79th Academy Awards


The 79th Academy Awards ceremony, presented by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, honored the best films of 2006 and took place February 25, 2007, at the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood, Los Angeles beginning at 5:30 p.m. PST / 8:30 p.m. EST. During the ceremony, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences presented Academy Awards in 24 categories. The ceremony, televised in the United States by ABC, was produced by Laura Ziskin and directed by Louis J. Horvitz. Actress Ellen DeGeneres hosted for the first time. Two weeks earlier in a ceremony at the Beverly Wilshire Hotel in Beverly Hills, California held on February 10, the Academy Awards for Technical Achievement were presented by host Maggie Gyllenhaal.
The Departed won four awards, including Best Picture and Best Director for Martin Scorsese. Other winners included Pan's Labyrinth with three, An Inconvenient Truth, Dreamgirls and Little Miss Sunshine with two, and Babel, The Blood of Yingzhou District, The Danish Poet, Happy Feet, The Last King of Scotland, Letters from Iwo Jima, The Lives of Others, Marie Antoinette, , The Queen and West Bank Story with one. The telecast garnered nearly 40 million viewers in the United States.

Winners and nominees

The nominees for the 79th Academy Awards were announced on January 23, 2007, at the Samuel Goldwyn Theater in Beverly Hills, California, by Sid Ganis, president of the Academy, and the actress Salma Hayek. Dreamgirls received the most nominations with eight, and Babel came in second with seven. This marked the first and only occurrence that the film with the most nominations was not a Best Picture nominee.
The winners were announced during the awards ceremony on February 25, 2007. With his latest unsuccessful nomination for Best Actor, Peter O'Toole became the most nominated performer without a competitive win. Best Supporting Actress winner Jennifer Hudson was the fifteenth Oscar acting winner to win for a debut film performance. "I Need to Wake Up" from An Inconvenient Truth became the first song from a documentary film to win Best Original Song.

Awards

Winners are listed first, highlighted in boldface, and indicated with a double dagger.

  • Martin Scorsese – The Departed
  • *Alejandro González Iñárritu – Babel
  • *Clint Eastwood – Letters from Iwo Jima
  • *Stephen Frears – The Queen
  • *Paul Greengrass – United 93
  • Forest WhitakerThe Last King of Scotland as Idi Amin
  • *Leonardo DiCaprio – Blood Diamond as Danny Archer
  • *Ryan Gosling – Half Nelson as Dan Dunne
  • *Peter O'Toole – Venus as Maurice
  • *Will Smith – The Pursuit of Happyness as Chris Gardner
  • Helen MirrenThe Queen as Queen Elizabeth II
  • *Penélope Cruz – Volver as Raimunda
  • *Judi Dench – Notes on a Scandal as Barbara Covett
  • *Meryl Streep – The Devil Wears Prada as Miranda Priestly
  • *Kate Winslet – Little Children as Sarah Pierce
  • Alan ArkinLittle Miss Sunshine as Edwin Hoover
  • *Jackie Earle Haley – Little Children as Ronald James McGorvey
  • *Djimon Hounsou – Blood Diamond as Solomon Vandy
  • *Eddie Murphy – Dreamgirls as James "Thunder" Early
  • *Mark Wahlberg – The Departed as Staff Sergeant Dignam
  • Jennifer Hudson – Dreamgirls as Effie White
  • *Adriana Barraza – Babel as Amelia Hernandez
  • *Cate Blanchett – Notes on a Scandal as Bathsheba "Sheba" Hart
  • *Abigail Breslin – Little Miss Sunshine as Olive Hoover
  • *Rinko Kikuchi – Babel as Chieko Wataya
  • Little Miss SunshineMichael Arndt
  • *BabelGuillermo Arriaga
  • *Letters from Iwo JimaIris Yamashita and Paul Haggis
  • *Pan's LabyrinthGuillermo del Toro
  • *The QueenPeter Morgan
  • The Departed – William Monahan based on the film Infernal Affairs
  • *Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of KazakhstanSacha Baron Cohen, Anthony Hines, Peter Baynham, Dan Mazer and Todd Phillips based on characters created by Sacha Baron Cohen
  • *Children of MenAlfonso Cuarón, Timothy J. Sexton, David Arata, Mark Fergus and Hawk Ostby based on the book by P. D. James
  • *Little ChildrenTodd Field and Tom Perrotta based on the novel by Tom Perrotta
  • *Notes on a ScandalPatrick Marber based on the book by Zoë Heller
  • Happy Feet – George Miller
  • *CarsJohn Lasseter
  • *Monster HouseGil Kenan
  • The Lives of Others in GermanFlorian Henckel von Donnersmarck
  • *After the Wedding in Danish, Hindi, and SwedishSusanne Bier
  • *Days of Glory in ArabicRachid Bouchareb
  • *Pan's Labyrinth in Spanish – Guillermo del Toro
  • *Water in Hindi – Deepa Mehta
  • An Inconvenient Truth – Davis Guggenheim
  • * Deliver Us from EvilAmy Berg and Frank Donner
  • * Iraq in FragmentsJames Longley and John Sinno
  • * Jesus CampHeidi Ewing and Rachel Grady
  • * My Country, My CountryLaura Poitras and Jocelyn Glatzer
  • The Blood of Yingzhou DistrictRuby Yang and Thomas Lennon
  • *Recycled LifeLeslie Iwerks and Mike Glad
  • *Rehearsing a DreamKaren Goodman and Kirk Simon
  • *' – Nathaniel Kahn and Susan Rose Behr
  • West Bank Story – Ari Sandel
  • *Binta and the Great IdeaJavier Fesser and Luis Manso
  • *Éramos Pocos Borja Cobeaga
  • *Helmer & SonSøren Pilmark and Kim Magnusson
  • *The Saviour – Peter Templeman and Stuart Parkyn
  • The Danish PoetTorill Kove
  • *LiftedGary Rydstrom
  • *The Little MatchgirlRoger Allers and Don Hahn
  • *Maestro – Géza M. Tóth
  • *No Time for NutsChris Renaud and Mike Thurmeier
  • Babel Gustavo Santaolalla
  • *The Good GermanThomas Newman
  • *Notes on a ScandalPhilip Glass
  • *Pan's LabyrinthJavier Navarrete
  • *The QueenAlexandre Desplat
  • "I Need to Wake Up" from An Inconvenient TruthMusic and Lyrics by Melissa Etheridge
  • * "Listen" from Dreamgirls – Music by Henry Krieger and Scott Cutler; Lyrics by Anne Preven
  • * "Love You I Do" from Dreamgirls – Music by Henry Krieger; Lyrics by Siedah Garrett
  • * "Our Town" from Cars – Music and Lyrics by Randy Newman
  • * "Patience" from Dreamgirls – Music by Henry Krieger; Lyrics by Willie Reale
  • Letters from Iwo Jima – Alan Robert Murray and Bub Asman
  • * ApocalyptoSean McCormack and Kami Asgar
  • * Blood DiamondLon Bender
  • * Flags of Our Fathers – Alan Robert Murray and Bub Asman
  • * ' – Christopher Boyes and George Watters II
  • DreamgirlsMichael Minkler, Bob Beemer and Willie D. Burton
  • * ApocalyptoKevin O'Connell, Greg P. Russell and Fernando Cámara
  • * Blood DiamondAndy Nelson, Anna Behlmer and Ivan Sharrock
  • * Flags of Our FathersJohn Reitz, Dave Campbell, Gregg Rudloff and Walt Martin
  • * ' – Paul Massey, Christopher Boyes and Lee Orloff
  • Pan's Labyrinth – Art Direction: Eugenio Caballero; Set Decoration: Pilar Revuelta
  • *Dreamgirls – Art Direction: John Myhre; Set Decoration: Nancy Haigh
  • *The Good Shepherd – Art Direction: Jeannine Oppewall; Set Decoration: Gretchen Rau and Leslie E. Rollins
  • *' – Art Direction: Rick Heinrichs; Set Decoration: Cheryl Carasik
  • *The Prestige – Art Direction: Nathan Crowley; Set Decoration: Julie Ochipinti
  • Pan's LabyrinthGuillermo Navarro
  • *The Black DahliaVilmos Zsigmond
  • *Children of MenEmmanuel Lubezki
  • *The IllusionistDick Pope
  • *The PrestigeWally Pfister
  • Pan's Labyrinth – David Martí and Montse Ribé
  • *ApocalyptoAldo Signoretti and Vittorio Sodano
  • *ClickKazuhiro Tsuji and Bill Corso
  • Marie AntoinetteMilena Canonero
  • *Curse of the Golden FlowerYee Chung Man
  • *The Devil Wears PradaPatricia Field
  • *DreamgirlsSharen Davis
  • *The QueenConsolata Boyle
  • The Departed – Thelma Schoonmaker
  • *BabelDouglas Crise and Stephen Mirrione
  • *Blood DiamondSteven Rosenblum
  • *Children of Men – Alfonso Cuarón and Álex Rodríguez
  • *United 93Clare Douglas, Richard Pearson and Christopher Rouse
  • John Knoll, Hal Hickel, Charles Gibson and Allen Hall
  • *Poseidon – Boyd Shermis, Kim Libreri, Chaz Jarrett and John Frazier
  • *Superman ReturnsMark Stetson, Neil Corbould, Richard R. Hoover and Jon Thum
  • Honorary Academy Award

  • Ennio Morricone In recognition of his magnificent and multifaceted contributions to the art of film music.

    Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award

  • Sherry Lansing

    Films with multiple nominations and awards

  • The following 19 films received multiple nominations:
    NominationsFilm
    8Dreamgirls
    7Babel
    6Pan's Labyrinth
    6The Queen
    5Blood Diamond
    5The Departed
    4Letters from Iwo Jima
    4Little Miss Sunshine
    4Notes on a Scandal
    4
    3Apocalypto
    3Children of Men
    3Little Children
    2An Inconvenient Truth
    2Cars
    2Flags of Our Fathers
    2The Devil Wears Prada
    2The Prestige
    2United 93

    The following five films received multiple awards:
    AwardsFilm
    4The Departed
    3Pan's Labyrinth
    2An Inconvenient Truth
    2Dreamgirls
    2Little Miss Sunshine

    Presenters and performers

    The following individuals presented awards or performed musical numbers.

    Presenters (in order of appearance)

    Performers (in order of appearance)

    Ceremony information

    Because of the declining viewership of recent Academy Awards ceremonies, producer Gil Cates declined to helm the upcoming festivities. The Academy sought ideas to revamp the show while renewing interest with the nominated films. In September 2006, the Academy selected producer Laura Ziskin to oversee production of the telecast for a second time. Nearly three months later, actress and comedian Ellen DeGeneres, who had previously emceed three Primetime Emmy Award ceremonies between 2001 and 2005, was chosen as host of the 2007 ceremony. In an article published in the Los Angeles Times, Ziskin explained the decision to hire DeGeneres saying "Certainly, I believe the presence of Ellen will help the ratings absolutely. She's popular with a very wide audience. She is not a niche performer. She touches a lot of demographics."
    AMPAS christened this year's telecast with a theme celebrating movie quotes. In tandem with the theme, advertising agency TBWA\Chiat\Day designed the official ceremony poster featuring 75 quotes from several Oscar-nominated or winning films. To stir interest surrounding the awards, filmmaker Spike Lee released a trailer featuring everyday people around New York City reciting famous film lines. During the ceremony, a montage produced by director Nancy Meyers saluted the work of screenwriters and their contributions to film.
    During the telecast, former U.S. Vice President and environmental activist Al Gore, and Best Actor nominee Leonardo DiCaprio announced that AMPAS would incorporate several environmentally and ecologically conscious features into the ceremony. Designed by Frank Webb and Matthew White, the Architectural Digest greenroom where presenters and winners mingled backstage featured several environmentally friendly features such as a rug made of recycled plastic bottles and walls painted without any volatile organic compounds. Other eco-friendly features included the transportation for guests of the awards via hybrid electric vehicles, usage of recyclable paper for ballots and invitations, and serving meals at the Governor's Ball on reusable plates and biodegradable dishware.
    Several other people participated in the production of the ceremony. William Ross served as musical director for the ceremony. J. Michael Riva designed a new set and stage design for the ceremony. Voice actor Don LaFontaine was hired with Gina Tuttle as announcers for the telecast. Actor Greg Vaughan and Lucky columnist Allyson Waterman co-hosted "Road to the Oscars", a weekly behind-the-scenes video blog on the Oscar ceremony website. Members of the dance troupe and contortionist group Pilobolus performed interpretive shadow figures representing scenes and logos from the nominated films. Actors Jack Black, Will Ferrell, and John C. Reilly performed a lighthearted musical number written by comedic director Judd Apatow and music composer Marc Shaiman satirizing comedy's lack of recognition at the Academy Awards. Conducted by musician Steve Sidwell, the Sound Effects Choir performed voice effects to a montage of classic films. Another vignette directed by documentary filmmaker Errol Morris featuring several Oscar nominees discussing what it means to be an Oscar nominee was shown at the beginning of the show. Italian director Giuseppe Tornatore assembled a tribute highlighting previous winners of the Best Foreign Language Film. Filmmaker Michael Mann produced a montage highlighting American life through the eyes of cinema.

    Box office performance of nominated films

    At the time of the nominations announcement on January 23, the combined gross of the five Best Picture nominees was $244 million with an average of $48.7 million per film. The Departed was the highest earner among the Best Picture nominees with $121.7 million in domestic box office receipts. The film was followed by Little Miss Sunshine, The Queen, Babel and finally Letters from Iwo Jima.
    Of the top 50 grossing movies of the year, 29 nominations went to nine films on the list. Only The Pursuit of Happyness, Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan, The Devil Wears Prada, The Departed and Dreamgirls were nominated for Best Picture, Best Animated Feature or any of the directing, acting or screenwriting awards. The other top 50 box office hits that earned nominations were Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest, Cars, Superman Returns and Happy Feet.

    Critical reviews

    The show received a mixed reception from media publications. Some media outlets were more critical of the show. Tim Goodman of the San Francisco Chronicle lamented, "It was long. It was flat. And it was bloated. Worst of all, it was boring." He also wrote that "it was difficult for Ellen's subtle rambling to translate because people want pop and humor and declarative sentences in their Academy Awards. Which they didn't exactly get." The Denver Post television critic Joanne Ostrow bemoaned, "Pleasant and innocuous but hardly exciting, DeGeneres forgot the primary Academy Award host directive: It's not about the host. Hollywood's biggest night is a celebration of film." The Washington Post columnist Tom Shales gave an average review for DeGeneres but criticized the overall slow and choppy pacing of the program noting that it was "punishingly too long."
    Other media outlets received the broadcast more positively. Columnist Alessandra Stanley of The New York Times lauded DeGeneres's performance writing that she was "cheeky but good-natured, far less barbed and sardonic than Jon Stewart last year or Chris Rock in 2005." She added that her style brought a "casual Friday mood to Fancy Sunday." St. Louis Post-Dispatch television critic Gail Pennington praised host DeGeneres and producer Ziskin for turning "the evening into an upbeat celebration-–and the most entertaining Oscars in years." Television editor Dave Kronke of the Los Angeles Daily News gave high marks for DeGeneres commenting, "Her material was amusing but scarcely a laugh riot, yet it was amiable and delineated that the evening was a celebration of all the nominees, not just the winners."

    Ratings and reception

    The American telecast on ABC drew in an average of 39.92 million people over its length, which was a 2.5% increase from the previous year's ceremony. An estimated 76.72 million total viewers watched all or part of the awards. The show also drew higher Nielsen ratings compared to the previous ceremony with 23.59% of households watching over a 38.86 share. In addition, the program scored a higher 18-49 demo rating with a 14.18 rating over a 33.71 share among viewers in that demographic.
    In July 2007, the ceremony presentation received nine nominations at the 59th Primetime Emmys. Two months later, the ceremony won two of those nominations for Outstanding Art Direction and Outstanding Music Direction.

    ''In Memoriam''

    The annual In Memoriam tribute, presented by actress Jodie Foster, honored the following people:
    Before the montage was shown, Foster briefly eulogized casting director and Oscar winner Randy Stone who died nearly two weeks before the ceremony.