Oscars 2012: Animated Feature Symposium

Waiting my turn to speak with Javier Mariscal who nominated for Chico and Rita.

I know my posts are all out of order now, but I can't keep anything straight and my producer/editor, JD, is working his fingers off to edit all of the pieces as fast and furious as humanly possible.  We were able to attend the Animated Feature Symposium which honored the work of the five nominees in this category.  Not all of the nominees were in attendance, but we were able to speak with the nominees from Kung Fu Panda 2, Chico and Rita, and A Cat in Paris.  The diversity of the nominees speaks volumes about the sophistication of animation in this decade and we certainly do not see a Pixar nominee in the bunch this year.  They normally dominate this category, but Cars 2 did not make the final list.  Check out our two minute highlight video of the evening:

Making good use of the interior mirrored doors at The Academy.

A Hidden Gem

 Not bad, Steve Jobs, not bad....this photo was taken on my iPhone 4.

Would you believe this place exists amidst all of the chaos of Hollywood Boulevard? Hidden behind the famous intersection of Hollywood and Vine is the new restaurant, Wood and Vine.  It's a great place to sit back with a speciality cocktail like my very girly, Accomplice:  Rain Organic vodka, lemon juice, strawberry syrup, and champagne or something a little more manly for those of you into the dark booze drinks.  Head to the back to their cozy garden area with a fire pit, heat lamps, a cocktail, a taste of their chicken and waffles and the most divine thing on the menu:  Butterscotch Pot de Crème with Salted Caramel Ice Cream.  It's housed in the historic Taft Building which housed the original offices of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (The Oscar nerd in me just squealed!) and Charlie Chaplin.

Wood and Vine:  6280 Hollywood Boulevard, Hollywood

A view from the couch in the garden area of Wood and Vine--the LA sky encompassed by a historic building.

Oscar Wrap-Up

As I wake up from my Oscar haze, I realize there is so much to do:  photos to share, articles to read, and videos to upload.  This will be a week of Oscar wrap-ups, thoughts, and more behind the scenes scoop.  Next week, we get back to our regularly scheduled program. I hope I remember what that is!

First up, my article on Starpulse, "Secrets From The Red Carpet" is up.  You can also see more of my exclusive personal photos from the day.  I will also have another article coming in the next few days from the Makeup and Hair Symposium featuring all three nominated movies in this category.  It was one of my favorite events of the week, so stay tuned.

Here is my final personal Oscar video where I take you from the hair to makeup to the show:



I will leave you with a few photos from yesterday:

Interviewing Best Supporting Actor nominee, John Hawkes.

Javier, Javier, look at me!

What is that behind me?

Wally Pfister, the winner of Best Cinematography for Inception.

All photos are property of Mingle Media TV.

I Would Like To Thank The Academy.....

......Okay, I never, ever thought I would utter those words in my lifetime.  I am not an actress, nor do I ever aspire to be one.  However, today, I can say, "I'd like to thank the Academy".  Why?  Well, they kindly pushed my article out on their Twitter and Facebook pages.  So, my Oscar Nominees Luncheon article on Starpulse was seen by hundreds of thousands of people.  I am so honored and flattered it was such an amazing day for me and truly a privilege to be in that room with the entertainment journalists and film artists I admire.  So, I would like to thank the Academy for all of the support and encouragement, particularly the PR and Marketing team at AMPAS.  You have been amazing to me and my crew this awards season and I look forward to covering the 83rd Annual Academy Awards in 18 days.  Like Hall and Oates said, "You make my dreams come true...."

And a big "Thank You" to all of you for your comments and feedback on Twitter, Facebook, Starpulse, and here at Red Carpet Closet.  I am a big Oscar dork and I am happy to see that I am not the only one out there who thinks Red Carpet is an Olympic sport.