary short subject

"The Conscience of Nhem En" Steven Okazaki

"The Final Inch" Irene Taylor Brodsky and Tom Grant

"Smile Pinki" Megan Mylan

"The Witness - From the Balcony of Room 306" Adam Pertofsky and Margaret Hyde

Achievement in film editing

"The Curious Case of Benjamin Button" Kirk Baxter and Angus Wall

"The Dark Knight" Lee Smith

"Frost/Nixon" Mike Hill and Dan Hanley

"Milk" Elliot Graham

"Slumdog Millionaire" Chris Dickens

Best foreign language film of the year

"The Baader Meinhof Complex" A Constantin Film Production, Germany

"The Class" A Haut et Court Production, France

"Departures" A Departures Film Partners Production, Japan

"Revanche" A Prisma Film/Fernseh Production, Austria

"Waltz with Bashir" A Bridgit Folman Film Gang Production, Israel

Achievement in makeup

"The Curious Case of Benjamin Button" Greg Cannom

"The Dark Knight" John Caglione Jr. and Conor O'Sullivan

"Hellboy II: The Golden Army" Mike Elizalde and Thom Floutz

Achievement in music written for motion pictures (Original song)

"Down to Earth" from WALL-E - Music by Peter Gabriel and Thomas Newman, Lyric by Peter Gabriel

"Jai Ho" from Slumdog Millionaire - Music by A.R, Rahman, Lyric by Gulzar

"O Saya" from Slumdog Millionaire - Music and Lyric by A.R. Rahman and Maya Arulpragasam

Best motion picture of the year

"The Curious Case of Benjamin Button" - Kathleen Kennedy, Frank Marshall and Cean Chaffin - producers

"Frost/Nixon" - Brian Grazer, Ron Howard and Eric Fellner - producers

"Milk" - Dan Jinks and Bruce Cohen - producers

"The Reader" - Nominees to be determined

"Slumdog Millionaire" - Christian Colson, producer

Best animated short film

"La Maison en Petits Cubes" Kunio Kato

"Lavatory - Lovestory" Konstantin Bronzit

"Oktapodi" Emud Mokhberi and Thierry Marchand

"Presto" Doug Sweetland

"This Way Up" Alan Smith and Adam Foulkes

Best live action short film

"Auf der Strecke (On the Line) - Reto Caffi

"Manon on the Asphalt" Elizabeth Marre and Olivier Pont

"New Boy" Steph Green and Tamara Anghie

"The Pig" Tivi Magnusson and Dorte Hogh

"Spielzeugland (Toyland) - Jochen Alexander Freydank

Achievement in sound editing

"The Dark Knight" Richard King

"Iron Man" Frank Eulner and Christopher Boyes

"Slumdog Millionaire" Tom Sayers

"WALL-E" Ben Burtt and Matthew Wood

"Wanted" Wylie Stateman

Achievement in sound mixing

"The Curious Case of Benjamin Button" - David Parker, Michael Semanick, Ren Klyce and Mark Weingarten

"The Dark Knight" - Lora Hirschberg, Gary Rizzo and Ed Novick

"Slumdog Millionaire" - Ian Tapp, Richard Pryke and Resul Pookutty

"WALL-E" - Tom Myers, Michael Semanick and Ben Burtt

"Wanted" - Chris Jenkins, Frank A. Montano and Peter Forejt

Achievement in visual effects

"The Curious Case of Benjamin Button" Eric Barba, Steve Preeg, Burt Dalton and Craig Barron

"The Dark Knight" Nick Davis, Chris Corbould, Tim Webber and Paul Franklin

"Iron Man" John Nelson, Ben Snow, Dan Sudick and Shane Mahan

Adapted screenplay

"The Curious Case of Benjamin Button" Screenplay by Eric Roth, Screen story by Eric Roth and Robin Swicord

"Doubt" Written by John Patrick Shanley

"Frost/Nixon" Screenplay by Peter Morgan

"The Reader" Screenplay by David Hare

"Slumdog Millionaire" Screenplay by Simon Beaufoy

Original screenplay

"Frozen River" written by Courtney Hunt

"Happy-Go-Lucky" written by Mike Leigh

"In Bruges" written by Martin McDonagh

" Milk" written by Dustin Lance Black

"WALL-E" - Screenplay by Andrew Stanton and Jim Reardon; Original story by Andrew Stanton and Pete Doctor

To all these nominees I say; congratulations and Good Luck!

Resource:

www.oscar.com