Helen Mirren & Annette Bening Oscar Presenters + Film Editors’ Big Surprise

Annette Bening: Best Actress nominee and Oscar presenter.

Annette Bening: Oscar presenter

Annette Bening, Cate Blanchett, and Javier Bardem are three more presenters at the 2011 Oscar ceremony.

Academy governor Annette Bening is also a Best Actress Academy Award nominee this year for Lisa Cholodenko’s lesbian family drama The Kids Are All Right, also featuring Julianne Moore, Mark Ruffalo, Mia Wasikowska, and Josh Hutcherson.

Bening received her first Oscar nomination for her supporting role in Stephen Frears’ The Grifters (1990). Additionally, she was nominated in the Best Actress category for Sam Mendes’ American Beauty (1999) and István Szabo’s Being Julia (2004).

Her other film credits include Milos Forman’s Valmont, opposite this year’s Best Actor nominee Colin Firth, The Women remake, Open Range, In Dreams, Richard III, and Regarding Henry.

See also:

• “‘The Women’ Remake: Critics Deride + Audiences Indifferent to All-Star, All-Female Feminist Comedy.”

Cate Blanchett: Best Supporting Actress winner will be Oscar presenter.

Five-time Oscar nominee and Best Supporting Actress winner Cate Blanchett

Cate Blanchett is a five-time Academy Award nominee, having taken home the Best Supporting Actress Oscar at the 2005 ceremony for her performance as Katharine Hepburn in Martin Scorsese’s Howard Hughes biopic The Aviator, starring Leonardo DiCaprio.

Blanchett also received supporting actress Oscar nominations for Notes on a Scandal and I’m Not There in 2006 and 2007, respectively. Besides, she was a Best Actress nominee for her portrayals of Queen Elizabeth I in Elizabeth (1998) and Elizabeth: The Golden Age (2007).

Cate Blanchett’s other film credits include: Robin Hood, with Russell Crowe, and The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, with Brad Pitt. Also: The Good German, Babel, Veronica Guerin, Charlotte Gray, The Talented Mr. Ripley and the Lord of the Rings trilogy.

She will next be seen in Hanna, due out in April.

Javier Bardem: Best Actor nominee and Oscar presenter.

Javier Bardem

Javier Bardem won the Best Supporting Actor Oscar in 2007 for his performance of a psychopathic murderer in Joel and Ethan Coen’s No Country for Old Men. This year, he is in the running in the Best Actor category for Alejandro González Iñárritu’s Biutiful.

Bardem’s first nomination came about in 2000, for his lead performance in Julian Schnabel’s Before Night Falls. His other film credits include Pedro Almodóvar’s Live Flesh, Jamon Jamon, Second Skin, The Dancer Upstairs, The Sea Inside, Love in the Time of Cholera, Woody Allen’s Vicky Cristina Barcelona with Scarlett Johansson and Penélope Cruz, and Eat Pray Love, with Julia Roberts.

The 2011 Academy Awards ceremony will take place on Sunday, Feb. 27, at the Kodak Theatre at Hollywood & Highland Center. In the U.S., the Oscarcast will be broadcast live on ABC.

Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (A.M.P.A.S.) website.

Photos: Annette Bening (Richard Harbaugh | © A.M.P.A.S.), Cate Blanchett (Courtesy of AMPAS), Javier Bardem (John Farrell / © A.M.P.A.S.)

Helen Mirren.

Oscar presenters: Helen Mirren and Matthew McConaughey added to list

Helen Mirren and Matthew McConaughey are the two latest names announced as presenters at the 2011 Academy Awards ceremony, telecast producers Bruce Cohen and Don Mischer announced today, Feb. 23.

Helen Mirren

Helen Mirren took home the Best Actress Oscar for Stephen Frears’ The Queen (2006). Additionally, she was a Best Actress nominee for The Last Station (2009), and received Best Supporting Actress nominations for The Madness of King George (1994) and Robert Altman’s all-star drama Gosford Park (2001).

Among Helen Mirren’s other film credits are The Mosquito Coast, Some Mother’s Son, Calendar Girls, State of Play, RED and The Tempest.

Matthew McConaughey

Matthew McConaughey will next be seen in The Lincoln Lawyer and Killer Joe. His other film credits include A Time to Kill, Amistad, Ed TV, The Wedding Planner, How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days, and Tropic Thunder.

The 2011 Academy Awards ceremony will take place on Sunday, Feb. 27, at the Kodak Theatre at Hollywood & Highland Center. In the U.S., the show will be broadcast live on ABC.

Helen Mirren photo: Michael Yada / © A.M.P.A.S.

Mila Kunis: Oscar presenter

Feb. 26 update: Black Swan actress Mila Kunis will be a presenter at the 2011 Academy Awards this Sunday. This will mark Kunis’ first appearance on an Oscar show.

Mila Kunis was one of the top possibilities for this year’s Best Supporting Actress Academy Award for her performance as a ballerina “befriended” by Natalie Portman in Darren Aronofsky’s psychological thriller Black Swan. Yet Kunis failed to be shortlisted in that category – which, curiously, includes True Grit‘s Hailee Steinfeld, the female lead in Joel and Ethan Coen’s Western.

Mila Kunis will next be seen in Friends with Benefits, opposite Justin Timberlake. Her other film credits include Forgetting Sarah Marshall, The Book of Eli, and Date Night.

Tom Hanks Oscar presenter.

Tom Hanks to present at 83rd Academy Awards

Two-time Academy Award winner Tom Hanks, one of the governors of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, will be a presenter at the 2011 Academy Awards ceremony. Oscar telecast producers Bruce Cohen and Don Mischer made the announcement.

The 2011 Oscar show will be held on Sun., Feb. 27, at the Kodak Theatre at Hollywood & Highland Center in Los Angeles. In the U.S., the telecast will be broadcast live on ABC.

Tom Hanks was a back-to-back Best Actor Oscar winner for Jonathan Demme’s Philadelphia (1993) and Robert Zemeckis’ Forrest Gump (1994).

In addition, Hanks was nominated for three other Best Actor Academy Awards: Penny Marshall’s Big (1988), Steven Spielberg’s Saving Private Ryan (1998), and Robert Zemeckis’ Cast Away (2000).

In 2010, Tom Hanks voiced the character Woody in Lee Unkrich’s Best Picture and Best Animated Feature nominee Toy Story 3 – the year’s biggest blockbuster in North America.

Next, he will be seen opposite Julia Roberts in Larry Crowne, on which he also served as director, cowriter, and producer.

Tom Hanks photo: John Farrell | © A.M.P.A.S.

Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences website.

The Social Network with Jesse Eisenberg: Best Film Editing winner.

‘The Social Network,’ ‘tops American Cinema Editors’ Awards

David Fincher’s The Social Network, which of late had been losing Oscar ground to Tom Hooper’s The King’s Speech, was the dramatic feature winner at the 2011 American Cinema Editors’ Awards ceremony held on Feb. 20 at the Beverly Hilton Hotel in Beverly Hills. (See list of ACE Award winners further below.)

Editors Angus Wall and Kirk Baxter beat the editors of The King’s Speech, The Fighter, Black Swan, and even Lee Smith’s showy work on Christopher Nolan’s Inception. In the cast of The Social Network: Jesse Eisenberg, Justin Timberlake, Andrew Garfield, Rooney Mara, Armie Hammer, Max Minghella, and Joseph Mazzello.

The best edited comedy or musical feature was, surprisingly, a less than warmly received blockbuster: Tim Burton’s 3D-converted Alice in Wonderland, which, by the way, is neither a comedy nor a musical. Editor Chris Lebenzon beat the editors of The Kids Are All Right, Scott Pilgrim vs. the World, Made in Dagenham, and Easy A. In the Alice in Wonderland cast: Mia Wasikowska, Johnny Depp, Anne Hathaway, Helena Bonham Carter, and dozens of others.

Toy Story 3 editors Ken Schretzmann and Lee Unkrich (who also directed) won in the animated feature category, while Tom Fulford and Chris King won in the documentary category for Banksy’s Exit Through the Gift Shop.

Steven Spielberg pays homage to collaborator Michael Kahn

At indieWIRE, Anne Thompson singled out Steven Spielberg’s tribute to his frequent collaborator and ACE career award-winner Michael Kahn as one of the evening’s highlights. “Michael Kahn is as much an artist as Frank Gehry is an architect,” Spielberg told the crowd at the Beverly Hilton. “He is my flashlight, letting me see the movie over and over again.”

Kahn and Spielberg began working together on Close Encounters of the Third Kind in 1977. Since then, they have collaborated on more than 20 films, including Raiders of the Lost Ark, The Color Purple, Empire of the Sun, Hook, Jurassic Park, Schindler’s List, Saving Private Ryan, The War of the Worlds, and the upcoming The Adventures of Tintin: The Secret of the Unicorn.

Irvin Kershner’s Eyes of Laura Mars, Adrian Lyne’s Fatal Attraction, and Ulu Grosbard’s Falling in Love are three of a handful of post-1977 movies Kahn edited while away from director/producer Spielberg.

Christopher Nolan: The ‘invisible and mysterious’ combination of images

Thompson also quotes ACE Golden Eddie Award winner Christopher Nolan as saying that “the combination of images is what I have always found most fascinating about editing. At its best it is invisible and mysterious.”

Television winners included Temple Grandin, the “Family Portrait” episode of Modern Family, and the “Days Gone Bye” episode of The Walking Dead.

Alice in Wonderland with Mia Wasikowska: Best Film Editing winner.

American Cinema Editors Awards

BEST EDITED FEATURE FILM (DRAMATIC)
The Social Network.
Angus Wall, A.C.E. & Kirk Baxter.

BEST EDITED FEATURE FILM (COMEDY OR MUSICAL)
Alice in Wonderland.
Chris Lebenzon, A.C.E.

BEST EDITED ANIMATED FEATURE FILM
Toy Story 3.
Ken Schretzmann & Lee Unkrich, A.C.E.

BEST EDITED DOCUMENTARY
Exit Through the Gift Shop.
Tom Fulford & Chris King.

BEST EDITED MINISERIES OR MOTION PICTURE FOR TELEVISION
Temple Grandin.
Leo Trombetta, A.C.E.

BEST EDITED HALF-HOUR SERIES FOR TELEVISION
Modern Family: “Family Portrait.”
Jonathan Schwartz.

BEST EDITED ONE-HOUR SERIES FOR COMMERCIAL TELEVISION
The Walking Dead: “Days Gone Bye.”
Hunter Via.

BEST EDITED ONE-HOUR SERIES FOR NON-COMMERCIAL TELEVISION
Treme: “Do You Know What it Means.”
Kate Sanford, A.C.E. & Alexander Hall.

BEST EDITED REALITY SERIES
If You Really Knew Me: “Colusa High.”
Rob Goubeaux, Jeremy Gantz, Hilary Scratch, Ken Yankee, Mark S. Andrew, A.C.E., Heather Miglin, John Skaare & Paul J. Coyne.

STUDENT COMPETITION.

Ruben Jacques Sebban, A.F.I.

Image of Jesse Eisenberg in American Cinema Editors winner The Social Network: Merrick Morton / Sony Pictures.

Image of Mia Wasikowska in American Cinema Editors winner Alice in Wonderland: The Walt Disney Company.

True Grit tops Cinema Audio Society Awards

Directed by Joel and Ethan Coen, the Western True Grit won the 2011 Cinema Audio Society’s award for Best Sound Mixing for Motion Pictures. True Grit stars Jeff Bridges, Matt Damon, Hailee Steinfeld, and Josh Brolin.

Henry Hathaway directed the 1969 version starring Best Actor Oscar winner John Wayne, Kim Darby, Glen Campbell, and Jeremy Slate.

Cinema Audio Society Awards

Outstanding Achievement in Sound Mixing for Motion Pictures:

True Grit.
Production Mixer.
Peter F. Kurland, CAS.
Re-recording Mixers.
Skip Lievsay, CAS.
Craig Berkey, CAS.
Greg Orloff, CAS.

Outstanding Achievement in Sound Mixing for a Television Movies and Mini-Series:

Temple Grandin.
Production Mixer.
Ethan Andrus.
Re-recording Mixer.
Rick Ash.

Outstanding Achievement in Sound Mixing for a Television Series:

Boardwalk Empire (“A Return to Normalcy” – Episode 12).
Production Mixer.
Franklin D. Stettner, CAS.
Re-recording Mixers.
Tom Fleischman, CAS.

Outstanding Achievement in Sound Mixing for Television – Non-Fiction, Variety or Music – Series or Specials:

Deadliest Catch: Redemption Day.
Re-recording Mixer.
Bob Bronow, CAS.

Outstanding Achievement in Sound Mixing for DVD Original Programming:

30 Days of Night: Dark Days.
Production Mixer.
Michael Williamson, CAS.
Re-recording Mixers.
Eric Lalicata, CAS.

7th Annual CAS Technical Achievement Awards:

Production:.
Schoeps Super CMIT 2U

Post Production:.
Izotope Izotope RX-2.

2011 CAS Filmmaker Award Honoree:.
Taylor Hackford.

2011 CAS Career Achievement Honoree:.
Jeffrey S. Wexler, CAS

‘Inception’: Motion Picture Sound Editors Award winner, with Tom Hardy and Joseph Gordon-Levitt.

‘Inception,’ ‘The Social Network’ win Motion Picture Sound Editors Awards

Inception and The Social Network, both up for the 2011 Best Picture Academy Award, were two of the winners of this year’s Motion Picture Sound Editors Awards.

Directed by Christopher Nolan, Inception stars Leonardo DiCaprio, Marion Cotillard, Ellen Page, Tom Hardy, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Michael Caine, Cillian Murphy, Ken Watanabe, and Pete Postlethwaite.

Directed by David Fincher, The Social Network stars Jesse Eisenberg, Justin Timberlake, Andrew Garfield, Armie Hammer, Rooney Mara, Max Minghella, and Joseph Mazzello.

Winners of the 2011 Motion Picture Sound Editors Awards

Sound effects and foley in a feature film: Inception.

Sound effects, foley, dialogue, ADR in an animation feature film: How to Train Your Dragon.

Sound effects, foley, dialogue, ADR in a feature documentary: Rush: Beyond the Lighted Stage.

Sound effects, foley, dialogue and ADR in a feature foreign language film: Micmacs.

Music in a feature film: Inception.

Music in a documentary: Rush: Beyond the Lighted Stage.

Music in a musical feature film: Country Strong.

Dialogue and ADR in a feature film: The Social Network.

Sound effects, foley, dialogue and ADR animation in television: The Penguins of Madagascar: “The Lost Treasure of the Golden Squirrel”.

Long form documentary: And Man Created Dogs.

Long form dialogue and ADR in television: The Pacific: “Basilone”.

Short form sound effects and foley in television: The Pacific: “Peleliu Landing”.

Short form dialogue and ADR in television: The Walking Dead: “Guts”.

Short form sound effects and foley in television: The Tudors: “The Sixth and Final Wife”.

Short form musical in television: Glee: “The Power of Madonna”.

Short form music in television: Boardwalk Empire: “Anastasia”.

Direct to video-animation: Family Guy: “It’s a Trap”.

Computer interactive entertainment: “Disney Epic Mickey”.

Special venue: “Journey to Mecca”.

Direct to video-live action: “30 Days of Night: Dark Days”.

Computer episodic entertainment: “A Drop of True Blood: Sam”.

Verna Fields Award in sound editing for student filmmakers: “Stanley Pickle”.

Filmmaker Award: Brian Grazer.

Career Achievement Award: Walter Murch.

List of 2011 Cinema Audio Society Award and Motion Picture Sound Editors Award winners courtesy of Debbie Palen.

Cinema Audio Society website.

Motion Picture Sound Editors website.

Jeff Bridges True Grit image: Wilson Webb | Paramount Pictures.

Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Tom Hardy Inception image: Stephen Vaughan | Warner Bros.