An Academy Award is an award bestowed by the American Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) to recognize excellence of professionals in the film industry, including directors, actors and writers. The Oscar statuette is officially named the Academy Award of Merit and is one of nine types of Academy Awards.
The formal ceremony at which the Awards of Merit are presented is one of the most prominent award ceremonies in the world, and is televised live in more than 100 countries annually. It is also the oldest award ceremony in the media; its equivalents, the Grammy Awards (for music), Emmy Awards (for television), and Tony Awards (for theatre) are modeled after the Academy.
The AMPAS was originally conceived by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer studio boss Louis B. Mayer as a professional honorary organization to help improve the film industry’s image and help mediate labor disputes. The Oscar itself was later initiated by the Academy as an award "of merit for distinctive achievement" in the industry.
Natalie Hershlag (Hebrew: נטלי הרשלג; born June 9, 1981), better known by her stage name Natalie Portman, is an actress with dual American and Israeli citizenship. Her first role was as an orphan taken in by a hitman in the 1994 French action film Léon, but mainstream success came when she was cast as Padmé Amidala in the Star Wars prequel trilogy (released in 1999, 2002 and 2005). In 1999, she enrolled at Harvard University to study psychology while still working as an actress. She completed her bachelor's degree in 2003.
In 2001, Portman opened in New York City's Public Theater production of Anton Chekhov's The Seagull. In 2005, Portman received a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress as well as winning the Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress - Motion Picture for the drama Closer. She won a Constellation Award for Best Female Performance, and a Saturn Award for Best Actress for her starring role in V for Vendetta (2006). She played leading roles in the historical dramas Goya's Ghosts (2006) and The Other Boleyn Girl (2008). In May 2008, she served as the youngest member of the 61st Annual Cannes Film Festival jury. Portman's directorial debut, Eve, opened the 65th Venice International Film Festival's shorts competition in 2008. Portman directed a segment of the collective film New York, I Love You.
Philip Seymour Hoffman (born July 23, 1967) is an American actor and director. Hoffman began acting in television in 1991, and the following year started to appear in films. He gradually gained recognition for his supporting work in a series of notable films, including Scent of a Woman (1992), Twister (1996), Boogie Nights (1997), The Big Lebowski (1998), Magnolia (1999), The Talented Mr. Ripley (1999), Almost Famous (2000), 25th Hour (2002), Cold Mountain (2003), and Mission: Impossible III (2006).
In 2005, Hoffman played the title role in the biographical film Capote (2005), for which he won multiple acting awards including an Academy Award for Best Actor. He received another two Academy Award nominations for his supporting work in Charlie Wilson's War (2007) and Doubt (2008). Other critically acclaimed films in recent years have included Before the Devil Knows You're Dead (2007), The Savages (2007) and Synecdoche, New York (2008). In 2010, Hoffman made his feature film directorial debut with Jack Goes Boating.
Playing for the bleachers now
Letting them beat you and showing them how
Dangling yourself from the cross
All out of nails, but here's your hammer, boss
And the Academy Award for ridiculous over-acting goes to you
So get on up there and give us a speech
Taking all the attention away
After your performance, there's no one left to nominate
Dangling yourself from the cross
All out of nails, but, uh, here's your hammer, boss
And the Academy Award for embarrassing melodrama goes to you
So get on up there and give us a speech
Don't forget the little people
Who never were around
And the bigger ones who kept you down
Always knew you could do itâ¦
We always knew you could do it
Jason Caddell!
Don't forget the little people
Who never were around
And the bigger ones who let you down
Always knew you could do it.
We always knew you could do it.
We always knew you could do it.
You couldn't do it without usâ¦
7 Academy Award
Lives her life stretched out on a bar
She wants to know who ever you are
She's a sweet potato, a real vibrator
Wants to ride on home in your car
(Woo)
Been in this hell town for a week
At least I've ended up with a freak
She's a fine door banger, a big name hanger
Looking for that long lucky streak
Hot headed woman, she's not even human
Midnight is coming, your finest hour
Fortune will find you, leave the past behind you
Keep on moving around, woo, woo
Wears her hair like Hedy Lamar
She's driving in her Venus blue car
She's a stone cold diver, social climber
Deep inside you know she's a star
Lives her life stretched out on a bar
She wants to know the hell who you are
She's a stone cold diver, social climber