My Oscar Picks for The 86th Academy Awards, March 2nd, 2014: What are your picks?

“I decided to host the Oscars again because I like a challenge, and I don't like to get stuck in a rut doing the same thing every day. So every once in a while I like to challenge myself. And this year I thought I would challenge myself in front of a billion people. And the gift bag.” ~~ Ellen DeGenerous , host of The 86th Academy Awards, American stand-up comedian, television host, and actress who starred in the popular sitcom "Ellen" from 1994 to 1998 and has hosted the syndicated talk show "The Ellen DeGeneres Show" since 2003; As quoted on why she decided to host The Academy Awards a second time. 86th Academy Awards

Seems like yesterday that the Oscar nominations were announced. Oscar night this year is telecast live on ABC on March 2 from the Dolby Theatre at Hollywood and Highland. More Oscar nomination coverage is at the Official 86th Annual Academy Awards -- Oscar.com and visit the “Oscar Nominee” section of the Website.

Here are my Oscar Picks for The 86th Academy Awards, March 2nd, 2014.

What are your picks? There's still time to cast your votes at Oscar.Go.com

Or you can look below which also includes my Oscar picks (begins with best picture category and includes links to more info about the Oscar nominated movie). Bookmark this post as it will be updated with winners as they become announced.
Photo left of Oscar statue award courtesy FreeDigitalPhotos.

Next to each category header is my prediction. Winner updates will be added as they are announced on Oscar night:

Best Picture: Winner ★ “12 Years a Slave,” Brad Pitt, Dede Gardner, Jeremy Kleiner, Steve McQueen and Anthony Katagas, Producers; My prediction, “Gravity”
★ “American Hustle” Charles Roven, Richard Suckle, Megan Ellison and Jonathan Gordon, Producers
★ “Captain Phillips” Scott Rudin, Dana Brunetti and Michael De Luca, Producers
★ “Dallas Buyers Club” Robbie Brenner and Rachel Winter, Producers
★ “Gravity” Alfonso Cuarón and David Heyman, Producers http://gravitymovie.warnerbros.com
★ “Her” Megan Ellison, Spike Jonze and Vincent Landay, Producers http:// www.herthemovie.com
★ “Nebraska” Albert Berger and Ron Yerxa, Producers
★ “Philomena” Gabrielle Tana, Steve Coogan and Tracey Seaward, Producers
★ “12 Years a Slave” Brad Pitt, Dede Gardner, Jeremy Kleiner, Steve McQueen and Anthony Katagas, Producers
★ “The Wolf of Wall Street” Martin Scorsese, Leonardo DiCaprio, Joey McFarland and Emma Tillinger Koskoff, Producers

Best Actor in a Leading Role: Winner ★ Matthew McConaughey, “Dallas Buyers Club;” My prediction, Matthew McConaughey in “Dallas Buyers Club.” Although I keep on going back and forth between Leonardo DiCaprio (also deserves an Oscar) in "The Wolf of Wall Street" and McConaughey.
★ Christian Bale, "American Hustle" (2nd Oscar nomination)
★ Bruce Dern, "Nebraska" (2nd Oscar nomination)
★ Leonardo DiCaprio, "The Wolf of Wall Street" (5th Oscar nomination)
★ Chiwetel Ejiofor, "12 Years a Slave" (first Oscar nomination)
★ Matthew McConaughey, "Dallas Buyers Club" (first Oscar nomination)

Best Actor in a Supporting Role: Winner ★Jared Leto; My prediction, Jared Leto, "Dallas Buyers Club" “…This is incredibly special because there are so so many people who have helped me….This is for the 36 million people who have lost the battle to aids...” ~~ Jared Leto on accepting award
★ Barkhad Abdi, "Captain Phillips" (first Oscar nomination)
★ Bradley Cooper, "American Hustle" (2nd Oscar nomination)
★ Michael Fassbender, "12 Years a Slave" (first Oscar nomination)
★ Jonah Hill, "The Wolf of Wall Street" (2nd Oscar nomination)
★ Jared Leto, "Dallas Buyers Club" (first Oscar nomination)

Best Actress in a Leading Role: Winner ★ Cate Blanchett, "Blue Jasmine;” her 2nd Oscar My prediction, Amy Adams, "American Hustle" (this is her fifth Oscar nomination)but I keep going back and forth between Judi Dench, "Philomena" and Adams.
★ Amy Adams, "American Hustle" (5th nomination, 2nd for leading role)
★ Cate Blanchett, "Blue Jasmine" (6th nomination, received one Oscar best actress supporting role in The Aviator) adorned the red carpet in a spectacular, nude blush Armani
★ Sandra Bullock, "Gravity" (2nd Oscar nomination, one Oscar for lead role "Blind Side") in a fabulous Alexander McQueen gown
★ Judi Dench, "Philomena" (nominated 7 times, one Oscar best actress supporting role Shakespeare In Love)
★ Meryl Streep, "August: Osage County" (nominated 18 times, won 3 Oscars for Sophies Choice, Iron Lady, Kramer vs. Kramer)

Best Actress in a Supporting Role: Winner ★ Lupita Nyong’o, "12 Years a Slave"; My prediction, Lupita Nyong’o, "12 Years a Slave"
★ Sally Hawkins, "Blue Jasmine" (first Oscar nomination)
★ Jennifer Lawrence, "American Hustle" (3rd Oscar nomination, won Oscar leading role "Silver Linings Playbook" dressed in Dior red gown at Oscar night
★ Lupita Nyong’o, "12 Years a Slave" (first Oscar nomination), wore pale icy blue Prada gown at Oscar night
★ Julia Roberts, "August: Osage County" 4th Oscar nomination, won Oscar leading role "Erin Brockovich" adorned the red carpet in a spectacular black lace Givenchy
★ June Squibb, "Nebraska" (1st Oscar nomination)

Best Animated Feature Film: Winner ★ "Frozen," Chris Buck, Jennifer Lee and Peter Del Vecho ; My prediction, “Frozen” Chris Buck, Jennifer Lee and Peter Del Vecho
★ "The Croods" - Chris Sanders, Kirk DeMicco and Kristine Belson (3rd Oscar nomination for Chris Sanders; first for Kirk DeMicco and Kristine Belson)
★ "Despicable Me 2" - Chris Renaud, Pierre Coffin and Chris Meledandri (2nd nomination for Chris Renaud, first for Pierre Coffin and Chris Meledandri)
★ "Ernest & Celestine" – Benjamin Renner and Didier Brunner (1st nominations for Renner and Brunner)
★ "Frozen" – Chris Buck, Jennifer Lee and Peter Del Vecho (2nd nomination for Chuck Buck; first for Lee and Del Vecho)
★ "The Wind Rises" – Hayao Miyazaki and Toshio Suzuki (3rd nomination for Miyazaki; 1st for Suzuki)

Best Cinematography: Winner ★ “Gravity” Emmanuel Lubezki; My prediction – obviously, “Gravity” Emmanuel Lubezki
★ "The Grandmaster" – Philippe Le Sourd (1st nomination)
★ "Gravity" - Emmanuel Lubezki (6th nomination)
★ "Inside Llewyn Davis" – Bruno Delbonnel (4th nomination)
★ "Nebraska" – Phedon Papamichael (1st nomination)
★ "Prisoners" – Roger A. Deakins (11th nomination)

Best Costume Design: Winner ★ Catherine Martin, The Great Gatsby; My prediction, "The Invisible Woman" Michael O’Connor
★ "American Hustle" – Michael Wilkinson (1st nomination)
★ "The Grandmaster" - William Chang Suk Ping (1st nomination)
★ "The Great Gatsby" - Catherine Martin (6th nomination, won 2 Oscars "Moulin Rouge" Art Direction + Costume Design")
★ "The Invisible Woman" - Michael O’Connor (3rd nomination, won for "The Duchess")
★ "12 Years a Slave" - Patricia Norris (6th nomination)

Best Directing: Winner ★ “Gravity” Alfonso Cuarón; My prediction, “Gravity” Alfonso Cuarón (6th Oscar nomination)
★ "American Hustle" – David O. Russell (5th Oscar nomination)
★ "Gravity" - Alfonso Cuarón (6th Oscar nomination)
★ "Nebraska" - Alexander Payne (7 Oscar nominations, 2 Oscar wins)
★ "12 Years a Slave" - Steve McQueen (2nd Oscar nomination)
★ "The Wolf of Wall Street" - Martin Scorsese (12 Oscar nominations, one Oscar "The Departed")

Best Documentary Feature: Winner ★ “20 Feet from Stardom” Morgan Neville, Gil Friesen and Caitrin Rogers; My prediction, “20 Feet from Stardom” Morgan Neville, Gil Friesen and Caitrin Rogers
★ "The Act of Killing" – Joshua Oppenheimer and Signe Byrge Sørensen (1st nomination for both)
★ "Cutie and the Boxer" - Zachary Heinzerling and Lydia Dean Pilcher (1st nomination for both)
★ "Dirty Wars" - Richard Rowley and Jeremy Scahill (1st nomination for both)
★ "The Square" - Jehane Noujaim and Karim Amer (1st nomination for both)
★ "20 Feet from Stardom" - Morgan Neville, Gil Friesen and Caitrin Rogers (1st nomination for all 3)

Best Documentary Short Subject: Winner ★ "The Lady in Number 6: Music Saved My Life," Malcolm Clarke and Nicholas Reed ; My prediction, "CaveDigger" – Jeremy Karoff
★ "CaveDigger" – Jeremy Karoff (1st nomination)
★ "Facing Fear" - Jason Cohen (1st nomination)
★ "Karama Has No Walls" - Sara Ishaq (1st nomination)
★ "The Lady in Number 6: Music Saved My Life" - Malcolm Clarke and Nicholas Reed (3rd nomination for Malcolm Clarke, won 1 Oscar; 1st nomination for Reed)
★ "Prison Terminal: The Last Days of Private Jack Hall" - Edgar Barens (1st nomination)

Best Film Editing: Winner ★ "Gravity" - Alfonso Cuarón and Mark Sanger ; My prediction, "Gravity" - Alfonso Cuarón and Mark Sanger
★ "American Hustle" – Jay Cassidy, Crispin Struthers and Alan Baumgarten (3rd nomination for Cassidy, 2nd for Struthers, 1st for Baumgarten)
★ "Captain Phillips" - Christopher Rous (3rd nomination, 1 Oscar won for THE BOURNE ULTIMATUM in 2007)
★ "Dallas Buyers Club" - John Mac McMurphy and Martin Pensa
★ "Gravity" - Alfonso Cuarón and Mark Sanger (6th nomination for Cuarón; 1st for Sanger)
★ "12 Years a Slave" – Joe Walker (1st nomination)

Best Foreign Language Film: Winner ★ “The Great Beauty” Italy; My prediction, “The Great Beauty” Italy
★ "The Broken Circle Breakdown" - Belgium (7th nomination Belgium)
★ "The Great Beauty" - Italy (28th nomination for Italy with 11 Oscar wins counting 2014 Oscar)
★ "The Hunt" - Denmark (10th nomination, 3 Oscar wins)
★ "The Missing Picture" - Cambodia (1st nomination)
★ "Omar" - Palestine (2nd nomination)

Best Makeup and Hairstyling: Winner ★ Adruitha Lee and Robin Mathews, Dallas Buyer’s Club; My prediction, "The Lone Ranger" - Joel Harlow and Gloria Pasqua-Casny
★ "Dallas Buyers Club" – Adruitha Lee and Robin Mathews (1st Oscar nomination for both)
★ "Jackass Presents: Bad Grandpa" - Stephen Prouty (1st Oscar nomination)
★ "The Lone Ranger" - Joel Harlow and Gloria Pasqua-Casny (2nd nomination for Harlow, won Oscar for Star Trek; 1st nomination for Pasqua-Casny)

Best Music (Original Score): Winner ★ “Gravity” Steven Price; My prediction, “Gravity” Steven Price
★ "The Book Thief" – John Williams (49 nominations, won 5 Oscars)
★ "Gravity" - Steven Price (first Oscar nomination)
★ "Her" - William Butler and Owen Pallett (1st Oscar nomination)
★ "Philomena" - Alexandre Desplat (6th Oscar nomination)
★ "Saving Mr. Banks" - Thomas Newman (12 Oscar nominations)

Best Music (Original Song): Winner ★ “Let It Go” from “Frozen;” My prediction, “Let It Go” from “Frozen;” Music and Lyric by Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert Lopez
★ “Alone Yet Not Alone” from “Alone Yet Not Alone;" Music by Bruce Broughton; Lyric by Dennis Spiegel
★ “Happy” from “Despicable Me 2;” Music and Lyric by Pharrell Williams (1st Oscar nomination)
★ “Let It Go” from “Frozen;” Music and Lyric by Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert Lopez (1st Oscar nomination)
★ “The Moon Song” from “Her;” Music by Karen O; Lyric by Karen O and Spike Jonze (4th Oscar nomination for Spike Jonze; 1st Oscar nomination for Karen O)
★ “Ordinary Love” from “Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom;” Music by Paul Hewson, Dave Evans, Adam Clayton and Larry Mullen; Lyric by Paul Hewson (2nd nomination for all 4 nominees)

Best Production Design: Winner ★ “The Great Gatsby,” Production Design: Catherine Martin; Set Decoration: Beverley Dunn; My prediction, “Gravity” Production Design: Andy Nicholson; Set Decoration: Rosie Goodwin and Joanne Woollard, Third Oscar nomination for Katherine Martin
★ “American Hustle” Production Design: Judy Becker; Set Decoration: Heather Loeffler (1st nominations for both)
★ “Gravity” Production Design: Andy Nicholson; Set Decoration: Rosie Goodwin and Joanne Woollard (2nd nomination for Wollard; 1st for Goodwin and Nicholson)
★ “The Great Gatsby” Production Design: Catherine Martin; Set Decoration: Beverley Dunn (6th nomination for Martin who won 2 Oscars Art Direction + Costume Design MOULIN ROUGE (2001), 1st nomination for Dunn)
★ “Her” Production Design: K.K. Barrett; Set Decoration: Gene Serdena (1st Oscar nomination for both)
★ “12 Years a Slave” Production Design: Adam Stockhausen; Set Decoration: Alice Baker (1st Oscar nomination for both)

Best Short Film (Animated): Winner ★ “Mr. Hublot,” Laurent Witz and Alexandre Espigares; My prediction, “Feral” Daniel Sousa and Dan Golden
★ “Feral” Daniel Sousa and Dan Golden (1st nomination for both)
★ “Get a Horse!” Lauren MacMullan and Dorothy McKim
★ “Mr. Hublot” Laurent Witz and Alexandre Espigares
★ “Possessions” Shuhei Morita (1st Oscar nomination)
★ “Room on the Broom” Max Lang and Jan Lachauer (2nd Oscar nomination for Lang, 1st for Lachuer)

Best Short Film (Live Action): Winner ★ “Helium” Anders Walter and Kim Magnusson ; My prediction, “Helium” Anders Walter and Kim Magnusson
★ “Aquel No Era Yo (That Wasn’t Me)” Esteban Crespo (1st Oscar nomination)
★ “Avant Que De Tout Perdre (Just before Losing Everything)” Xavier Legrand and Alexandre Gavras (1st Oscar nomination for both)
★ “Helium” Anders Walter and Kim Magnusson (5th Oscar nomination for Magnusson, 1 Oscar win; 1st nomination for Walter)
★ “Pitääkö Mun Kaikki Hoitaa? (Do I Have to Take Care of Everything?)” Selma Vilhunen and Kirsikka Saari (1st Oscar nominations for both)
★ “The Voorman Problem” Mark Gill and Baldwin Li (1st Oscar nominations for both)

Best Sound Editing: Winner ★ “Gravity” Glenn Freemantle; My prediction, “Gravity” Glenn Freemantle
★ “All Is Lost” Steve Boeddeker and Richard Hymns (9th Oscar nomination for Hymns, won 3 Oscars; 1st nomination for Boeddeker)
★ “Captain Phillips” Oliver Tarney (1st Oscar nomination)
★ “Gravity” Glenn Freemantle (1st nomination)
★ “The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug” Brent Burge and Chris Ward (1st Oscar nomination for both)
★ “Lone Survivor” Wylie Stateman (7th Oscar nomination)

Best Sound Mixing: Winner ★ “Gravity” Skip Lievsay, Niv Adiri, Christopher Benstead and Chris Munro; My prediction, “Gravity” Skip Lievsay, Niv Adiri, Christopher Benstead and Chris Munro
★ “Captain Phillips” Chris Burdon, Mark Taylor, Mike Prestwood Smith and Chris Munro (Including "Gravity" 4th Oscar nomination for Munro who won 1 for Black Hawk Down; 1st nominations for Taylor, Prestwood and Smith)
★ “Gravity” Skip Lievsay, Niv Adiri, Christopher Benstead and Chris Munro (Including "Captain Phillips" 4th Oscar nomination for Munro who won 1 for Black Hawk Down; 6th nomination for Lievsay; 1st nomination for Adiri and Benstead)
★ “The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug” Christopher Boyes, Michael Hedges, Michael Semanick and Tony Johnson (14th Oscar nomination for Boyes, won 4 Oscars; 4th nomination for Hedges, won 2 Oscars; 10 nomination for Semanick, won 2 Oscars; 3rd Oscar nomination for Johnson)
★ “Inside Llewyn Davis” Skip Lievsay, Greg Orloff and Peter F. Kurland (6th Oscar nomination for Lievsay includes nomination for "Gravity;" 4th nomination for Orloff, 1 Oscar win; 4th nominatin for Kurland0
★ “Lone Survivor” Andy Koyama, Beau Borders and David Brownlow (1st nomination for all nominees)

Best Visual Effects: Winner ★ “Gravity,” Tim Webber, Chris Lawrence, Dave Shirk and Neil Corbould; My prediction, “Gravity” Tim Webber, Chris Lawrence, Dave Shirk and Neil Corbould
★ “Gravity” Tim Webber, Chris Lawrence, Dave Shirk and Neil Corbould (2nd nomination for Webber; 4th nomination for Corbould, 1 Oscar win; 1st nomination for Lawrence and Shirk)
★ “The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug” Joe Letteri, Eric Saindon, David Clayton and Eric Reynolds (8th nomination for Letteri, 4 Oscar wins; 2nd nonimation for Saindon; 2nd nominatin for Clayton; 1st nomination for Reynolds)
★ “Iron Man 3” Christopher Townsend, Guy Williams, Erik Nash and Dan Sudick (6th Oscar nomination for Sudick; 3rd nomination for Nash; 2nd for Williams; 1st for Townsend)
★ “The Lone Ranger” Tim Alexander, Gary Brozenich, Edson Williams and John Frazier (11th Oscar nomination for Frazier; 1st nomination for Alexander, Brozenich and Williams)
★ “Star Trek Into Darkness” Roger Guyett, Patrick Tubach, Ben Grossmann and Burt Dalton (3rd Oscar nomination for Guyett; 3rd nomination for Dalton, 1 Oscar win; 2nd nomination for Grossman, 1 Oscar win; 1st nomination for Tubach0

Best Writing (Adapted Screenplay): Winner ★ “12 Years a Slave” Screenplay by John Ridley; My prediction, “12 Years a Slave” Screenplay by John Ridley
★ “Before Midnight” Written by Richard Linklater, Julie Delpy, Ethan Hawke (3rd Oscar nomination for Hawke; 2nd nomination for Linklater and Delpy)
★ “Captain Phillips” Screenplay by Billy Ray (1st Oscar nomination for Ray)
★ “Philomena” Screenplay by Steve Coogan and Jeff Pope (2nd Oscar nomination for Coogan; 1st nomination for Pope)
★ “12 Years a Slave” Screenplay by John Ridley (1st Oscar nomination for Ridley)
★ “The Wolf of Wall Street” Screenplay by Terence Winter (1st Oscar nomination for Winter)

Best Writing (Original Screenplay): Winner ★ “Her,” Spike Jonze; My prediction, “American Hustle” Written by Eric Warren Singer and David O. Russell
★ “American Hustle” Written by Eric Warren Singer and David O. Russell (5th nomination for Russell includes Best Directing nomination for "American Hustle;" 1st nomination for Singer)
★ “Blue Jasmine” Written by Woody Allen (24th Oscar nomination for Allen; 4 Oscar wins)
★ “Dallas Buyers Club” Written by Craig Borten & Melisa Wallack (1st Oscar nomination)
★ “Her” Written by Spike Jonze (4th Oscar nomination for Spike Jonze)
★ “Nebraska” Written by Bob Nelson (1st Oscar nomination for Nelson)

The Oscars are voted on by members of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. More information on the voting process is available at the Academy's website Oscar.com.

Photo of Ellen DeGeneres courtesy of Wikimedia; Photo of Oscar Award statue courtesy of FreeDigitalPhotos; Screen shot of Ellen DeGeneres Twitter account taken from my computer.


Additional resources:
♦ 2014 Oscar nominations: ‘Gravity,’ and ‘Hustle’ lead with 10 nominations including best picture, Los Angeles Times, http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/envelope/moviesnow/la-et-mn-oscar-nominations-2014-main,0,500124.story#axzz2qZqycltO
♦ Oscar.com 2014 nominations, http://www.oscars.org/awards/academyawards/86/nomineesByPicture.html
♦ Who’s gonna get picked ? Predicting the 2014 Oscar nominations http://www.cnn.com/2014/01/15/showbiz/movies/2014-oscar-predictions-nominations/
♦ Meet the 2014 Oscar Nominees, RottenTomatoes http://www.cnn.com/2014/01/15/showbiz/movies/2014-oscar-predictions-nominations/
♦ Jennifer Lawrence to Present at 86th ANNUAL ACADEMY AWARDS, BroadwaWorld.com, http://www.broadwayworld.com/bwwtv/article/Jennifer-Lawrence-to-Present-at-86th-ANNUAL-ACADEMY-AWARDS-20140214#ZAexyVhJtR8ihioZ.99
♦ Jared Leto Dating Lupita Nyong'o? 2014 Oscar Nominees' Rumored Romance Revealed, International Business News, http://www.ibtimes.com/jared-leto-dating-lupita-nyongo-2014-oscar-nominees-rumored-romance-revealed-1555605

This article will be updated during The 86th Academy Awards, March 2nd, 2014 with the Academy Award winners. Please visit this blog frequently and share this with your social media.

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