LOS ANGELES – Canadian digitally animated short by the National Film Board’s Chris Landreth, won in the best animated short category. “I am here tonight because of the grace and humility of one guy watching from Montreal,” Landreth said in accepting his award. “Ryan Larkin, I dedicate this award to you,” he added, referring to the subject of his film, Larkin, who once produced exceptional animated films for the National Film Board but now lives on welfare and panhandles in Montreal.
The film acts as a cautionary tale, warning artists to keep their passions aflame. Yet the tone is never didactic, instead displaying a broken man — Ryan — and an inquisitive and concerned animator — Chris — hoping to learn some lesson about art and ambition. The animation in Ryan takes risk and hypnotizes the eye: characters are twisted and broken, and many aspects are so detailed a single hair can be isolated.
Million Dollar Baby has just won the Best Picture award at the annual Academy Award ceremonies in Hollywood, and the film’s director, Clint Eastwood, also won an Oscar for his work as best director.
Jamie Foxx won the Best Actor award for the movie Ray, but two more big awards also went to stars of Million Dollar Baby – Morgan Freeman won as Best Supporting Actor and Hilary Swank took the Oscar for Best Actress.
Cate Blanchett won Best Supporting Actress for her portrayal of screen legend Katherine Hepburn in The Aviator.
Spain’s movie The Sea Inside won the Academy Award as the best foreign-language (non-English) film of 2004. It was Spain’s 19th nomination and 4th Academy Award.
Picture: “Million Dollar Baby.”
Actor: Jamie Foxx, “Ray.”
Actress: Hilary Swank, “Million Dollar Baby.”
Supporting Actor: Morgan Freeman, “Million Dollar Baby.”
Supporting Actress: Cate Blanchett, “The Aviator.”
Director: Clint Eastwood, “Million Dollar Baby.”
Adapted Screenplay: Alexander Payne and Jim Taylor, “Sideways.”
Original Screenplay: Charlie Kaufman, Michel Gondry and Pierre Bismuth, “Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind.”
Art Direction: “The Aviator.”
Cinematography: “The Aviator.”
Film Editing: “The Aviator.”
Visual Effects: “Spider-Man 2.”
Sound Mixing: “Ray.”
Sound Editing: “The Incredibles.”
Original Score: “Finding Neverland.”
Original Song: “Al Otro Lado Del Rio” from “The Motorcycle Diaries.”
Costume: “The Aviator.”
Makeup: “Lemony Snicket’s A Series of Unfortunate Events.”
Foreign Film: “The Sea Inside” (Spain).
Animated Feature: “The Incredibles.”
Animated Short: “Ryan.”
Documentary Feature: “Born Into Brothels.”
Documentary Short: “Mighty Times: The Children’s March.”
Live Action Short: “Wasp.”
Honorary Academy Award: Sidney Lumet.
Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award: Roger Mayer.
Gordon E. Sawyer Award (technical achievement): Takuo Miyagishima.
Scientific and Technical Oscars: Horst Burbulla, Jean-Marie Lavalou, Alain Masseron and David Samuelson.
