Academy Awards

The Academy Awards or Oscar Awards are the cinematographic awards considered the most important awards in the film industry, awarded annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences of Los Angeles, California from the United States since 1929.

Complete Listing of the Academy Awards (1928 to 2024)

All Academy Awards Categories Winners 

Best Picture

Best Director

Best Leading Actor

Best Leading Actress

Best Supporting Actor

Best Supporting Actress

Best Adapted Screenplay

Best Cinematography

Best Production Design

Best Sound

Best Short Film

Best Animated Short Film

Best Music (Score)

Best Song

Best Film Editing

Best Visual Effects

Best Original Screenplay

Best Documentary Short Subject

Best Documentary Feature

Best Costume Design

Best Foreign Language Film

Best Sound Editing

Best Makeup

Best Animated Feature

Best Sound Mixing

Best Score - Drama or Comedy

Best Score - Musical

Best Score – Adaptation or Treatment

Best Cinematography - Color

Best Cinematography - Black & White

Best Art Direction - Color

Best Art Direction - Black & White

Best Costume Design - Color

Best Costume Design - Black & White

Best Story

Best Story and Screenplay

Best Dance Direction (Choreography)

Best Assistant Director

Academy Honorary Award

Irving G. Thalberg Memorial Award

History of the Academy Awards

The ceremony of the Academy Awards was held for the first time on May 16, 1929 at a private dinner at the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel. The ceremony lasted 15 minutes and there was an audience of approximately 270 people.

In 1930 it was broadcast for the first time on radio and began to be televised since 1953.

The category of Best Foreign Language Film was presented in the No. 29 edition on March 27, 1957. Previously, foreign language films were awarded the "Special Achievement" Award.

The category of Best Animated Film was presented for the first time in the No. 74 edition in 2002, winning the animated film "Shrek".

Since 1973, all the Academy Awards ceremonies have ended with the Academy Award for Best Film.

Academy Awards statuette

The Oscar Award is made of bronze with a gold cover on a black metal base. It measures 13.5 inches (34.3 cm) in height and weighs 8.5 lb (3.85 kg). It represents a standing knight holding a sword on a film roll with 5 radios symbolizing each of the 5 original branches of the Academy: actors, writers, directors, producers and technicians.

It is said that the statuette is based on the figure of Mexican actor Emilio "El Indio" Fernández.

The sculptor George Stanley designed the statuette, based on a sketch by the Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer art director, Cedric Gibbons. Then it was cast by Sachin Smith.

During the entry of the United States to the Second World War, the statuettes delivered between 1942 and 1945 were forged with plaster and after the war, they were replaced by the original ones.

The origin of the name Oscar is disputed. A biography of American actress Bette Davis says she named the Oscar for her first husband, Oscar Nelson.

Another supposed origin is that of the Executive Secretary of the Academy, Margaret Herrick, who, when she saw the prize for the first time, made reference to the fact that the statue resembled her "Uncle Oscar".

In 1950, the Academy created the legal condition in which it obligates the winners of the prize and their heirs not to be able to sell the statuette without first offering it for sale to the Academy for the amount of 1 dollar. However, in 2011 the Oscar for Best Screenplay won by actor and director Orson Welles by Citizen Kane in 1941, was sold at auction by his heirs for an amount of approximately $ 860,000. The heirs had won the trial in which they claimed that the legal status of the Academy did not apply to the prize as it was delivered in 1941.

Also in 1992, actor Harold Russell decided to sell his Oscar he had won in 1946 to pay for his wife's medical expenses, becoming the only winning actor to win the statuette.

Votes

Currently, the Academy of Cinematographic Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) has more than 6,000 people who vote to choose the winners. Each member belongs to a specific discipline such as actors, directors, producers, etc.

Academy Awards Rules

The films that are eligible to be nominated for the Oscars must be premiered between January 1 and December 31 of the year prior to the award and have lasted at least seven consecutive days at its launch in Los Angeles in the United States.

For the award for Best Foreign Language Film, the film is required to be presented as the official selection of its country and does not require its release or release in the United States. They must also include English subtitles. Each country can only submit one film per year.

As for the Best Documentary prize, a week in Los Angeles or New York, during the previous year, or having obtained a prize in a film festival, is required.

All films except for short films must have a minimum length of 40 minutes.

In the majority of the categories of the Oscar awards the members of the academy vote according to their specialty, for example, the actors vote for the categories of actors, the directors in the category of Best Director, etc). However, in the best movie category all members can choose the nominees and winners.

Curiosities of the Academy Awards

Screenwriter Dudley Nichols was the first person to refuse to accept his Oscar Award in 1935, due to differences with the Academy and the Guild of Writers. However, Nichols finally accepted the prize three years later at the 1938 ceremony.

The actor George C. Scott was the second person to reject his award in 1970 for the film Patton.

The actor Marlon Brando, also rejected his award for Best Actor for "The Godfather" (1972), alluding to the discrimination and mistreatment of Native Americans in the film industry. In issue No. 45, Marlon Brando sent actress and civil rights activist Sacheen Littlefeather to read her speech mentioning her criticism of the Academy.

In the 2017 edition, actor Warren Beatty and Faye Dunaway erroneously reported that the film "La La Land" was the winner of the Best Film category, instead of "Moonlight", which was the real winner. After the confusion the winner was announced correctly.

Statistics of the Academy Awards

Here we present updated reports and statistics of the Oscar Awards, taking into account the editions made from the year 1928 to 2024.

What are the films that have won the most Academy Awards?

The films that have won the most Oscars, between 1928 and 2024 are: The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (11 awards), Titanic (11 awards) and Ben-Hur (11 awards). Here are the 10 films that have won the most Oscars:

Which director has won the most Oscars?

The directors who have won the Oscar for Best Director the most times between 1928 and 2024 are: John Ford (4 awards), William Wyler (3 awards) and Frank Capra (3 awards).

Director	Awards
John Ford	4
William Wyler	3
Frank Capra	3
Alejandro González Iñárritu	2
Steven Spielberg	2
Clint Eastwood	2
Alfonso Cuarón	2
Ang Lee	2
Oliver Stone	2
Milos Forman	2

Which actor has won the most Academy Awards?

The actors who most times have won the Academy award between 1928 and 2024 are: Daniel Day-Lewis (3 awards), Jack Nicholson (3 awards) and Walter Brennan (3 awards).

Actor	Awards
Daniel Day-Lewis	3
Jack Nicholson	3
Walter Brennan	3
Kevin Spacey	2
Robert De Niro	2
Dustin Hoffman	2
Sean Penn	2
Tom Hanks	2
Christoph Waltz	2
Denzel Washington	2

Which actress has won the most Academy Awards?

The actresses who most times have won the Academy award between 1928 and 2024 are: Katharine Hepburn (4 awards), Frances McDormand (3 awards) and Meryl Streep (3 awards).

Actress	Awards
Katharine Hepburn	4
Frances McDormand	3
Meryl Streep	3
Ingrid Bergman	3
Jodie Foster	2
Cate Blanchett	2
Emma Stone	2
Maggie Smith	2
Jessica Lange	2
Dianne Wiest	2

Which countries have won more Academy award for Best Foreign Film?

Which films with the most nominations did not win an Oscar?

Who are the actresses with the most Academy Awards nominations?

Actress	Nom.	Awards
Meryl Streep	21	3
Katharine Hepburn	12	4
Bette Davis	11	2
Judi Dench	8	1
Cate Blanchett	8	2
Glenn Close	8	0
Geraldine Page	8	1
Kate Winslet	7	1
Jane Fonda	7	2
Ingrid Bergman	7	3

Who are the actors with the most Academy Awards nominations?

Actor	Nom.	Awards
Jack Nicholson	12	3
Laurence Olivier	10	1
Al Pacino	9	1
Denzel Washington	9	2
Paul Newman	9	1
Spencer Tracy	9	2
Robert De Niro	8	2
Peter O'Toole	8	0
Marlon Brando	8	2
Jack Lemmon	8	2

Who are the youngest actresses to win an Academy Award?

The youngest actress to win an Oscar is Tatum O'Neal at the age of 10 in 1974, for her character in the film Paper Moon.

Actress	Age
Tatum O'Neal	10
Anna Paquin	11
Patty Duke	16
Marlee Matlin	21
Janet Gaynor	22
Jennifer Lawrence	22
Anne Baxter	23
Joan Fontaine	24
Teresa Wright	24
Audrey Hepburn	24

Who are the youngest actors to win an Academy Awards?

The youngest actor to win an Oscar is Timothy Hutton at the age of  20 in 1981, for his character in the film Ordinary People.

Actor	Age
Timothy Hutton	20
George Chakiris	27
Heath Ledger	29
Cuba Gooding Jr.	29
Adrien Brody	29
Maximilian Schell	31
Robert De Niro	31
Jack Lemmon	31
Nicolas Cage	32
James Stewart	32