Awards

The Asia Pacific Screen Awards (APSA) announced that 37 films from 19 countries and areas have been nominated in this year’s Asia Pacific Screen Awards.

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[caption id="attachment_1658" align="alignnone" width="550"]Michelle Williams in Wendy and Lucy[/caption]

The 15th Annual Hollywood Film Festival and Hollywood Film Awards, presented by Starz Entertainment,announced that Academy Award-nominated actress Michelle Williams will be honored with the “Hollywood Actress Award,” at the festival’s Hollywood Film Awards Gala Ceremony, which will take place October 24, 2011, at the Beverly Hilton Hotel in Beverly Hills.

In the past eight years a total of 73 Oscar nominations and 27 Oscars were given to the honorees of the Hollywood Awards.

The 2011 Hollywood Film Festival has also announced that they will honor Academy Award-nominated actor Christopher Plummer with the “Hollywood Supporting Actor Award” for “Beginners,” actor Joseph Gordon-Levitt with the “Hollywood Breakthrough Actor Award” for “50/50,” actress Jessica Chastain with the “Hollywood Breakthrough Actress Award” for “The Tree of  Life,” “Coriolanus,” “The Debt,” “The Help,” and “Take Shelter,” and actress Felicity Jones with the “New Hollywood Award” for “Crazy Love.” Other honorees include the cast of “The Help” (Jessica Chastain, Viola Davis, Bryce Dallas Howard, Allison Janney, Chris Lowell, Ahna O’Reilly, Octavia Spencer, Emma Stone, Sissy Spacek, Mary Steenburgen, Cicely Tyson and Mike Vogel), Cinematographer Emmanuel Lubezki, Editor Stephen Mirrione, Production Designer James Murakami, and Visual Effects Supervisor Scott Farrar at their annual Awards Gala. In addition, Gore Verbinski’s  “Rango” will be honored at the Hollywood Film Awards Gala Ceremony, along with additional honorees to be announced in the coming weeks.

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The British Independent Film Awards announced on its website that the 2011 ceremony will will take place on Sunday December 4th at Old Billingsgate in Central London.

Nominations will be announced in October 31st.

Created in 1998, The British Independent Film Awards set out to celebrate merit and achievement in independently funded British filmmaking, to honor new talent, and to promote British films and filmmaking to a wider public.

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The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences is already gearing up for the 84th Academy Awards. The Academy announced today that Monday, October 3, is the deadline to submit entries in the Live Action Short Film, Animated Short Film and Foreign Language Film categories to be considered for the 84th Academy Awards®.  Complete entries must arrive at the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences by 5 p.m. PT that day.

The 84th Academy Awards nominations will be announced live on Tuesday, January 24, 2012, at 5:30 a.m. PT in the Academy’s Samuel Goldwyn Theater.

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Director, producer Brett Ratner, (“Horrible Bosses,” currently in release) and Don Mischer will produce the 84th Academy Awards. This will be Ratner’s first involvement with the Oscar show; Mischer will for the second year in a row serve as a producer and as the telecast director.

“I was so impressed with Brett when I met with him to discuss the Oscar show,” said Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences President Tom Sherak.  “He has an incredible love of film and its history and is a true student of the business of movies.  He’s unbelievably creative and knows how to take risks that are both interesting and inspiring.  Together with Don Mischer – who, by the way, just earned an Emmy nomination for his work on the 83rd Academy Awards – I think these two will give us a fantastic Oscar show that you won’t want to miss.”

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[caption id="attachment_1603" align="alignnone" width="550"]Oprah Winfrey received her Oscar nomination for her debut film performance in The Color Purple [/caption]

The  Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences will present Honorary Awards to actor James Earl Jones and makeup artist Dick Smith and the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award to philanthropist Oprah Winfrey at the Academy’s 3rd Annual Governors Awards dinner on Saturday, November 12.

The Honorary Award, an Oscar statuette, is given to an individual for “extraordinary distinction in lifetime achievement, exceptional contributions to the state of motion picture arts and sciences, or for outstanding service to the Academy.”

The Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award, an Oscar statuette, is given to an individual in the motion picture industry whose humanitarian efforts have brought credit to the industry.

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Tom Sherak was re-elected president of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences on August 2.  This will be his third consecutive one-year term in the office.

Previously, Sherak was a partner at Revolution Studios and prior to joining Revolution, Sherak held various positions at Twentieth Century Fox including senior executive vice president of Fox Filmed Entertainment.  Sherak has been responsible for the launch, distribution and/or post-production of many blockbuster films including “Black Hawk Down,” “Anger Management,” “Rent,” “Across the Universe.” “Mrs. Doubtfire,” “Speed,” “Independence Day,” “Romancing the Stone,” ” Aliens,” “Wall Street,” “Die Hard”  and “Working Girl.”  He began his career in the industry at Paramount Pictures in 1970.

 

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[caption id="attachment_678" align="alignnone" width="550"]Dabangg (Fearless)[/caption]

Dabangg (Fearless) was the big winner at the 12th International India Film Academy (IIFA) awards ceremony held in Toronto, Canada on Saturday night.

The Hollywood Reported, reported that Dabangg won for best film and took home three of the four major music awards: best male playback singer for Rahat Ali Fateh Khan for the song “Tere mast mast do nain,” best music director shared by Sajid Wajid and Lalit Pandit, and the best female playback singer trophy went to Mamta Sharma for the song “Munni badnam hui.” Also for Dabangg, the best screenplay trophy went to Abhinav Kashyap and Dilip Shukla, while Sonakshi Sinha earned the female debut award for her star-turn in the hit Bollywood film.

The list of the winners of the 2011 IIFA Awards:

Best Film
Dabangg

Best Direction
Karan Johar (My Name Is Khan)

Leading Role Male
Shahrukh Khan (My Name Is Khan)

Leading Role Female
Anushka Sharma (Band Baaja Baaraat)

Supporting Role Male
Arjun Rampal (Raajneeti)

Supporting Role Female
Prachi Desai (Once Upon A Time In Mumbaai)

Comic Role
Riteish Deshmukh (Housefull)

Negative Role
Sonu Sood (Dabangg)

Debut Male
Ranveer Singh

Debut Female
Sonakshi Sinah (Dabangg)

Best Story
Shibani Bhatija (My Name Is Khan)

Screenplay
Dilip Shukla, Abhinav Kashyap (Dabangg)

Dialogue
Vishal Bhardwaj (Ishqiya)

Music Direction
Sajid – Wajid & Lalit Pandit (Dabangg)

Lyrics
Niranjan Iyengar (My Name Is Khan – Sajdaa)

Playback Singer Male
Rahat Fateh Ali Khan (Dabangg – Tere Mast Mast Do Nain)

Playback Singer Female
Mamta Sharma (Dabangg – Munni Badnam)

Outstanding Achievement in International Cinema
Irrfan Khan

Lifetime Achievement Award
Asha Bhonsle

Outstanding Contribution to Indian cinema
Dharmendra (50 years in cinema)

Outstanding Achievement in Indian cinema
Sharmila Tagore

Best On-Screen Jodi
Anuksha Sharma and Ranveer Singh (Band Baaja Baaraat)

Special ‘Green’ Award
Priyanka Chopra

Best Editing
Namrata Rao
Band Baaja Baaraat

Best Sound Recording
Pritam Das
Love Sex aur Dhokha

Best Sound Re-recording
Leslie Fernandes
Dabangg

Best Special Effects
V. Srinivas Mohan
Robot

Best Art Direction
Sabu Cyril
Robot

Best Cinematography
Sudeep Chatterjee
Guzaarish

Best Dialogue
Vishal Bharadwaj
Ishqiya

Best Costume
Niharika Khan
Band Baaja Baaraat

Best Make-up
Banu
Robot

Best Screenplay
Abhinav Kashyap, Dileep Shukla
Dabangg

Best Choreography
Farah Khan
Dabangg

Best Action
Master Vijayan
Dabangg

Best Story
Shibani Bhattija
My Name Is Khan

Best Background Score
Shankar Ehsaan Loy
My Name Is Khan

Best Music
Sajid – Wajid
Dabangg

Best Lyrics
Niranjan Iyengar
My Name Is Khan

Best Playback Singer (Male)
Rahat Fateh Ali Khan
Dabangg

Best Playback Singer (Female)
Mamta Sharma
Dabangg

Debutant Star Award (Male)
Ranveer Singh
Band Baaja Baaraat

Debutant Star Award (Female)
Sonakshi Sinha
Dabangg

Best Performance in a Comic Role
Ritesh Deshmukh
House Full

Best Performance in a Negative Role
Sonu Sood
Dabangg

Best Performance in a Supporting Role (Female)
Prachi Desai |
Once Upon A Time In Mumbaai

Best Performance in a Supporting Role (Male)
Arjun Rampal
Raajneeti

Lifetime Achievement Award
Dharmendra

[via india-spicy]

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[caption id="attachment_1471" align="alignnone" width="550"]Anthony Mackie in [/caption]

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has extending invitations to join the organization to 178 artists and executives who have distinguished themselves by their contributions to theatrical motion pictures.  Those who accept the invitation will be the only additions in 2011 to the Academy’s roster of members.

“These individuals are among the best filmmakers working in the industry today,” said Academy President Tom Sherak.  “Their talent and creativity have entertained moviegoers around the world, and I welcome each of them to our ranks.”

The Academy’s membership policies would have allowed a maximum of 211 new members in 2011, but as in other recent years, several branch committees endorsed fewer candidates than were proposed to them.  Voting membership in the organization has now held steady at just under 6,000 members since 2003.

In an unprecedented gesture, the list of new members includes documentary filmmaker Tim Hetherington, who was killed in action in Libya in April.  Hetherington had been a 2010 nominee for his film “Restrepo,” but died prior to the Academy’s spring meetings to select new members.  The Documentary Branch proposed that Hetherington’s name be included among the year’s invitees.  The governors agreed.

The 2011 invitees are:

Actors
Russell Brand – “Arthur,” “Get Him to the Greek”
Gerard Butler – “The Ugly Truth,” “300”
Vincent Cassel – “Black Swan,” “Eastern Promises”
Robbie Coltrane – “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1,” “Mona Lisa”
Bradley Cooper – “Limitless,” “The Hangover”
John Corbett – “Sex and the City 2,” “My Big Fat Greek Wedding”
Rosemarie DeWitt – “The Company Men,” “Rachel Getting Married”
Peter Dinklage – “Find Me Guilty,” “The Station Agent”
David Duchovny – “Things We Lost in the Fire,” “The X-Files”
Jesse Eisenberg – “The Social Network,” “The Squid and the Whale”
Jennifer Garner – “Arthur,” “Juno”
John Hawkes – “Winter’s Bone,” “The Perfect Storm”
Thomas Jane – “The Mist,” “The Thin Red Line”
Nastassja Kinski – “An American Rhapsody,” “Tess”
Beyonce Knowles – “Dreamgirls,” “Austin Powers in Goldmember”
Mila Kunis – “Black Swan,” “Forgetting Sarah Marshall”
Jennifer Lawrence – “Winter’s Bone,” “The Burning Plain”
Tea Leoni – “Ghost Town,” “Spanglish”
Anthony Mackie – “The Hurt Locker,” “Million Dollar Baby”
Lesley Manville – “Another Year,” “Topsy-Turvy”
Rooney Mara – “A Nightmare on Elm Street,” “The Social Network”
Dominic Monaghan – “X-Men Origins: Wolverine,” “The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King”
Connie Nielsen – “Brothers,” “Gladiator”
Ellen Page – “Inception,” “Juno”
Wes Studi – “Avatar,” “The Last of the Mohicans”
Mia Wasikowska – “Jane Eyre,” “The Kids Are All Right”
Jacki Weaver – “Animal Kingdom,” “Cosi”

Animators
Geefwee Boedoe – “Let’s Pollute,” “Monsters, Inc.”
Alessandro Carloni – “How to Train Your Dragon,” “Over the Hedge”
Sylvain Chomet – “The Illusionist,” “The Triplets of Belleville”
Jakob Hjort Jensen – “How to Train Your Dragon,” “Flushed Away”
Biljana Labovic – “The Cow Who Wanted to Be a Hamburger,” “Idiots and Angels”
Tomm Moore – “The Secret of Kells,” “Backwards Boy”
Teddy Newton – “Day & Night,” “Ratatouille”
Bob Peterson – “Up,” “Finding Nemo” (also invited to the Writers Branch)
Javier Recio Gracia – “The Lady and the Reaper,” “The Missing Lynx”
Andrew Ruhemann – “The Lost Thing,” “City Paradise”
Kristof Serrand – “How to Train Your Dragon,” “Sinbad: Legend of the Seven Seas”
Shaun Tan – “The Lost Thing,” “Dr. Seuss’ Horton Hears a Who!”
Simon Wells – “Mars Needs Moms,” “The Prince of Egypt”

Art Directors
Anahid Nazarian – “The Virgin Suicides,” “The Godfather, Part III”
Lauren E. Polizzi – “Cowboys & Aliens,” “Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen”

At-Large
George Aguilar
Barry Bernardi
Christopher Dodd
Ted Gagliano
James L. Honore
Dawn Hudson
Beverly Pasterczyk
Randall Poster
Ric Robertson
David Schnuelle
Randy Spendlove
Beverly Joanna Wood

Casting Directors
Nina Gold – “The King’s Speech,” “Jane Eyre”
Jina Jay – “The Reader,” “Layer Cake”
Lora Kennedy – “The Town,” “Syriana”

Cinematographers
Frank Byers – “Illegal Tender,” “Boxing Helena”
Patrick Cady – “Lottery Ticket,” “Broken Bridges”
Danny Cohen – “The King’s Speech,” “Pirate Radio”
Lukas Ettlin – “The Lincoln Lawyer,” “Middle Men”
Steven Fierberg – “Love & Other Drugs,” “Secretary”
Barry Markowitz – “Crazy Heart,” “Sling Blade”
Charles Minsky – “Valentine’s Day,” “Pretty Woman”
Lawrence Sher – “The Hangover,” “Garden State”
Eric Steelberg – “Up in the Air,” “(500) Days of Summer”

Costume Designers
Odile Dicks-Mireaux – “An Education,” “The Constant Gardener”
Sarah Edwards – “Salt,” “Michael Clayton”
Danny Glicker – “Up in the Air,” “Milk”

Directors
Gregg Araki – “Kaboom,” “Nowhere”
Susanne Bier – “In a Better World,” “After the Wedding”
Neil Burger – “Limitless,” “The Illusionist”
Lisa Cholodenko – “The Kids Are All Right,” “Laurel Canyon” (also invited to the Writers Branch)
Debra Granik – “Winter’s Bone,” “Down to the Bone” (also invited to the Writers Branch)
Tom Hooper – “The King’s Speech,” “The Damned United”
John Cameron Mitchell – “Rabbit Hole,” “Shortbus”
Yojiro Takita – “Departures,” “Himitsu”

Documentary
Jon Alpert – “China’s Unnatural Disaster: The Tears of Sichuan Province,” “Lock-up: The Prisoners
of Rikers Island”
Amir Bar-Lev – “The Tillman Story,” “Fighter”
Lesley Chilcott – “Waiting for ‘Superman’,” “It Might Get Loud”
Carl Deal – “Capitalism: A Love Story,” “Trouble the Water”
Charles Ferguson – “Inside Job,” “No End in Sight”
Tim Hetherington – “Restrepo” (posthumous)
Sebastian Junger – “Restrepo”
Thomas Lennon – “The Warriors of Qiugang,” “The Blood of Yingzhou District”
Diane Weyermann – “Waiting for ‘Superman’,” “Food, Inc.”
Ruby Yang – “The Blood of Yingzhou District,” “The Warriors of Qiugang”

Executives
William J. Damaschke
Richard M. Fay
Donna Langley
Leslie Moonves
Vanessa L. Morrison
Bill Pohlad
Rich Ross
Jeff Small
Thomas Tull

Film Editors
Tariq Anwar – “The King’s Speech,” “American Beauty”
Naomi Geraghty – “Limitless,” “Reservation Road”
Jon Harris – “127 Hours,” “Layer Cake”
Darren Holmes – “How to Train Your Dragon,” “The Iron Giant”
Pamela Martin – “The Fighter,” “Little Miss Sunshine”
Joel Negron – “Transformers: Dark of the Moon,” “The Karate Kid”
Terilyn A. Shropshire – “Jumping the Broom,” “Eve’s Bayou”
Angus Wall – “The Social Network,” “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button”
Andrew Weisblum – “The Black Swan,” “The Wrestler”

Live Action Short Films
Luke Matheny – “God of Love,” “Earano”

Makeup Artists and Hairstylists
Judy Chin – “Black Swan,” “Requiem for a Dream”
Kathrine Gordon – “3:10 to Yuma,” “Ocean’s Eleven”
Trefor Proud – “W.,” “Topsy-Turvy”
Cindy Jane Williams – “Burlesque,” “Hancock”
Wesley Wofford – “Big Mommas: Like Father, Like Son,” “A Beautiful Mind”

Music
Terence Blanchard – “Inside Man,” “Malcolm X”
Fernand Bos – “Crazy Heart,” “Cold Mountain”
Graeme Revell – “Darfur Now,” “Lara Croft: Tomb Raider”

Producers
Iain Canning – “Oranges and Sunshine,” “The King’s Speech”
Cean Chaffin – “The Social Network,” “Fight Club”
Kevin Feige – “Thor,” “Iron Man”
Gary Goetzman – “Where the Wild Things Are,” “Mamma Mia!”
Sisse Graum Jorgensen – “In a Better World,” “After the Wedding”
Jeffrey Levy-Hinte – “The Kids Are All Right,” “Laurel Canyon”
Todd Lieberman – “The Fighter,” “The Proposal”
Robert Lorenz – “Letters from Iwo Jima,” “Mystic River”
Celine Rattray – “The Kids Are All Right,” “Grace Is Gone”
Emile Sherman – “The King’s Speech,” “Candy”
Emma Thomas – “Inception,” “The Dark Knight”
Gareth Unwin – “The King’s Speech,” “Exam”

Production Designers
Howard Cummings – “I Love You, Beth Cooper,” “John Grisham’s The Rainmaker”
Therese DePrez – “Black Swan,” “How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days”
Guy Hendrix Dyas – “Inception,” “The Brothers Grimm”
Jess Gonchor – “True Grit,” “Capote”
Jane Musky – “Something Borrowed,” “Finding Forrester”
Eve Stewart – “The King’s Speech,” “Topsy-Turvy”

Public Relations
Susan Ciccone
Alissa Grayson
Jeffrey Hall
Jill Ann Jones
Mark Markline
Carmelo Pirrone
Ira Rubenstein
David Schneiderman
Loren Schwartz
Lance Volland

Set Decorators
Judy Farr – “The King’s Speech,” “Death at a Funeral”
Gene Serdena – “The Fighter,” “House of Sand and Fog”

Sound
Andrew DeCristofaro – “Hall Pass,” “Crazy Heart”
Joe Dorn – “The Wolfman,” “Spider-Man 3”
Marc Fishman – “Bridesmaids,” “Crash”
Lora Hirschberg – “Inception,” “The Dark Knight”
Chris Jargo – “Robin Hood,” “American Gangster”
John Midgley – “The King’s Speech,” “Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace”
Ed Novick – “Inception,” “The Dark Knight”
Hammond Peek – “King Kong,” “The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King”
Brian Vessa – “Nemesis,” “Lambada”
Mark Weingarten – “The Social Network,” “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button”

Visual Effects
Tim Alexander – “Rango,” “Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire”
Rob Bredow – “Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs,” “The Polar Express”
Tim Burke – “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1,” “Gladiator”
Peter Chesney – “No Country for Old Men,” “Men in Black”
Paul Franklin – “Inception,” “The Dark Knight”
Kevin Tod Haug – “The Twilight Saga: Eclipse,” “Quantum of Solace”
Florian Kainz – “Mission: Impossible III,” “The Perfect Storm”
Marshall Krasser – “Iron Man 2,” “Titanic”
Sean Phillips – “Alice in Wonderland,” “The Polar Express”
Peter G. Travers – “Watchmen,” “The Matrix Reloaded”
Brian Van’t Hul – “Coraline,” “I, Robot”
Mark H. Weingartner – “Sex and the City 2,” “Inception”

Writers
Stuart Blumberg – “The Kids Are All Right,” “Keeping the Faith”
Lisa Cholodenko – “The Kids Are All Right,” “Laurel Canyon” (also invited to the Directors Branch)
Debra Granik – “Winter’s Bone,” “Down to the Bone” (also invited to the Directors Branch)
Karen McCullah Lutz – “The Ugly Truth,” “Legally Blonde”
Aline Brosh McKenna – “27 Dresses,” “The Devil Wears Prada”
Bob Peterson – “Up,” “Finding Nemo” (also invited to the Short Films and Feature Animation Branch)
David Rabe – “The Firm,” “Casualties of War”
Anne Rosellini – “Winter’s Bone”
David Seidler – “The King’s Speech,” “The King & I”
Scott Silver – “The Fighter,” “8 Mile”
Kirsten Smith – “The Ugly Truth,” “Legally Blonde”
Aaron Sorkin – “The Social Network,” “A Few Good Men”
Daniel Waters – “Batman Returns,” “Heathers”

Additionally, the Academy invited John Coffey, Risa Gertner and Robert C. Rosenthal to Associate membership. Associate members are not represented on the Board and do not have Academy Awards® voting privileges.

source: AMPAS

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The governors of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences voted on Tuesday (6/14) to add a new twist to the 2011 Best Picture competition, and a new element of surprise to its annual nominations announcement.  The Board voted to institute a system that will now produce anywhere between five and 10 nominees in the category.  That number won’t be announced until the Best Picture nominees themselves are revealed at the January nominations announcement.

“With the help of PricewaterhouseCoopers, we’ve been looking not just at what happened over the past two years, but at what would have happened if we had been selecting 10 nominees for the past 10 years,” explained Academy President Tom Sherak, who noted that it was retiring Academy executive director Bruce Davis who recommended the change first to Sherak and incoming CEO Dawn Hudson and then to the governors.

During the period studied, the average percentage of first place votes received by the top vote-getting movie was 20.5.  After much analysis by Academy officials, it was determined that 5% of first place votes should be the minimum in order to receive a nomination, resulting in a slate of anywhere from five to 10 movies.

“In studying the data, what stood out was that Academy members had regularly shown a strong admiration for more than five movies,” said Davis.  “A Best Picture nomination should be an indication of extraordinary merit.  If there are only eight pictures that truly earn that honor in a given year, we shouldn’t feel an obligation to round out the number.”

If this system had been in effect from 2001 to 2008 (before the expansion to a slate of 10), there would have been years that yielded 5, 6, 7, 8 and 9 nominees.

The final round of voting for Best Picture will continue to employ the preferential system, regardless of the number of nominees, to ensure that the winning picture has the endorsement of more than half of the voters.

Other rules changes approved by the Board include:

In the animated feature film category, the need for the Board to vote to “activate” the category each year was eliminated, though a minimum number of eligible releases – eight – is still required for a competitive category.   Additionally, the short films and feature animation branch recommended, and the Board approved, refinements to the number of possible nominees in the Animated Feature category.  In any year in which eight to 12 animated features are released, either two or three of them may be nominated.  When 13 to 15 films are released, a maximum of four may be nominated, and when 16 or more animated features are released, a maximum of five may be nominated.

In the visual effects category, the “bakeoff” at which the nominees are determined will expand from seven to 10 contenders.  The increase in the number of participants is related to a change made last year in which the number of films nominated in the visual effects category  was increased from three to five.

Previously, the Board approved changes to the documentary feature and documentary short category rules that now put those categories’ eligibility periods in line with the calendar year and thus with most other awards categories.  The change means that for the 84th Awards cycle only, the eligibility period is more than 12 months; it is from September 1, 2010 to December 31, 2011.

Other modifications of the 84th Academy Awards rules include normal date changes and minor “housekeeping” changes.

Rules are reviewed annually by individual branch and category committees.  The Awards Rules Committee then reviews all proposed changes before presenting its recommendations to the Academy’s Board of Governors for approval.

The 84th Academy Awards nominations will be announced live on Tuesday, January 24, 2012, at 5:30 a.m. PT in the Academy’s Samuel Goldwyn Theater.

Academy Awards for outstanding film achievements of 2011 will be presented on Sunday, February 26, 2012, at the Kodak Theatre at Hollywood & Highland Center®, and televised live by the ABC Television Network.  The Oscar presentation also will be televised live in more than 200 countries worldwide.

[ press release via AMPAS ]

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[caption id="attachment_1456" align="alignnone" width="560"]The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences presented its 38th Annual Student Academy Awards® on Saturday, June 11, in Beverly Hills. Front row (left to right): Hallvar Witzø, Julian Higgins, Avner Geller, Stevie Lewis, Tal S. Shamir, Wonjung Bae and Soham Mehta. Back row (left to right): Theo Rigby, Anthony Weeks, Shawn Wines, Max Zähle, Karzan Kader, Zach Hyer, Bernardo Warman and Shaofu Zhang.[/caption]

Fifteen students from colleges and universities around the world were honored last night (June 11) as winners in the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences’ 38th Annual Student Academy Awards® competition awards ceremony, which featured as presenters actress Jennifer Garner, Oscar®-nominated animator John Musker, and Academy Award-winning producer Edward Zwick alongside Academy President Tom Sherak at the Academy’s Samuel Goldwyn Theater.

The 2011 winners are:

Alternative category
Gold Medal*:   “The Vermeers,” Tal S. Shamir, The New School, New York
* Only one medal was awarded in the Alternative category.

Animation category
Gold Medal (tie):   “Correspondence,” Zach Hyer, Pratt Institute, New York; and “Dragonboy,” Bernardo Warman and Shaofu Zhang, Academy of Art University, California
Bronze Medal:       “Defective Detective,” Avner Geller and Stevie Lewis, Ringling College of Art and Design, Florida

Documentary category
Gold Medal:       “Vera Klement: Blunt Edge,” Wonjung Bae, Columbia College Chicago
Silver Medal:      “Imaginary Circumstances,” Anthony Weeks, Stanford University
Bronze Medal:   “Sin Pais (Without Country),” Theo Rigby, Stanford University

Narrative category
Gold Medal:     “Thief,” Julian Higgins, American Film Institute, California
Silver Medal:    “High Maintenance,” Shawn Wines, Columbia University
Bronze Medal:  “Fatakra,” Soham Mehta, University of Texas at Austin

Foreign Student Film category
Gold Medal:     “Tuba Atlantic,” Hallvar Witzo, The Norwegian Film School, Norway
Silver Medal:    “Bekas,” Karzan Kader, Stockholm Academy of Dramatic Arts, Sweden
Bronze Medal:  “Raju,” Max Zaehle, Hamburg Media School, Germany

The Academy established the Student Academy Awards in 1972 to support and encourage excellence in filmmaking at the collegiate level. Past Student Academy Award winners have gone on to receive 43 Oscar nominations and have won or shared eight awards. At the 83rd Academy Awards earlier this year, 2010 Student Academy Award winner Luke Matheny took home the Oscar for Live Action Short Film for “God of Love.” Tanel Toom, another 2010 Student Academy Award winner, also was nominated in the Live Action Short Film category for “The Confession,” and John Lasseter, a 1979 and 1980 Student Academy Award winner, was a nominee in the Adapted Screenplay category for “Toy Story 3.”

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[caption id="attachment_1447" align="alignnone" width="560"]Adam Bowers writes, directs and stars in the low-budget comedy ‘New Low[/caption]

The 2011 Amsterdam Film Festival Van Gogh Awards announced the winners of the prestigious Van Gogh Awards. The Grand Jury Prize was presented to four films – The Secret Friend directed by Flavio Alves (Brazil), Der Sandmann directed by Peter Luisi (Switzerland), Wish directed by Kyle Milardo (USA) and Happy directed by Roko Belic (USA).

The De grote Prijs van de Jury was presented to New Low directed by Adam Bowers (USA); a film about a neurotic twentysomething struggling to figure out which girl he really belongs with: the best or the worst one he’s ever known.

The Cinematic Vision Award was presented to The Greater Good directed by Chris Pilaro & Kendall Nelson (USA). The Greater Good looks behind the fear, hype and politics that have polarized the vaccine debate in America today. The film re-frames the emotionally charged issue and offers, for the first time, the opportunity for a rational and scientific discussion on how to create a safer and more effective vaccine program.

The Van Gogh Award was presented to Bert’s Plan directed by Yair Shvartz (USA). Bert is a struggling middle-aged writer attempting to get his book published. Downtrodden and plagued with rejection, Bert comes up with a plan. In a twist of hilariously dark, ironic and serendipitous events, Bert’s original plan takes an unexpected turn.

The Prodigy Auteur Prize was presented to Victim, directed by Leon Rowe (USA). Victim is a psychological thriller about a man who is plagued by guilt, anger and vengeance struggling with a decision that will change his life forever.

2011 VAN GOGH AWARDS:

De grote Prijs van de Jury: New Low directed by Adam Bowers
Cinematic Vision Award: The Greater Good directed by Chris Pilaro & Kendall Nelson
Van Gogh Award: Bert’s Plan directed by Yair Shvartz
Prodigy Auteur Prize: Victim directed by Leon Rowe

Grand Jury Prize: The Secret Friend directed by Flavio Alves
Grand Jury Prize: Der Sandmann directed by Peter Luisi
Grand Jury Prize: Wish directed by Kyle Milardo
Grand Jury Prize: Happy directed by Roko Belic

Best Director: The Story directed by Steve Bellamy
Documentary Directing Award: Lift Up directed by Philip Knowlton & Huguens Jean
Dramatic Directing Award: A Lost and Found Box of Human Sensation directed by Stefan Leuchtenberg & Martin Wallner

World Cinema Directing Award: Ronan’s Escape directed by A.J. Carter
World Cinema Directing Award: Unravelling directed by Kuldip Powar

Excellence in Cinematography Award: Out of the Darkness directed by Stefano Levi
Excellence in Cinematography Award: Hipolito directed by Teodoro Ciampagna
Excellence in Cinematography Award: Vous Etes Servis directed by Jorge Leon
Excellence in Cinematography Award: The Big Uneasy directed by Harry Shearer

World Cinema Cinematography Award: Protect The Nation directed by C. R. Reisser
World Cinema Cinematography Award: Small Change directed by Cathy Brady
World Cinema Cinematography Award: Beatboxing – The Fifth Element Of Hip Hop directed by Klaus Schneyder
World Cinema Cinematography Award: The Girls in the Band  directed by Judy Chaikin

Best Documentary Film Editing: I am Nancy directed by Arlene Marechal
Best Dramatic Film Editing: Vicissitude directed by Will Jobe
Best Feature Film Screenplay: Face to Face directed by Michael Rymer
Best Short Film Screenplay: IFAKAT directed by Orhan  Tekeoglu

World Cinema Documentary Film Editing Award: May I Be Frank directed by Gregg Marks, Conor Gaffney, Ryland Engelhart & Cary Mosier
World Cinema Dramatic Film Editing Award: Vento directed by Marcio Salem
World Cinema Screenwriting Award, Feature Film: Behind the Eight Ball directed by Mike Graveline
World Cinema Screenwriting Award, Short Film: DILF directed by Geoff Edwards

Special Jury Prize, World Cinema Documentary: Sharkwise directed by Lieven Debrauwer
Special Jury Prize, World Cinema Dramatic: Sofia directed by Shervin Kermani
Special Jury Prize, World Cinema Short: Return directed by Cyd Chartier Cohn
Special Jury Prize, World Cinema Student: Landlocked directed by Jerry Melichar
Special Jury Prize, World Cinema Music Video: Corrupted Scene Behind the Stage directed by Ivan Mena Tinoco
Special Jury Prize, World Cinema Animation: Los Estrandados directed by Derek Evanick
Special Jury Prize, Dutch Documentary: Mila’s Journey directed by Annie Perkins & Rinku Kalsy
Special Jury Prize, Dutch Dramatic: In Transit directed by Kees-Jan Husselman
Special Jury Prize for Originality: How It Ended directed by Gabriel Nussbaum
Special Jury Prize for Spirit of Independence: Streets of Flamenco directed by Marisa Lloreda Saez
Special Jury Prize for Acting, World Cinema: Spinster directed by Pip Satchell
Special Jury Prize for Acting: Sissy directed by Bonnie Root

Jury Prize – Dutch Short Filmmaking: Riding Bikes with the Dutch directed by Michael Bauch
Jury Prize – International Short Filmmaking: Falling Apart directed by Christopher Valori

World Cinema – Experimental Film: Extincion II: La Cuadratura De Los Círculos directed by Fernando Usón Forniés
World Cinema – Animated Film: Searching directed by Hyun Joo Cho
World Cinema – Music Video: Stretch directed by Arturo Cubacub
World Cinema – Student: Mezzanotte Obscura directed by    Lori Petchers
World Cinema – First Time Director: I’m Just Saying directed by Brian Douglas

Best Action Film: Slashimi directed by Anthony Powell
Best Avant-Garde Film: Hallucination directed by Christian Jean
Best Biography: Klondike’s Calling directed by Paola Rosà & Antonio Senter
Best Children’s Film: Little Gobie directed by Tony Tang
Best Comedy: The Winking Boy directed by Marcus Dineen
Best Coming of Age Film: Een Kleine Duw directed by Philippe Verkinderen
Best Crime Film: Una Calle Sin Salida directed by Robert Fernandez-Ferreira
Best Drama: The Price of Sex directed by Mimi Chakarova
Best Educational Film: Harvest of Loneliness directed by Adrian Salinas, Gilbert Gonzalez & Vivian Price
Best Environmental Film: Liquid Amber directed by Maggi Payne
Best Fantasy Film: A Complex Villainelle directed by Nathan Billington, Rebecca Forth, Bart Ovaitt & Ryan Porter
Best Horror Film: Message directed by Lee Yat Fung
Best Human Rights Film: Children in Exile directed by Chris Swider
Best Mockumentary: Frontman directed by Ben Hyland
Best Musical: Mr. Foley directed by D.A.D.D.Y.
Best Personal Narrative: Beautiful Enough directed by Claire Oakley
Best Romance: I Love My Woman directed by Otis Kriegel
Best Romantic Comedy: Sombras Nada Mas directed by Max Valverde
Best Sci-Fi Film: Cockpit:  The Rule of Engagement directed by Jesse Griffith
Best Spiritual Film: The Time Machine directed by Mark Kendall
Best Sports Film: One Revolution directed by Amanda Stoddard
Best Student Film: Amanda directed by Michael Tanner Cusumano
Best Urban Film: Storie Urgenti directed by Joseph Edward Rozzo

SCREENPLAY COMPETITION WINNERS:

Feature Screenplay Competition

First Place: You’re Sick written by Donn Warr Lewis
Second Place: Halfway Home written by David Schroeder
Third Place: The Quarry written by Adam Ford-smith

Short Screenplay Competition

First Place: Push Bike written by Tracey Walker
Second Place: Sunset Fire written by A. Wayne Carter
Third Place: Born as Ghosts written by Mark Skinner

Official Finalists

American Trash written by David Kornfield
Beyond the Horizon written by George Ferris
Borderline written by Joshua Paolino
Courting Death written by Heather Silvio
Cradle of the Stars written by Joey Kent
En Route written by Philip Howe
Neon Cactus written by Philip Sedgwick
Poetease written by Jeffrey Morin
The Kiarsidia written by Bruce Golde
The Only Living Man with a Hole in His Head written by Todd Colby Pliss
There is a Season written by Stuart Creque
Too Fat to Fly written by Anthony Amenta

Honorable Mentions

180 Proof written by Adam Sumner
A Mind of Glass written by Louise Dautheribes McKerl
China Girls written by Gary Riester
Drosselbart written by Effie Bathen
Eaglet written by Eugene Gavrilenko
Ghost Light written by Philip Marcoccio
God’s Architect written by Michael Mares
Happiness in Pieces written by Krzysztof Rostek
Hunting Paradise written by Craig Harwood
Meet Jane Doe written by Jacqueline Gault
Murder in the Lakelands written by Patrick Nash
Pot Shop written by Judah Ray Neiditch
The Parting Glass written by Philip Marcoccio
T.W.I.N written by Malaika Langa
Wrigly & King written by Cornelius Murphy

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