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Thursday, 22 January 2009

  • Currently
    BBC Radio Presents - The Return of the King (Part III of The Lord of the Rings) Audio CD's
    By J.R.R. Tolkien
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    Drum Roll Please...

    oscars 

    They have been revealed! 

    See the Presentations February 22 on abc!

    Nominees for the 81st Academy Awards

    Performance by an actor in a leading role

    • Richard Jenkins in “The Visitor” (Overture Films)
    • Frank Langella in “Frost/Nixon” (Universal)
    • Sean Penn in “Milk” (Focus Features)
    • Brad Pitt in “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” (Paramount and Warner Bros.)
    • Mickey Rourke in “The Wrestler” (Fox Searchlight)

    Performance by an actor in a supporting role

    • Josh Brolin in “Milk” (Focus Features)
    • Robert Downey Jr. in “Tropic Thunder” (DreamWorks, Distributed by DreamWorks/Paramount)
    • Philip Seymour Hoffman in “Doubt” (Miramax)
    • Heath Ledger in “The Dark Knight” (Warner Bros.)
    • Michael Shannon in “Revolutionary Road” (DreamWorks, Distributed by Paramount Vantage)

    Performance by an actress in a leading role

    • Anne Hathaway in “Rachel Getting Married” (Sony Pictures Classics)
    • Angelina Jolie in “Changeling” (Universal)
    • Melissa Leo in “Frozen River” (Sony Pictures Classics)
    • Meryl Streep in “Doubt” (Miramax)
    • Kate Winslet in “The Reader” (The Weinstein Company)

    Performance by an actress in a supporting role

    • Amy Adams in “Doubt” (Miramax)
    • Penélope Cruz in “Vicky Cristina Barcelona” (The Weinstein Company)
    • Viola Davis in “Doubt” (Miramax)
    • Taraji P. Henson in “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” (Paramount and Warner Bros.)
    • Marisa Tomei in “The Wrestler” (Fox Searchlight)

    Best animated feature film of the year

    • Bolt” (Walt Disney), Chris Williams and Byron Howard
    • Kung Fu Panda” (DreamWorks Animation, Distributed by Paramount), John Stevenson and Mark Osborne
    • WALL-E” (Walt Disney), 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.), Art Direction: Donald Graham Burt, Set Decoration: Victor J. Zolfo
    • The Dark Knight” (Warner Bros.), Art Direction: Nathan Crowley, Set Decoration: Peter Lando
    • The Duchess” (Paramount Vantage, Pathé and BBC Films), Art Direction: Michael Carlin, Set Decoration: Rebecca Alleway
    • Revolutionary Road” (DreamWorks, Distributed by Paramount Vantage), Art Direction: Kristi Zea, Set Decoration: Debra Schutt

    Achievement in cinematography

    • Changeling” (Universal), Tom Stern
    • 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” (20th Century Fox), Catherine Martin
    • The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” (Paramount and Warner Bros.), Jacqueline West
    • The Duchess” (Paramount Vantage, Pathé and BBC Films), Michael O’Connor
    • Milk” (Focus Features), Danny Glicker
    • Revolutionary Road”  (DreamWorks, Distributed by Paramount Vantage), Albert Wolsky

    Achievement in directing

    • The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” (Paramount and Warner Bros.), David Fincher
    • Frost/Nixon” (Universal), Ron Howard
    • Milk” (Focus Features), Gus Van Sant
    • The Reader” (The Weinstein Company), Stephen Daldry
    • Slumdog Millionaire” (Fox Searchlight), Danny Boyle

    Best documentary feature

    • The Betrayal (Nerakhoon)” (Cinema Guild), A Pandinlao Films Production, Ellen Kuras and Thavisouk Phrasavath
    • Encounters at the End of the World” (THINKFilm and Image Entertainment), A Creative Differences Production, Werner Herzog and Henry Kaiser
    • The Garden” A Black Valley Films Production, Scott Hamilton Kennedy
    • Man on Wire” (Magnolia Pictures), A Wall to Wall Production, James Marsh and Simon Chinn
    • Trouble the Water” (Zeitgeist Films), An Elsewhere Films Production, Tia Lessin and Carl Deal

    Best documentary short subject

    • The Conscience of Nhem En” A Farallon Films Production, Steven Okazaki
    • The Final Inch” A Vermilion Films Production, Irene Taylor Brodsky and Tom Grant
    • Smile Pinki” A Principe Production, Megan Mylan
    • The Witness - From the Balcony of Room 306” A Rock Paper Scissors Production, Adam Pertofsky and Margaret Hyde

    Achievement in film editing

    • The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” (Paramount and Warner Bros.), Kirk Baxter and Angus Wall
    • The Dark Knight” (Warner Bros.), Lee Smith
    • Frost/Nixon” (Universal), Mike Hill and Dan Hanley
    • Milk” (Focus Features), Elliot Graham
    • Slumdog Millionaire” (Fox Searchlight), Chris Dickens

    Best foreign language film of the year

    • The Baader Meinhof Complex” A Constantin Film Production, Germany
    • The Class” (Sony Pictures Classics), A Haut et Court Production, France
    • Departures” (Regent Releasing), A Departures Film Partners Production, Japan
    • Revanche” (Janus Films), A Prisma Film/Fernseh Production, Austria
    • Waltz with Bashir” (Sony Pictures Classics), A Bridgit Folman Film Gang Production, Israel

    Achievement in makeup

    • The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” (Paramount and Warner Bros.), Greg Cannom
    • The Dark Knight” (Warner Bros.), John Caglione, Jr. and Conor O’Sullivan
    • Hellboy II: The Golden Army” (Universal), Mike Elizalde and Thom Floutz

    Achievement in music written for motion pictures (Original score)

    • The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” (Paramount and Warner Bros.),Alexandre Desplat
    • Defiance” (Paramount Vantage), James Newton Howard
    • Milk” (Focus Features), Danny Elfman
    • Slumdog Millionaire” (Fox Searchlight), A.R. Rahman
    • WALL-E” (Walt Disney), Thomas Newman

    Achievement in music written for motion pictures (Original song)

    • Down to Earth” from “WALL-E” (Walt Disney), Music by Peter Gabriel and Thomas Newman, Lyric by Peter Gabriel
    • Jai Ho” from “Slumdog Millionaire” (Fox Searchlight), Music by A.R. Rahman, Lyric by Gulzar
    • O Saya” from “Slumdog Millionaire” (Fox Searchlight), Music and Lyric by A.R. Rahman andMaya Arulpragasam                  

    Best motion picture of the year

    • The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” (Paramount and Warner Bros.), A Kennedy/Marshall Production, Kathleen Kennedy, Frank Marshall and Ceán Chaffin, Producers
    • Frost/Nixon” (Universal), A Universal Pictures, Imagine Entertainment and Working Title Production,Brian Grazer, Ron Howard and Eric Fellner, Producers
    • Milk” (Focus Features), A Groundswell and Jinks/Cohen Company Production, Dan Jinks and Bruce Cohen, Producers
    • The Reader” (The Weinstein Company), A Mirage Enterprises and Neunte Babelsberg Film GmbH Production, Nominees to be determined
    • Slumdog Millionaire” (Fox Searchlight), A Celador Films Production,Christian Colson, Producer

    Best animated short film

    • La Maison en Petits Cubes” A Robot Communications Production, Kunio Kato
    • Lavatory - Lovestory” A Melnitsa Animation Studio and CTB Film Company Production, Konstantin Bronzit
    • Oktapodi” (Talantis Films) A Gobelins, L’école de l’image Production, Emud Mokhberi and Thierry Marchand
    • Presto” (Walt Disney) A Pixar Animation Studios Production, Doug Sweetland
    • This Way Up”, A Nexus Production, Alan Smith and Adam Foulkes

    Best live action short film

    • Auf der Strecke (On the Line)” (Hamburg Shortfilmagency), An Academy of Media Arts Cologne Production, Reto Caffi
    • Manon on the Asphalt” (La Luna Productions), A La Luna Production, Elizabeth Marre and Olivier Pont
    • New Boy” (Network Ireland Television), A Zanzibar Films Production, Steph Green and Tamara Anghie
    • The Pig” An M & M Production, Tivi Magnusson and Dorte Høgh
    • Spielzeugland (Toyland)” A Mephisto Film Production, Jochen Alexander Freydank

    Achievement in sound editing

    • The Dark Knight” (Warner Bros.), Richard King
    • Iron Man” (Paramount and Marvel Entertainment), Frank Eulner and Christopher Boyes
    • Slumdog Millionaire” (Fox Searchlight), Tom Sayers
    • WALL-E” (Walt Disney), Ben Burtt and Matthew Wood
    • Wanted” (Universal),Wylie Stateman

    Achievement in sound mixing

    • The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” (Paramount and Warner Bros.), David Parker, Michael Semanick, Ren Klyce and Mark Weingarten
    • The Dark Knight” (Warner Bros.), Lora Hirschberg, Gary Rizzo and Ed Novick
    • Slumdog Millionaire” (Fox Searchlight), Ian Tapp, Richard Pryke and Resul Pookutty
    • WALL-E” (Walt Disney),Tom Myers, Michael Semanick and Ben Burtt
    • Wanted” (Universal), Chris Jenkins, Frank A. Montaño and Petr Forejt

    Achievement in visual effects

    • The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” (Paramount and Warner Bros.), Eric Barba, Steve Preeg, Burt Dalton and Craig Barron
    • The Dark Knight” (Warner Bros.), Nick Davis, Chris Corbould, Tim Webber and Paul Franklin
    • Iron Man” (Paramount and Marvel Entertainment), John Nelson, Ben Snow, Dan Sudick and Shane Mahan

    Adapted screenplay

    • The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” (Paramount and Warner Bros.), Screenplay by Eric Roth, Screen story by Eric Roth and Robin Swicord
    • Doubt” (Miramax), Written by John Patrick Shanley
    • Frost/Nixon” (Universal), Screenplay by Peter Morgan
    • The Reader” (The Weinstein Company), Screenplay by David Hare
    • Slumdog Millionaire” (Fox Searchlight), Screenplay by Simon Beaufoy

    Original screenplay

    • Frozen River” (Sony Pictures Classics), Written by Courtney Hunt
    • Happy-Go-Lucky” (Miramax), Written by Mike Leigh
    • In Bruges” (Focus Features), Written by Martin McDonagh
    • Milk” (Focus Features), Written by Dustin Lance Black
    • WALL-E” (Walt Disney), Screenplay by Andrew Stanton, Jim Reardon, Original story by Andrew Stanton, Pete Docter

    www.oscars.org

Thursday, 11 December 2008

Tuesday, 25 November 2008

  • Currently
    Clue - 3 Different Surprise Endings! - (Widescreen Collection)
    By Eileen Brennan, Tim Curry, Madeline Kahn, Christopher Lloyd, Michael McKean
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    an epiphany...

    "Delight yourself in the Lord and he will give you the desires of your heart."  Psalms 37:4

    For the longest time, I have had a specific desire in my heart of what I am wanting for my life--husband, ministry, location, etc.-- and I have prayed to the Father to help me stay in His will that I may receive these desires.

    However, I have come to the conclusion after a discussion with my best friend and time of pondering while driving in the car for work that the desires of a true believer who is walking daily with the Lord would pray for the desires of God's heart for his or her life.  And to make those desires, his or her desires.

    So, my prayer of late is this...   That my heart's desire becomes God's heart desire for my life. 

    I know it is probably a simple thing to have known, but I had to sit and listen in order for Him to have a little chat with me.

Friday, 19 September 2008

  • Currently Reading
    Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (Book 7)
    By J. K. Rowling
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    Life...

    Such a small word, yet such a big thing.   After two hurricanes (which includes much yard work and rescheduling of events) and a decrease in the paycheck, I thought that I had my fill.  However, while evacuated during hurricane #2 (Ike, to be exact) while sitting on my best friends couch, I receive a phone call from Mom who begins to tell me that Grampa (yes, the old fart that some of you have met) fell and went to the hospital.  While he was there, they ran some tests when they discover that he has had two mini strokes and has been diagnosed with Dementia.  The tears began to fall.  Yesterday, I had a conversation with Grama, who tells me the Hospice care nurse has arrived and a hospital bed is being brought in for Grampa.  Also, she tells me volunteers will be staying during the night to keep an eye on Grampa as he is awake and wandering around.  They will help him find what he needs and will bathe him and make sure he is being taken care of.  To fathom that Grampa, the man who has worked all his life, providing for the family, doing what he wanted without someone taking care of him, driving the family across country in 1988 for two weeks in the Family Wagon, can no longer find a light switch or fix a bowl of ice cream or heat up his own cup of coffee continually brings tears to my eyes and sadness to my heart.  Being 1,000 miles and 18 hours away doesn't seem to help the situation either.   So buy stock in Kleenex cause I'll be keeping them in business.  

    (I'll be writing a similar note on facebook for those who don't get my xanga posts.  So I apologize for those who will be seeing this twice.)

Tuesday, 05 August 2008