Finding Neverland's Marc Forster

Ray was underwritten by billionaire businessman Philip Anschutz; Million Dollar Baby, a late addition Rosetta Stone Language to the 2004 release schedule, was developed and underwritten by Tom Rosenberg's Lakeshore Entertainment; and The Aviator was funded largely by investor Graham King. In part because of their hodgepodge financing, the academy has yet to determine who will be named as the three films' official producers. As is inevitable in any Oscar race, there were several major surprises and oversights in the list of nominees announced in Hollywood yesterday. Critical favorite Paul Giamatti, who starred as the wine-swilling novelist in Sideways, was not nominated for best actor. And Javier Bardem's much-praised performance as the quadriplegic at the center of The Sea Inside also was bypassed. There were several upsets among those nominated for best director. Finding Neverland's Marc Forster was not among the nominees, even though the film is in the running for best picture. Alejandro Amenabar, who both directed and co-wrote The Sea Inside, was Language Learning Software not nominated in either category, although the film was selected to pete for best foreign language feature. Kinsey, the drama about sex researcher Alfred Kinsey, was considered a possible nominee in several top categories, including best picture and best actor for Liam Neeson. The film collected but one nomination, best supporting actress, for Laura Linney. Although it was not expected to draw any top nominations, Mel Gibson's The Passion of the Christ did collect three technical selections, including cinematography. Michael Moore's inflammatory Fahrenheit 9/11 was blanked; the filmmaker had gambled on a bid for a best picture nomination by avoiding the documentary feature category. Several people received unanticipated nominations. At the top of that list was English filmmaker Leigh, who was honored for both directing and writing Vera Drake. Along with Foxx and Freeman, the supporting actor nominees were Aviator's Alan Alda, Sideways co-star Thomas Haden Church, and Closer's Clive Owen. Besides Okonedo and Linney, the supporting actress picks were Natalie Portman for Closer, Aviator's Cate Blanchett, and Virginia Madsen from Sideways. Unlike last year's awards, which crowned global blockbuster The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King with 11 statuettes, there is no huge box-office hit among the best picture selections. Ray is the highest Portuguese Learning Software grossing of the five, with more than $73 million in ticket sales. But two of the year's biggest hits, Shrek 2 and The Incredibles, were named in the animated feature category. The Incredibles also was nominated for original screenplay and two sound awards. The Los Angeles Times is a Tribune Publishing newspaper.