Wall-e Strikes Gold

Wall-e Strikes Gold

By Karen Moltenbrey

Following closely on the heels of the VES Awards—one day later, in fact—were the Academy Awards. In contrast to the VES Awards, which span numerous categories in video games, commercials, and films, the Oscars focus on films only.

That said, the Oscars, like the VES Awards (see related story), narrowed its nominees in the best-animated film and best visual effects categories. For animated features, this meant Bolt, Kung Fu Panda, and Wall-e—the same three finalists (in addition to two others) competing for the VES Award. And, Wall-e came up with the Oscar, just as it did the VES gold.

In the visual effects category, the three Oscar finalists were The Curious Case of Ben Button, Iron Man, and The Dark Knight. (Competing for this honor at the VES Awards were Ben Button and Iron Man, as well as The Chronicles of Narnia--Prince Caspian, Hellboy II The Golden Army, and Cloverfield. And in another repeat performance, Ben Button took the Oscar honor less than 24 hours after being named winner at the VES event.



As for animated short film, the Oscar went to “La Maison en Petits Cubes.” Also competing were “Lavatory—Lovestory,” “Oktapodi,” “Presto,” and “This Way Up.”

Throughout 2008, Computer Graphics World covered the groundbreaking work in many of these Oscar-nominated stories. Take some time and go to our archived stories and see for yourself why these films deserved this honor.

Meanwhile, following is a list of all the Oscar winners:

Best Animated Feature Film
WINNER: "WALL-E"
• "Bolt"
• "Kung Fu Panda"

Achievement In Visual Effects
WINNER: "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button"
• "The Dark Knight"
• "Iron Man"

Best Animated Short Film
WINNER: "La Maison en Petits Cubes"
• "Lavatory - Lovestory"
• "Oktapodi"
• "Presto"
• "This Way Up"

Best Motion Picture
WINNER: "Slumdog Millionaire"
• "The Curious Case of Benjamin
• "Frost/Nixon"
• "Milk"
• "The Reader"

Performance By An Actor In A Leading Role
WINNER: Sean Penn in "Milk"
• Richard Jenkins in "The Visitor"
• Frank Langella in "Frost/Nixon"
• Brad Pitt in "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button"
• Mickey Rourke in "The Wrestler"

Performance By An Actress In A Leading Role
WINNER: Kate Winslet in "The Reader"
• Anne Hathaway in "Rachel Getting Married"
• Angelina Jolie in "Changeling"
• Melissa Leo in "Frozen River"
• Meryl Streep in "Doubt"

Performance By An Actor In A Supporting Role
WINNER: Heath Ledger in "The Dark Knight"
• Josh Brolin in "Milk"
• Robert Downey Jr. in "Tropic Thunder"
• Philip Seymour Hoffman in "Doubt"
• Michael Shannon in "Revolutionary Road"

Performance By An Actress In A Supporting Role
WINNER: Penélope Cruz in "Vicky Cristina Barcelona"
• Amy Adams in "Doubt"
• Viola Davis in "Doubt"
• Taraji P. Henson in "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button"
• Marisa Tomei in "The Wrestler"

Achievement In Directing
WINNER: Danny Boyle for "Slumdog Millionaire"
• David Fincher for "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button"
• Ron Howard for "Frost/Nixon"
• Gus Van Sant for "Milk"
• Stephen Daldry for "The Reader"

Adapted Screenplay
WINNER: "Slumdog Millionaire," by Simon Beaufoy
• "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button," screenplay by Eric Roth, screen story by Eric Roth and Robin Swicord
• "Doubt," by John Patrick Shanley
• "Frost/Nixon," by Peter Morgan
• "The Reader," by David Hare

Original Screenplay
WINNER: "Milk," by Dustin Lance Black
• "Frozen River," by Courtney Hunt
• "Happy-Go-Lucky," by Mike Leigh
• "In Bruges," by Martin McDonagh
• "WALL-E," screenplay by Andrew Stanton, Jim Reardon; original story by Andrew Stanton, Pete Docter

Achievement In Music Written For Motion Pictures (Original Song)
WINNER: "Jai Ho" from "Slumdog Millionaire" Music by A.R. Rahman, Lyric by Gulzar
• "Down to Earth" from "WALL-E" by Peter Gabriel and Thomas Newman
• "O Saya" from "Slumdog Millionaire" Music and Lyric by A.R. Rahman and Maya Arulpragasam

Achievement In Music Written For Motion Pictures (Original Score)
WINNER: "Slumdog Millionaire," A.R. Rahman
• "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button," Alexandre Desplat
• "Defiance," James Newton Howard
• "Milk," Danny Elfman
• "WALL-E," (Walt Disney) Thomas Newman

Achievement In Cinematography
WINNER: "Slumdog Millionaire"
• "Changeling"
• "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button"
• "The Dark Knight"
• "The Reader"

Achievement In Film Editing
WINNER: "Slumdog Millionaire," Chris Dickens
• "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button," Kirk Baxter and Angus Wall
• "The Dark Knight," Lee Smith
• "Frost/Nixon," Mike Hill and Dan Hanley
• "Milk," Elliot Graham

Achievement In Costume Design
WINNER: "The Duchess"
• "Australia"
• "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button"
• "Milk"
• "Revolutionary Road"

Achievement In Art Direction
WINNER: "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button"
• "Changeling"
• "The Dark Knight"
• "The Duchess"
• "Revolutionary Road"

Best Live Action Short Film
WINNER: "Spielzeugland (Toyland)"
• "Auf der Strecke (On the Line)"
• "Manon on the Asphalt"
• "New Boy"
• "The Pig"

Best Documentary Feature
WINNER: "Man on Wire"
• "The Betrayal (Nerakhoon)"
• "Encounters at the End of the World"
• "The Garden"
• "Trouble the Water"

Best Documentary Short Subject
WINNER: "Smile Pinki"
• "The Conscience of Nhem En"
• "The Final Inch"
• "The Witness - From the Balcony of Room 306"

Best Foreign Language Film
WINNER: "Departures" - Japan
• "The Baader Meinhof Complex" - Germany
• "The Class" - France
• "Revanche" - Austria
• "Waltz with Bashir" - Israel

Achievement In Makeup
WINNER: "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button," Greg Cannom
• "The Dark Knight," John Caglione, Jr. and Conor O'Sullivan
• "Hellboy II: The Golden Army," Mike Elizalde and Thom Floutz

Achievement In Sound Editing
WINNER: "The Dark Knight"
• "Iron Man"
• "Slumdog Millionaire"
• "WALL-E"
• "Wanted"

Achievement In Sound Mixing
WINNER: "Slumdog Millionaire"
• "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button"
• "The Dark Knight"
• "WALL-E"
• "Wanted"