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For those who are loyal Trader Joe’s shoppers, this is basically the supermarket’s version of the Emmy’s.

Every year the grocery store chain hosts a Customer Choice Award survey to see what its customers are loving — and the results are in. Now in its 8th year, some products have remained on top (Mandarin Orange Chicken) and some new products are taking flight (Pumpkin Butter!).

While most of the favorited products are available year-round, some are only available seasonally (items are noted with an asterisk), so stock up when the time is right.

For more breaking food news,...

The Academy has announced the new class of invited members for 2014 and, as is typical, many of which are among last year's nominees, which includes Barkhad Abdi, Michael Fassbender, Sally Hawkins, Mads Mikkelsen, Lupita Nyong'o and June Squibb in the Actors branch not to mention curious additions such as Josh Hutcherson, Rob Riggle and Jason Statham, but, okay. The Directors branch adds Jay and Mark Duplass along with Jean-Marc Vallee, Denis Villeneuve and Thomas Vinterberg. I didn't do an immediate tally of male to female additions or other demographics, but at first glance it seems to be a wide spread batch of new additions on all fronts. The Academy is also clearly attempting to aggressively bump up the demographics as this is the second year in a row where they have added a large number of new members, well over the average of 133 new members from 2004 to 2012. As far as...

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences is extending invitations to join the organization to 271 artists and executives who have distinguished themselves by their contributions to theatrical motion pictures.

Those who accept the invitations will be the only additions to the Academy’s membership in 2014.

“This year’s class of invitees represents some of the most talented, creative and passionate filmmakers working in our industry today,” said Academy President Cheryl Boone Isaacs. “Their contributions to film have entertained audiences around the world, and we are proud to welcome them to the Academy.”

The 2014 invitees are:

Actors

Barkhad Abdi – “Captain Phillips”

Clancy Brown – “The Hurricane,” “The Shawshank Redeption”

Paul Dano – “12 Years a Slave,” “Prisoners”

Michael Fassbender – “12 Years a Slave,” “Shame”

Ben Foster – “Lone Survivor,” “Ain’t Them Bodies Saints”

Beth Grant – “The Artist,” “No Country for Old Men”

Clark Gregg – “Much Ado about Nothing,” “Marvel’s The Avengers”

Sally Hawkins – “Blue Jasmine,...

Michael Fassbender and Lupita Nyong’o of 12 Years a Slave were two of the 271 artists and industry leaders invited to become members of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, which determines nominations and winners at the annual Oscars. The entire list of Academy membership—which numbers about 6,000—isn’t public information so the annual invitation list is often the best indication of the artists involved in the prestigious awards process. It’s worth noting that invitations need to be accepted in order for artists to become members; some artists, like two-time Best Actor winner Sean Penn, have declined membership over the years.

Pop quiz: What do Chris Rock, Claire Denis, Eddie Vedder and Josh Hutcherson all have in common? Answer: They could all be Oscar voters very soon. The annual Academy of Motion Pictures Arts & Sciences invitation list always makes for interesting reading, shedding light on just how large and far-reaching the group's membership is -- or could be, depending on who accepts their invitations. This year, 271 individuals have been asked to join AMPAS, meaning every one of them could contribute to next year's Academy Awards balloting -- and it's as diverse a list as they've ever assembled. Think the Academy consists entirely of fusty retired white dudes? Not if recent Best Original Song nominee Pharrell Williams takes them up on their offer. Think it's all just a Hollywood insiders' game? Not if French arthouse titans Chantal Akerman and Olivier Assayas join the party. It's a list that subverts expectation at every turn.

Until scientists come up with a cure for what Office Space so brilliantly dubbed as “A Case of the Mondays,” we may have to settle for a prophylactic dose of Susan Lucci dropping hilarious one-liners on Lifetime’s Devious Maids.

So what if her every line and action as Beverly Hills maven Genevieve Delatour has been done on at least a dozen prior TV shows or movies? Lucci somehow makes fresh — or at least so uproarious, you don’t notice a lack of freshness — moments like warning her sexy young maid that she’s called dibs on the gardener, topped...

Compared to the opinions of coastal elites and ivory-tower institutes, the Critics' Choice Awards attempts a more egalitarian, all-inclusive approach, much as Taster's Choice does for gourmet coffee. Not everyone needs to visit some fancy barista for the rich, satisfying flavor of a bold French roast, and not everyone needs to be in some arthouse favorite to get a nomination—particularly when the Broadcast Film Critics Association, the people in tiny fonts who brought you the word "Stunning!" on commercials for Total Recall, have categories like "Best Actor In An Action Movie." While it doesn't differ too greatly ...

Food Informants is a week-in-the-life series profiling fascinating people in the food world. We hope it will give you a first-hand look at the many different corners of the food industry. Know someone who would make a great Food Informant? Tell us why.

David Venable is the host of the popular QVC program "In The Kitchen With David" which airs every Wednesday at 9pm and Sundays at noon. David Venable joined QVC as a program host in 1993 and has since helped establish and build the multimedia retailer's gourmet food business. Venable also serves as a primary host for other QVC programming.

Prior to joining QVC, Venable was an anchor/reporter for Woay — TV in Oak Hill, W. Va., and CBS-affiliate Wtaj — TV in Altoona, Pa., where he hosted its weekly public affairs talk show "Action Newsmakers." He also hosted the Children's Miracle Network telethon for four years. Venable earned his bachelor's degree in radio,...

Jerry Seinfeld and his Seinfeld co-star Michael Richards (who played Kramer on the show) are out there and lovin’ every minute of getting coffee for the season one finale of Seinfeld’s aptly titled online show Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee. In the episode, Richards, who has steered clear of the public eye since making off-putting remarks during a Laugh Factory performance in 2006, and Seinfeld discuss Sugar Ray Leonard, Charles Manson, Jay Mohr, and Seinfeld’s dog as they drive to a lunch date in an old Vw truck. I only wish they were headed to Monk’s Cafe. Richards...

It's Tuesday and we're reaching for the French Roast this morning. Janet Jackson is talking about her self-esteem issues, Rihanna's "S&M" has been renamed in the UK, Sherri Shepherd is hosting the Dove Awards, and Halle Berry says she identifies her biracial daughter Nahla as Black.Read on for more Coffee Talk... Here's what you had to say: Miiz commented via Facebook: "People identify themselves with whatever ethnicity they desire. Race is man-made." Anikwa wrote via Facebook:"My kids are black, white, Indian, Filipino and Spanish. They go as Black, but they are also multi-racial."...

America's real drug problem is our addiction to coffee says Robert Rosenthal, but that can be easily solved by turning all the coffee shops into marijuana dealers.

There's only one solution.

Related story on The Daily Beast: Can You Prevent a Hangover?

It's time to face the fact that we have a serious drug addiction in this country. Two-thirds of Americans are daily users. With it, they achieve a "buzz" , even referring to it as their "fix." Without it, they experience severe withdrawal.

Criminalize coffee now.

More problematic yet is that caffeine is clearly a "gateway" drug. You don't need fancy research reports to prove that a majority of those who innocently start their day with a cup of Joe inevitably move on to harder drugs. Like Prozac, Ambien, and Viagra.

As with any prohibition, over-stimulated, coffee-breath abusers will be understandably upset and deprivation will lead to desperation. But there...

How about buying a David Lynch signature cup of coffee? James has suggestions for how other directors' favourite cups could turn out, too...

I am a tea man. Tea is my beverage of choice when I need a warm drink, instant liquid stimulation or something to keep me awake through the saggy bits of old war flicks. Yes, Mad Hatter I would like another cup of tea. T'would be lovely.

Aligned with the chi, coffee, on the other hand, isn't my cup of tea (you know what I mean). I personally don't like the taste, plus I've heard the horror stories about caffeine-induced cardiac arrest. I've got visions of someone sitting in Caffè Nero and having a freakout like something out of The Thing after downing several espressos and an overpriced raspberry muffin. Drink too much coffee and you end up like a twitchy extra in a spaghetti western.

If anything can change my mind,...

Odds are, you were more excited about seeing Carey Mulligan and Zoe Salanda on stage at the Oscars than you were about what they were actually doing, honoring the best shorts. French Roast, Granny O.Grimm.s Sleeping Beauty, The Lady and the Reaper, Logorama and A Matter of Loaf and Death; what.s the difference anyway? Well, there is a difference and the Academy chose to honor Logorama for being the Best Animated Short of the year. The Oscars may be over, but that doesn.t mean you have to move on and can no longer enjoy the best of the best. In fact, Logorama is available for you to watch in its entirety with just a click of the mouse. Yes, 16 minutes and nine seconds may be asking a lot in terms of time to spare in the world of the Internet, but trust me, it.s worth...

There were very few surprises last night as The Hurt Locker picked up six Oscars including “Best Picture.” Despite the Academy’s expansion of the category, the Iraq war film had become a forgone conclusion after sweeping most of the ceremonies leading up to Sunday. It’s the lowest grossing movie to ever win the top prize and do so without the usual expensive advertising campaign.

In another first, Kathryn Bigelow became the first woman in the ceremony’s 82 year history to win “Best Director,” beating out strong competition from her ex-husband James Cameron and more. The screenwriter Mark Boal won for its “Best Original Screenplay.”

Jeff Bridges was finally recognized after his fifth nomination and promptly set the record for saying “man” in an acceptance speech. Sandra Bullock had a sense of humor about herself in holding the “Best Actress” Oscar just one night after taking home the Razzie...

With another year’s ceremony come and gone, the 2010 Academy Awards announced the big winners during a ceremony at Kodak Theatre in Los Angeles on Sunday night (March 7).

Taking home the top prize of Best Picture was “The Hurt Locker,” which ended up winning a total of six Oscar trophies.

As for the actor/actress categories, the Academy bestowed honors onto Jeff Bridges, Sandra Bullock, Mo’Nique and Christopher Waltz.

The complete list of 201o Oscar winners is as follows:

Actor in a Leading Role

Winner: Jeff Bridges in “Crazy Heart”

George Clooney in “Up in the Air”

Colin Firth in “A Single Man”

Morgan Freeman in “Invictus”

Jeremy Renner in “The Hurt Locker”

Actor in a Supporting Role

Matt Damon in “Invictus”

Woody Harrelson in “The Messenger”

Christopher Plummer in “The Last Station”

Stanley Tucci in “The Lovely Bones”

Winner: Christoph Waltz in “Inglourious Basterds”

Actress in a Leading...

It’s that time of year again, kids. Dread Central’s 2010 Horror at the Oscars coverage. Horror was indeed present this year and in black-tie. While Roger Corman and Lauren Bacall were honored a few months back at the Governor’s Award Ceremony, it was an unexpected delight to see Corman, recipient of the lifetime achievement Oscar, enjoy a standing ovation on national television.

I was, however, very disappointed that neither of them were allowed to speak. Roger Corman’s contributions to modern cinema are too vast for him to just stand up and wave. James Cameron was one of many Corman acolytes present, and his nomination speaks to Corman’s tremendous legacy. On the Terminator DVD Cameron mentions, "I trained at the Roger Corman Film School.” Jonathan Demme, Martin Scorsese, and Francis Ford Coppola, among many others, were also former students.

The terror continued with a spoof of Paranormal Activity...

Caught Logorama at Sundance and when I heard the noms I thought there is no way that this could win - the expletive language is simply too harsh for sensitive ears. Wallace & Gromit felt like an accomplished, polished production - but Logorama gets great grades for originality. - The Noms: “French Roast” Fabrice O. Joubert “Granny O’Grimm’s Sleeping Beauty” Nicky Phelan and Darragh O’Connell “The Lady and the Reaper (La Dama y la Muerte)” Javier Recio Gracia “Logorama” Nicolas Schmerkin “A Matter of Loaf and Death” Nick Park Who Will Win: “A Matter of Loaf and Death” Nick Park Who Should Win: “A Matter of Loaf and Death” Nick Park Who Won: Logorama Commentary: Caught Logorama at Sundance and when I heard the noms I thought there...

We can finally close the book on 2009. The Oscars have come and gone and The Hurt Locker has triumphed, winning Best Picture and five more awards including Best Director and Original Screenplay. I started tracking this season's Oscar contenders way back in July of 2009 and it has been a long road and each year I'd like to think I learn a little something new about the process.

The first thing to realize is that the likelihood the film you believe to be the best of the year most likely will not win Best Picture and may not be recognized at all. What you have to hope for is that quality wins out over mediocrity in whatever category we are discussing. And for that matter I would say this year's Oscars were, for the most part, a triumph (a statement regarding the winners and not the show itself, which was sort...

A couple of Academy crowd-favorites won the top acting awards, and The Hurt Locker got the biggest prize of the night!

Sandra Bullock won her first Best Actress award — and even she seemed surprised by the win. Jeff Bridges didn’t seem overly shocked to nab Best Actor, but he still gave a aww-inducing speech celebrating his eminent show-biz family. We particularly liked the dude with the crazy hair who won for Sound Editing and Sound Mixing (Paul Ottosson of The Hurt Locker) and yawn Sandy Powell won for the third time for costume design (The Young Victoria). And you’re probably looking for all the rest of the winners, neatly formatted …

Best picture “Avatar” “The Blind Side” “District 9″ “An Education” (Winner)”The Hurt Locker” “Inglourious Basterds” “Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire” “A Serious Man” “Up” “Up in the Air” Best actor (Winner) Jeff Bridges, “Crazy Heart” George Clooney,...

Oscar winners 2010 list is here.

We already wrote about possible winners and competition between- James Cameron and Kathryn Bigelow, so we can say that we’re not at all surprised that this was Kathryn Bigelow’s night.

The Hurt Locker won 6 Oscars, including honour for Best Movie and Best Director.

So, Bigelow became the first woman to win an Oscar for Best Director.

On the other hand, the movie that still sits on the top of box office, James Cameron’s Avatar definetely had a bad luck. The movie won only 3 golden statues in technical categories – Art Direction, Cinematography and Visual Effects.

We can’t help but think that this show really seemed like Bigelow’s sweet revenge.

Sandra Bullock was named best actress for The Blind Side after she proudly attended Razzie 2010 event and took completely different award.

“Did I really earn this, or did I just wear you all down?...

History was made tonight by Kathryn Bigelow for becoming the first female to ever win the Academy Award for Best Director for The Hurt Locker. Shortly after another bomb exploded when seconds after she walked off stage Tom Hanks announced that The Hurt Locker was also the Best Picture, beating out the favorite Avatar and team Cameron. The Iraq War drama earned six total Oscar wins at the 82nd Annual Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Original Screenplay, Best Film Editing, Best Sound Editing, and Best Sound Mixing. In the Best Actress/Actor categories, Sandra Bullock beat out Meryl Streep for Best Actress for her role in The Blind Side, and "The Dude" himself - Jeff Bridges took home the Best Actor Award for is role in Crazy Heart. The Best Supporting Actress went to Mo’Nique in Precious, while Christoph Waltz won the Best Supporting Actor Award...

Well, there weren't many major surprises nor many particularly memorable moments, but we still had a lot of fun watching the Oscars here tonight. Thanks to all of you who tuned in for the live podcast and joined us in the live chat over at Ustream [1]. As you may have heard, The Hurt Locker cleaned up, taking home a total of 6 Academy Awards including Best Picture and Best Director, making Kathryn Bigelow the first female director to ever win the award. James Cameron's Avatar, on the other hand, won only for visual effects, art direction and cinematography. All of the acting categories went off as expected, with Jeff Bridges and Sandra Bullock winning Best Actor and Best Actress, while Christoph Waltz and Mo'Nique won the supporting trophies. If there was an upset at all, it was probably The Secret in Their Eyes (El Secreto de Sus Ojos), which beat...

So, this evening I headed to a rather exclusive Oscar party in central London courtesy of Grey Goose and watched the stars arrive on the red carpet followed by the ceremony itself on TV screens scattered around the venue. The evening opened with Neil Patrick Harris performing a stage show number followed by our hosts, Steve Martin and Alec Balwin doing some rather amusing gags. I have to say, the pair of them did a mighty fine job in my opinion. Far better than that of The BAFTA Awards where every joke went down like a lead balloon! The comedy highlight for me was Ben Stiller dressed as one of the Na’vi from Avatar which was just genius!

James Cameron’s Avatar won a few but the big news of the night was that the Kathryn Bigelow has become the first woman to win Best Director for her movie,...

"The Hurt Locker" took home Best Picture and Best Director for Kathryn Bigelow, while Jeff Bridges, Sandra Bullock, Christoph Waltz and Mo'Nique took home the acting honors.

Best Picture

"Avatar"

"The Blind Side"

"District 9"

"An Education"

"The Hurt Locker"

"Inglourious Basterds"

"Precious"

"A Serious Man"

"Up"

"Up in the Air"

Best Director

Kathryn Bigelow, "The Hurt Locker"

James Cameron, "Avatar"

Lee Daniels, "Precious"

Jason Reitman, "Up in the Air"

Quentin Tarantino, "Inglourious Basterds"

Best Actor

Jeff Bridges, "Crazy Heart"

George Clooney, "Up in the Air"

Colin Firth, "A Single Man"

Morgan Freeman, "Invictus"

Jeremy Renner, "The Hurt Locker"

Best Actress

Sandra Bullock, "The Blind Side"

Helen Mirren, "The Last Station"

Carey Mulligan, "An Education"

Gabourey Sidibe, "Precious"

Meryl Streep, "Julie & Julia"

Best Supporting Actor

Matt Damon, "Invictus"

Woody Harrelson, "The Messenger"

Christopher Plummer, "The Last Station"

Stanley Tucci, "The Lovely Bones"

Christoph Waltz, "Inglourious Basterds"

Best Supporting Actress

Penelope Cruz,...

The triumphant ones at the 82nd annual Academy Awards, in bold, alongside their fellow nominees

Actor in a supporting role

Christoph Waltz in Inglourious Basterds

Christopher Plummer in The Last Station

Matt Damon in Invictus

Stanley Tucci in The Lovely Bones

Woody Harrelson in The Messenger

Animated feature film

Up (Pete Docter and Bob Peterson)

The Princess and the Frog (Ron Clements and John Musker)

Coraline (Henry Selick)

Fantastic Mr Fox (Wes Anderson)

The Secret of Kells (Tomm Moore)

Music (original song)

Almost There, from The Princess and the Frog, by Randy Newman

Down in New Orleans, from The Princess and the Frog, by Randy Newman

Loin de Paname, from Paris 36, by Reinhardt Wagner and Frank Thomas

Take It All, from Nine, by Maury Yeston

The Weary Kind, from Crazy Heart, by Ryan Bingham and T Bone Burnett

Writing (original screenplay)

The Hurt Locker (Mark Boal)

Inglourious Basterds (Quentin Tarantino...

The 82nd Academy Awards complete winners list:

See photos of the Oscar winners:

Best Picture

"Avatar"

"The Hurt Locker" Winner!

"Inglourious Basterds"

"The Blind Side"

"District 9"

"An Education"

"Precious: Based on the Novel 'Push' by Sapphire"

"A Serious Man"

"Up"

"Up in the Air"

Best Director

James Cameron "Avatar"

Kathryn Bigelow "The Hurt Locker" Winner!

Lee Daniels "Precious: Based on the Novel 'Push' by Sapphire"

Quentin Tarantino "Inglourious Basterds"

Jason Reitman "Up in the Air...

The world's most stunning and anticipated glamorous show is on, consisting of endless stars in the Kodak Theatre. And the Oscar goes to .. The 82nd Academy Awards full list of Winners: Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role: Jeff Bridges – ‘Crazy Heart’- Won George Clooney – ‘Up in the Air’ Colin Firth – ‘A Single Man’ Morgan Freeman – ‘Invictus’ Jeremy Renner – ‘The Hurt Locker’ Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role: Presented By Penelope Cruz Matt Damon – ‘Invictus’ Woody Harrelson – ‘The Messenger’ Christopher Plummer – ‘The Last Station’ Stanley Tucci – ‘The Lovely Bones’ Christoph Waltz – ‘Inglourious Basterds’ - Won Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role: Sandra Bullock – ‘The Blind Side’ - Won Helen Mirren – ‘The Last Station’ Carey Mulligan – ‘An Education’ Gabourey Sidibe – ‘Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire’ Meryl Streep – ‘Julie and Julia’ Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role: Penelope Cruz – ‘Nine’ Vera Farmiga...

The 82nd Academy Awards are now over and "The Hurt Locker" beat out "Avatar" and eight other movies for Best Pictures. Meanwhile Kathryn Bigelow made history by becoming the first woman to win the Best Director Oscar for "Locker." The film ended up winning six out of its nine categories. His fifth nomination proved to be the charm for Jeff Bridges, who was hailed as Best Actor for his performance as a weary country singer in "Crazy Heart." Sandra Bullock scored on her first nomination, taking home the Best Actress award for "The Blind Side." And as predicted, both Christoph Waltz (Inglourious Basterds) and Mo'Nique (Precious) won in the Best Supporting Actor/Actress categories. Check out the full list of winners below. Best Picture: * The Hurt Locker * Avatar * The Blind Side * District 9 * An Education * Inglourious Basterds * Precious * A Serious Man * Up * Up in the Air Directing: * Kathryn Bigelow (The Hurt Locker...

"The Insider" has your complete list of winners from Sunday night's 82nd Academy Awards! Read on to see who took home an Oscar on film's biggest night (winners' names bolded below)! Best Picture Winner: “The Hurt Locker” Kathryn Bigelow, Mark Boal, Nicolas Chartier and Greg Shapiro “Avatar” James Cameron and Jon Landau, Producers “The Blind Side” Nominees to be determined “District 9” Peter Jackson and Carolynne Cunningham, Producers “An Education” Finola Dwyer and Amanda Posey, Producers “Inglourious Basterds” Lawrence Bender, Producer “Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire” Lee Daniels, Sarah Siegel-Magness and Gary Magness, Producers “A Serious Man” Joel Coen and Ethan Coen, Producers “Up” Jonas Rivera, Producer “Up in the Air” Daniel Dubiecki, Ivan Reitman and Jason Reitman, Producers Directing Winner: “The Hurt Locker” Kathryn Bigelow “Avatar” James Cameron “Inglourious Basterds” Quentin Tarantino “Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire” Lee Daniels “Up in the Air...

Here it is at last! The 2010 Academy Awards! Who’s bringing home the Oscars? James Cameron or Kathryn Bigelow, or will Tarantino stage an upset? Will The Dude Lebowski have a best actor win under his belt? The stars are crossing the Red Carpet right now and in a few hours Alec Baldwin and Steve Martin will be hosting 82nd Academy Awards.

Prior the main event, you can check out the AP staff picks for all of the winners and check back often as I’ll be updating all the wins with my own commentary as the evening progresses. Feel free to drop your own guesses and thoughts on the evening as it progresses.

Me, I’m pulling for District 9 for best screenplay!

See you at the Oscars!

Updated! The entire list of winners with my thoughts and earlier predictions below:

— Motion Picture: “The Hurt Locker.”

— Actor: Jeff Bridges,...

Christoph Waltz was named best supporting actor for his performance as a cruelly seductive Nazi in "Inglourious Basterds" as the 82nd Annual Academy Awards got under way Sunday.The Austrian-born actor used his moment in the spotlight to pay tribute to the movie's director, Quentin Tarantino, saying "with his unorthodox methods of navigation, this fearless explorer took this ship ... and brought it in with flying colors and that's why I'm here."Tarantino, though, was denied the best original screenplay Oscar, which went to Mark Boal for "The Hurt Locker.""You honor me and humble me with this," Boal said. Returning as a reporter from Iraq, he had an idea for a movie. But "the results wildly exceeded my expectations," he said -- a fact he attributed to the talent of director Kathryn Bigelow. The writer also offered a word for the troops, present and past, and well as his father,...

The 82 Annual Academy Awards ceremony begins this evening at 5pm Pst / 8pm Est and MakingOf is dedicated to keeping you up to date on Twitter, Tumblr and right here on the MakingOf News Blog. Check back for constant updates including which nominees won big. We will bold the winners names when they are announced. Until then, enjoy clicking on the highlighted nominees below for exclusive interviews, trailers, behind-the-scenes clips and more!

If you haven't picked the winners yet, click here to download your own official Oscar ballot.

Leading Actor

Jeff Bridges in “Crazy Heart”

George Clooney in “Up in the Air”

Colin Firth in “A Single Man”

Morgan Freeman in “Invictus”

Jeremy Renner in “The Hurt Locker”

Cinematography

Avatar

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince

The Hurt Locker

Inglourious Basterds

The White Ribbon

Foreign Language Film

Ajami

El Secreto de Sus Ojos

The Milk of Sorrow

Un Prophète

The White Ribbon...

Forget the media-initiated battle between ex-husband and wife, the real face-off at this year's Oscars was between new technology and old-fashioned storytelling... and the victor, we're happy to report, is the latter.

As the dust settles on the gong-giving broo-ha-ha that was the 82nd Annual Academy Awards, it's Kathryn Bigelow's brilliant and brave The Hurt Locker that has emerged the big winner with golden baldies for Best Picture and Best Director among its five statuette haul, while former hubbie James Cameron's Avatar was left holding his rightful prizes for technical prowess in the Art Direction, Cinematography and Visual Effects categories.

After the Academy made its big decision about which movie to put their weight behind (and we do think they went with the right one!), the rest of the big winners were fairly predictable with the likes of Jeff Bridges and Sandra Bullock walking away with Best Actor...

By reinstituting 10 best picture nominees, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences set out to shake up its 82nd annual awards show and, in the process, ended up making history.

Summit's "The Hurt Locker," with just $14.7 million in domestic grosses, captured a leading six Oscars on Sunday night and defied the odds to emerge as best picture -- defeating five movies that had grossed more than $100 million each domestically, including Fox's "Avatar," the top-grossing movie of all time.

In fact, though the 10 nominees brought a number of studio movies to the party, the indies still ruled with Fox Searchlight's "Crazy Heart" and Lionsgate's "Precious" also winning key awards.

As part of "Locker's" triumphant night, Kathryn Bigelow became the first woman to receive a directing Oscar, which was presented to her by Barbra Streisand, who appeared to savor the envelope-opening since her own efforts to break down barriers for female...

It’s that time of the year again, folks. The eyes of the world will be focused on the biggest award-giving event in the film calendar on Sunday night. There’s nothing quite like the glitz and glamorama of the Academy Awards. Now in it’s 82nd year, this one’s extra special with James Cameron versus ex-wife, Kathryn Bigelow. There will be laughter, cheers, tears, cheesy moments, boring moments, “hurry up and get on with it” moments and by the end of it all – historic moments.

The award ceremony was dreamt up by Louis B. Mayer, ostensibly as an advertising and promotional tool for the industry. Only in time did it turn into the behemoth it is today. Whatever the criticisms levelled at the Academy Awards ceremony – and there are plenty – it doesn’t stop billions across the world tuning in. Not even the Cannes Film Festival can compete with the Oscars.

I love Oscar pools. Just getting people to throw down a couple dollars to see if they can figure out who's gonna win which category. And while most folks are relatively well-educated about the major categories: acting, writing, directing -- and can take a running stab at the art direction, music, technicals -- it's those short films that always throw us for a loop. Rarely if ever are we able to actually sit down and watch short films outside of the film festival circuit, and even then, the short films aren't often things that we've seen. Even the one that virtually everyone's seen -- Partly Cloudy (because it preceded Up ) -- didn't make the cut for Oscar nods this year. Usually it's a list of names that you tend to pick based on which one sounds the most fun. I remember one year I got this locked because I had...

The Oscar-Nominated Short Films series started its annual run in 95 theatres this past weekend, with more cities being added in coming weeks. The series, now in its fifth year, has added a "You Predict" element, asking viewers to vote for the animated and live-action short they believe will "walk away with Oscar glory."

The five animated shorts in the running are French Roast, Granny O’Grimm's Sleeping Beauty, The Lady and the Reaper (La Dama y la Muerte), Logorama, and A Matter of Loaf and Death. The live-action titles are The Door, Instead of Abracadabra, Kavi, Miracle Fish, and The New Tenants.

If you're unable to catch this batch of shorts in a theater near you, starting March 2 the titles are also available for download and streaming though iTunes and In Demand Networks.

Next Showing:

Link | Posted 2/24/2010 by reelz...

The Lady and the Reaper, Logorama, A Matter of Loaf and Death, French Roast and Granny O'Grimm's Sleeping Beauty Short Films International and Magnolia Pictures are currently screening this year's Oscar nominated live-action and animated shorts in theaters prior to the March 7, 2010 Oscar presentation. For theater listings and times check out Shorts HD.com. Below are the reviews for the five Oscar-nominated animated short films along with production videos and full versions of all five short films.

You can get my reviews of the five nominated live-action shorts right here.

Granny O'Grimm's Sleeping Beauty Ireland / 6:06 minutes

Nicky Phelan's Granny O'Grimm's Sleeping Beauty serves as its own piece of revisionist story-telling as Granny O'Grimm sets down to tell her granddaughter the age old tale of "Sleeping Beauty" only to lose herself along the way in fits of rage and jealousy as the plot twists and turns. The animation is pretty good,...

How many office Oscar pools are won by the wise ass who happens to know the competition in the often neglected short film categories? This year's winner could be you, but all joking aside, Magnolia Pictures has, for the past five years, made watching Oscar nominated short films in both the animated and live action categories easier than pie. - How many office Oscar pools are won by the wise ass who happens to know the competition in the often neglected short film categories? This year's winner could be you, but all joking aside, Magnolia Pictures has, for the past five years, made watching Oscar nominated short films in both the animated and live action categories easier than pie. Starting today until the big day, you can see two double short film bills. Each feature length program includes all of this year’s nominated films, and the animated program includes three additional titles,...

Chicago – In a year where commercial products and prefabricated award bids are being celebrated, it’s refreshing to see two Oscar categories uncorrupted by popular taste. While the short film nominees of 2010 are a mixed bag at best, they offer a splendid variety of fresh artistic visions from around the world. There isn’t a Pixar film in the bunch, though a certain beloved British comedy duo make a welcome return to the category they’ve won twice before.

“The Oscar Nominated Short Films 2010” will have a one-week run at Chicago’s Landmark Century Centre Cinema, beginning Friday, February 19th. They are all well worth checking out, though the animated shorts are considerably more polished and rewarding than the live-action shorts, which often play like teasers for a feature-length work. Each group of five competing shorts will be shown in separate programs, with the animated nominees accompanied by three additional shorts: Poland’s “Kinematograph,...

Quickcard Review

French Roast

Directed by: Fabrice O. Joubert

Running Time: 8 minutes

Plot: A man is stuck at a cafe drinking coffee, trying to figure out how to pay after he loses his wallet.

Overall

This is CGI, but it’s below anything you’re used to seeing in a Pixar flick. This short is just not sweet enough, and I’m not talking about the hundreds of cups of coffee this guy drinks. There is a homeless man and a little old lady involved. Probably my favorite part is the homeless man’s flies. Plus, I really didn’t understand the confusion when a robber enters the mix.

Final Score: 4/10

The Lady and the Reaper (La Dama y la Muerte)

Directed by: Javier Recio Gracia

Running Time: 8 minutes

Plot: An old woman has lived a long life, and when she dies, the grim reaper and a doctor fight over her survival.

Every year folks gather around their television sets and watch as the stars flaunt who they’re wearing on the red carpet and we all lumber through more than three hours of ceremony to hear first-hand which film is crowned Best Picture. Unfortunately, two of the categories that appear in the festivities but go mostly unrecognized are the awards for Best Live Action and Animated Short Films. That is, until recently, when the lineup of nominated shorts began screening in theaters for the general audience to experience and enjoy. This is great for two reasons; one being an increased exposure for the filmmakers, the other being an increased interest from the audience in these films as a part of the annual awards culture.

Thanks to the indie and art house theaters that have taken the reigns, I encourage everyone to make an effort to see as many of the foreign...

Haven't watched all the 2010 Oscar-nominated shorts yet? Here's your chance, thanks to Shorts International, Magnolia Pictures, and theaters in 100 different cities in the UK and North America. See both animated and live-action shorts on the big screen starting Feburary 19 in NYC at the IFC Center; check the official website for details on when they're coming to your town. Meanwhile, here's a quick rundown on what will be playing. Animated Films French Roast France / 8 Mins Director/Writer: Fabrice O. Joubert Producers: Louis Viau, Bibo Bergeron, Pascal Cheve A businessman realizes he forgot his wallet when it's time to pay the bill at a cafe, so he drinks more and more coffee until an unlikely good Samaritan comes to his aid. Granny O'Grimm's Sleeping Beauty Ireland / 6 Mins Director: Nicky Phelan Writer: Kathleen O'Rourke Producer: Darragh O'Connell Cast: Kathleen O'Rourke Granny's grim version of Sleeping Beauty is not exactly the bedtime story her granddaughter wants to hear.

Nick Park's A Matter Of Loaf And Death, featured in the 2010 Oscar Animated Shorts Program

2010 Oscar Shorts Program opens Friday at South Lamar – Animated & Live Action

If you boil the average feature-length movie down to its central question, you usually end up with a very fine sediment of Answer resting on a sludge of capricious character musings and stylized packing peanuts. This is obviously not true of all feature-length films, but for the mainstream fare, run-time is nearly as important to success as quality. Exhibit A: Transformers 2. Assuming you, the reader, agrees that the quality of this film was sub-…human, consider the fact that the entire plot/story/meaning of the film could have only taken up 10 to 15-minutes of your valuable time. In fact, that movie took up almost 2 and a half hours or your valuable time and grossed nearly a billion dollars worldwide. If the movie...

At Awards Daily, Sasha Stone posted links to several Oscar-nominated animated shorts available on YouTube. One of them, Logorama, is no longer there. But three still are: Nicky Phelan’s Granny O’Grimm’s Sleeping Beauty, Fabrice Joubert’s French Roast, and Javier Recio Gracia’s The Lady and the Reaper (above). See links below. Short films, along with documentaries and foreign-language films, are difficult to predict — as in, which ones will get nominated or which one win will win the Oscar — because only a relatively small group of Academy members vote in these categories. Making things murkier, most submitted entries get little or no publicity. Those living in Los Angeles will be able to check out the Oscar shorts in [...]...

If you haven't seen any of the nominated films for the Academy Award's Best Animated Short Film yet, here's your chance. All five shorts are now available online and ready for viewing right here. It might help with your office Oscar pool, if they even have this category included. Otherwise, just enjoy five neat little animated shorts, arranged from best to... less.

Wallace & Gromit: A Matter of Loaf and Death

Directed by Nick Park

Written by Nick Park & Bob Barker

I actually posted this short over a year ago when it had its UK debut, but since then it has come to American shores and roped itself an Oscar nomination. The popular Wallace & Gromit are now bakers and in danger of being targeted by a local serial killer who's been murdering bakers. Incredibly witty in words and visuals, it's been over a decade since A Close Shave and this doesn't disappoint.

Set aside the showdown between "Avatar" and "The Hurt Locker" for a moment. Stop obsessing over whether Sandra or Meryl will take home the best actress trophy.Further down the list of nominees for the 82nd Annual Academy Awards, there are several other races brewing that could result in genuine Oscar Night surprises -- even if those surprises will be fully appreciated only by those aficionados who track the three short-film categories. To its credit, the Academy has resisted pressures to eliminate the low-profile categories from the broadcast. At the same time, it has enhanced efforts to make the short films -- which this year range from the latest bit of Wallace & Gromit whimsy to a wrenching look at the parents who lost their school-age children in the earthquake that devastated China's Sichuan province in 2008 -- more widely available to the general public.On Feb. 19, as part of what is now a 5-year-old tradition,...

French Roast Cartoon Brew has thoughtfully gathered links from around the Web for some of the Oscar-nominated animated shorts. Over at its official website, you can check out French Roast, a funny Gallic short about a fellow at a cafe with a financial and moral dilemma. Granny O'Grimm's Sleeping Beauty is a cool little mixed media short about a morbid, slightly batty grandmother who has a rather unique version of "Sleeping Beauty" to share with her terrified grandchild. (Granny also has a special Oscar message to share.) The Lady and the Reaper is a humorous take on the grim reaper and an old lady caught in a tug-of-war between life and death - literally. Logorama, which is about a logo-laden land where Ronald McDonald is on the run from Michelin Men police, is available for viewing on its official website. Take a look and let us know who you think...

So now that the Oscar nominations for Animated shorts has already been announced yesterday, you can watch four out of these five shorts online from various sources in its entirely and then decide which one you think deserves to win.  A Matter of Loaf and Death was originally uploaded earlier but it was shortly taken down.

Here are the links to watch the animated shorts:

French Roast

Granny O'Grimm's Sleeping Beauty

The Lady and the Reaper

Logorama

A Matter of Loaf and Death...

By Steve Pond

I'll be breaking down the Oscar shorts categories before long; in the meantime, here's a look at the nominees competing for the Animated Short and Live-Action Short Oscars.

Animated Shorts:

“French Roast”

Director: Fabrice O. Joubert

Production company: Pumpkin Factory/Bibo Films

Length: 8 minutes

Website

Trailer:

“Granny O’Grimm’s Sleeping Beauty”

Director: Nicky Phelan

Producer: Darragh O’Connell

Production co...