Even though most actors and directors will never say it, when it comes to the Oscars they are competitive. In recent years, we probably haven’t seen as competitive as a field of nominees as we have now.
When Seth MacFarlane and Emma Stone read off the nominees Thursday morning, entertainment reporters were quick to point out the performances worth getting a nod and who was left off the list.
No Ben Affleck for best director with "Argo," and no Leonardo DiCaprio in "Django Unchained" … and a lot of conversations on who people will think will win. There will be a scramble to movie theaters to see films nominated that are still showing, and people will read through online articles just to arm themselves to sound more intelligent for water cooler talk.
Area morning radio teams covered the topic this morning and syndicated entertainment TV shows will have plenty of Oscar coverage between now and the ceremony on Feb. 24.
The reason why a subject like this gets covered the way it does, because it is a safe universal connector. The world of entertainment reaches people in broad strokes of the most desirable demographics, sports to a lesser degree and weather and community information affects everyone. These four areas are the cornerstone of any local newscast on TV or radio.
Now it’s your turn, use the feedback feature below or comment via Facebook. We’d love to hear who you think will win the top awards, who you think got left out, and where you think the closest competition between nominees lie.
The nominees are:
BEST PICTURE
"Amour"
"Argo"
"Beasts of the Southern Wild"
"Django Unchained"
"Les Misérables"
"Life of Pi"
"Lincoln"
"Silver Linings Playbook"
"Zero Dark Thirty"
LEADING ACTOR
Bradley Cooper in "Silver Linings Playbook"
Daniel Day-Lewis in "Lincoln"
Hugh Jackman in "Les Misérables"
Joaquin Phoenix in "The Master"
Denzel Washington in "Flight"
LEADING ACTRESS
Jessica Chastain in "Zero Dark Thirty"
Jennifer Lawrence in "Silver Linings Playbook"
Emmanuelle Riva in "Amour"
Quvenzhané Wallis in "Beasts of the Southern Wild"
Naomi Watts in "The Impossible"
DIRECTING
"Amour"
"Beasts of the Southern Wild"
"Life of Pi"
"Lincoln"
"Silver Linings Playbook"
SUPPORTING ACTOR
Alan Arkin in "Argo"
Robert De Niro in "Silver Linings Playbook"
Philip Seymour Hoffman in "The Master"
Tommy Lee Jones in "Lincoln"
Christoph Waltz in "Django Unchained"
SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Amy Adams in "The Master"
Sally Field in "Lincoln"
Anne Hathaway in "Les Misérables"
Helen Hunt in "The Sessions"
Jacki Weaver in "Silver Linings Playbook"
ANIMATED FEATURE
"Brave"
"Frankenweenie"
"ParaNorman"
"The Pirates! Band of Misfits"
"Wreck-It Ralph"
COSTUME DESIGN
"Anna Karenina"
"Les Misérables"
"Lincoln"
"Mirror Mirror"
"Snow White and the Huntsman"
ORIGINAL SCORE
"Anna Karenina"
"Argo"
"Life of Pi"
"Lincoln"
"Skyfall"
ORIGINAL SONG
"Before My Time" from "Chasing Ice"
"Everybody Needs A Best Friend" from "Ted"
"Pi's Lullaby" from "Life of Pi"
"Skyfall" from "Skyfall"
"Suddenly" from "Les Misérables"
ANIMATED SHORT FILM
"Adam and Dog"
"Fresh Guacamole"
"Head over Heels"
"Maggie Simpson in "The Longest Daycare""
"Paperman"
LIVE ACTION SHORT FILM
"Asad"
"Buzkashi Boys"
"Curfew"
"Death of a Shadow (Dood van een Schaduw)"
"Henry"
SOUND EDITING
"Argo"
"Django Unchained"
"Life of Pi"
"Skyfall"
"Zero Dark Thirty"
SOUND MIXING
"Argo"
"Les Misérables"
"Life of Pi"
"Lincoln"
"Skyfall"
VISUAL EFFECTS
"The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey"
"Life of Pi"
"Marvel's The Avengers"
"Prometheus"
"Snow White and the Huntsman"
ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
"Argo"
"Beasts of the Southern Wild"
"Life of Pi"
"Lincoln"
"Silver Linings Playbook"
ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
"Amour"
"Django Unchained"
"Flight"
"Moonrise Kingdom"
"Zero Dark Thirty"
DOCUMENTARY FEATURE
"5 Broken Cameras"
"The Gatekeepers"
"How to Survive a Plague"
"The Invisible War"
"Searching for Sugar Man"
DOCUMENTARY SHORT
"Inocente"
"Kings Point"
"Mondays at Racine"
"Open Heart"
"Redemption"
FILM EDITING
"Argo"
"Life of Pi"
"Lincoln"
"Silver Linings Playbook"
"Zero Dark Thirty"
FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM
"Amour" - Austria
"Kon-Tiki" - Norway
"No" - Chile
"A Royal Affair" - Denmark
"War Witch" – Canada
MAKEUP AND HAIRSTYLING
"Hitchcock"
"The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey"
"Les Misérables"
PRODUCTION DESIGN
"Anna Karenina"
"The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey"
"Les Misérables"
"Life of Pi"
"Lincoln"
CINEMATOGRAPHY
"Anna Karenina"
"Django Unchained"
"Life of Pi"
"Lincoln"
"Skyfall"
Media is bombarding us everywhere.
Instead of sheltering his brain from the onslaught, Steve embraces the news stories, entertainment, billboards, blogs, talk shows and everything in between.
The former writer, editor and producer in TV, radio, Web and newspapers, will be talking about what media does in our community and how it shapes who we are and what we do.
