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2011 Academy Award (Oscar) nominations announced

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Image used with permission by copyright holder

It’s that time of year. Today, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences unveiled nominations for the 83rd Academy Awards, which will air Feb. 27. Leading the nominees is The King’s Speech with 12 nominations, followed by True Grit with 10, Inception with 8, and geek-favorite The Social Network with 8 nominations. Other big films include The Fighter, 127 Hours, Black Swan, Toy Story 3, and Winter’s Bone. Below is a list of nominations in some of the major categories.

It looks like it may be a good year for Tom Hooper, director of The King’s Speech. Hooper won considerable acclaim for his 2008 HBO miniseries John Adams.

Best motion picture of the year

  • Black Swan
  • The Fighter
  • Inception
  • The Kids Are All Right
  • The King’s Speech
  • 127 Hours
  • The Social Network
  • Toy Story 3
  • True Grit
  • Winter’s Bone

Achievement in directing

  • Black Swan, Darren Aronofsky
  • The Fighter, David O. Russell
  • The King’s Speech, Tom Hooper
  • The Social Network, David Fincher
  • True Grit, Joel Coen and Ethan Coen

Achievement in visual effects

  • Alice in Wonderland
  • Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1
  • Hereafter
  • Inception
  • Iron Man 2

Performance by an actor in a leading role

  • Javier Bardem in “Biutiful”
  • Jeff Bridges in “True Grit”
  • Jesse Eisenberg in “The Social Network”
  • Colin Firth in “The King’s Speech”
  • James Franco in “127 Hours”

Performance by an actor in a supporting role

  • Christian Bale in “The Fighter”
  • John Hawkes in “Winter’s Bone”
  • Jeremy Renner in “The Town”
  • Mark Ruffalo in “The Kids Are All Right”
  • Geoffrey Rush in “The King’s Speech”

Performance by an actress in a leading role

  • Annette Bening in “The Kids Are All Right”
  • Nicole Kidman in “Rabbit Hole”
  • Jennifer Lawrence in “Winter’s Bone”
  • Natalie Portman in “Black Swan”
  • Michelle Williams in “Blue Valentine”

Performance by an actress in a supporting role

  • Amy Adams in “The Fighter”
  • Helena Bonham Carter in “The King’s Speech”
  • Melissa Leo in “The Fighter”
  • Hailee Steinfeld in “True Grit”
  • Jacki Weaver in “Animal Kingdom”

Best animated feature film of the year

  • How to Train Your Dragon
  • The Illusionist
  • Toy Story 3

Achievement in music written for motion pictures (Original score)

  • How to Train Your Dragon, John Powell
  • Inception, Hans Zimmer
  • The King’s Speech, Alexandre Desplat
  • 127 Hours, A.R. Rahman
  • The Social Network, Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross

Adapted screenplay

  • 127 Hours, Screenplay by Danny Boyle & Simon Beaufoy
  • The Social Network, Screenplay by Aaron Sorkin
  • Toy Story 3, Screenplay by Michael Arndt. Story by John Lasseter, Andrew Stanton and Lee Unkrich
  • True Grit, Written for the screen by Joel Coen & Ethan Coen
  • Winter’s Bone, Adapted for the screen by Debra Granik & Anne Rosellini

Original screenplay

  • Another Year, Written by Mike Leigh
  • The Fighter, Screenplay by Scott Silver and Paul Tamasy & Eric Johnson. Story by Keith Dorrington & Paul Tamasy & Eric Johnson
  • Inception, Written by Christopher Nolan
  • The Kids Are All Right, Written by Lisa Cholodenko & Stuart Blumberg
  • The King’s Speech, Screenplay by David Seidler

What are your picks this year? Share them below. I’m already rooting for Natalie Portman and Colin Firth for leading acting nominations. Also Inception had the best soundtrack, though The Social Network picked up the music award at the Golden Globes.

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