Penelope Cruz
VICKY CRISTINA BARCELONA

NOMINATED ROLE
Penelope Cruz portrays the fiery Maria Elena, a divorced woman still locked in a complex relationship with her ex-husband.

ACCEPTANCE SPEECH
This is not going to be 45 seconds, I can say that right now. Has anybody ever fainted here? Because I might be the first one. Thank you so much to the Academy. I want to share this with my fellow nominees and with the amazing ensemble of actors that I had the privilege to work with in this movie. Thank you, Woody, for trusting me with this beautiful character. Thank for you having written over all these years some of the greatest characters for women. And I cannot talk about great female characters without thanking my friend Pedro Almodóvar for having made me part of so many of his adventures. Thank you, Bigas Luna, Fernando Trueba, for giving me my first movies. Thank you, Harvey Weinstein. I wanted to dedicate this to my parents and to my brother and sister, to my friend Robert Carlo, who is not with us anymore, and to everyone who has helped me from the beginning and you know who you are and I thank you from my heart.

I grew up in a place called Alcobendas, where this was not a very realistic dream. And I, always on the night of the Academy Awards, I stay up to watch the show and I always felt that this was, this ceremony was a moment of unity for the world because art, in any form, is and has been and will always be our universal language and we should do everything we can, everything we can, to protect its survival. So I thank you so much and I have to say something in Spanish, because everyone&

ACADEMY AWARDS HISTORY
This is the second Academy Award nomination for Penelope Cruz. She was previously nominated for:

VOLVER (2006) -- Nominee, Actress in a Leading Role

Penelope Cruz wins the Best Actress in a Supporting Role!

Penelope Cruz won the first Academy Award of the night Sunday, claiming the supporting-actress honor as a tempestuous artist in Woody Allen's Spanish romance "Vicky Cristina Barcelona."

The win capped a big weekend for Cruz, fresh off her win Saturday for the same prize at the Spirit Awards honoring independent film. "Vicky Cristina Barcelona" features Cruz as an unstable Spaniard in a steamy three-way affair with her ex-husband and an American woman.

"Has anybody ever fainted here? Because I might be the first one," Cruz said, who went on with warm thanks to Allen. "Thank you, Woody, for trusting me with this beautiful character. Thank you for having written all these years some of the greatest characters for women."

It's the fifth time an Allen film has earned a performer a supporting-acting honor. Cruz joins past Allen collaborators Dianne Wiest, a dual Oscar winner for "Hannah and Her Sisters" and "Bullets Over Broadway"; Michael Caine for "Hannah and Her Sisters"; and Mira Sorvino for "Mighty Aphrodite."

The award was presented by five past supporting-actress winners, including last year's, Tilda Swinton, plus Eva Marie Saint, Anjelica Huston, Whoopi Goldberg and Goldie Hawn.

click here to read all Oscars 2009 live blog

BAFTA Awards - 2009 Winners

With 'Slumdog Millionaire' and 'The Curious Case of Benjamin Button' scooping the most nominations, it was always going to be an exciting battle to see who would take home the most BAFTA masks. Add into the mix a host of A-list actors who walked the red carpet either to present an award or hoping to receive one, it really was an exciting night.The late Heath Ledger won Best Supporting Actor for his role in 'The Dark Knight'.

The BAFTAs are the British equivalent of the Oscar ceremony. This year the event takes place in London on the 8th February - two weeks before the Academy Awards.

After winning at the Golden Globes and SAG awards, British hopes rest firmly on Kate Winslet who is nominated for Best Actress, and Slumdog Millionaire which is nominated for Best Film.

Best Film: 'Slumdog Millionaire'

Also nominated: 'The Curious Case of Benjamin Button', 'Frost/Nixon', 'Milk', 'The Reader'

Best Actor: Mickey Rourke

Also nominated: Frank Langella, Dev Patel, Sean Penn, Brad Pitt

Best Actress: Kate Winslet ('The Reader')

Also nominated: Angelina Jolie, Kristen Scott Thomas, Meryl Streep, Kate Winslet ('Revolutionary Road')

Best Supporting Actor: Heath Ledger

Also nominated: Robert Downey Jr, Brendan Gleeson, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Brad Pitt

Best Supporting Actress: Penelope Cruz

Also nominated: Amy Adams, Freida Pinto, Tilda Swinton, Marisa Tomei

Best British Film: Man on Wire

Also nominated: Hunger, Slumdog Millionaire, Mamma Mia!, In Bruges

Best Director: Danny Boyle (Slumdog Millionaire)

Also nominated: Clint Eastwood (Changeling), David Fincher (The Curious Case of Benjamin Button), Ron Howard (Frost/Nixon), Stephen Daldry (The Reader)

Best Animation: WALL-E

Also nominated: Presepolis, Waltz With Bashir

Oscar Nomines 2009.

Actor in a Leading Role

Richard Jenkins THE VISITOR
Frank Langella FROST/NIXON
Sean Penn MILK
Brad Pitt THE CURIOUS CASE OF BENJAMIN BUTTON
Mickey Rourke THE WRESTLER

Actor in a Supporting Role

Josh Brolin MILK
Robert Downey Jr. TROPIC THUNDER
Philip Seymour Hoffman DOUBT
Heath Ledger THE DARK KNIGHT
Michael Shannon REVOLUTIONARY ROAD

Actress in a Leading Role

Anne Hathaway RACHEL GETTING MARRIED
Angelina Jolie CHANGELING
Melissa Leo FROZEN RIVER
Meryl Streep DOUBT
Kate Winslet THE READER

Actress in a Supporting Role

Amy Adams DOUBT
Penélope Cruz VICKY CRISTINA BARCELONA
Viola Davis DOUBT
Taraji P. Henson THE CURIOUS CASE OF BENJAMIN BUTTON
Marisa Tomei THE WRESTLER

other categories...

Best animated feature film of the year

"Bolt" (Walt Disney) Chris Williams and Byron Howard

"Kung Fu Panda" (DreamWorks Animation, Distributed by Paramount) John Stevenson and Mark Osborne

"WALL-E" (Walt Disney) Andrew Stanton

Achievement in art direction

"Changeling" (Universal) Art Direction: James J. Murakami Set Decoration: Gary Fettis

"The Curious Case of Benjamin Button" (Paramount and Warner Bros.) Art Direction: Donald Graham Burt
Set Decoration: Victor J. Zolfo

"The Dark Knight" (Warner Bros.) Art Direction: Nathan Crowley Set Decoration: Peter Lando

"The Duchess" (Paramount Vantage, Pathé and BBC Films) Art Direction: Michael Carlin Set Decoration: Rebecca Alleway

"Revolutionary Road" (DreamWorks, Distributed by Paramount Vantage) Art Direction: Kristi Zea Set Decoration: Debra Schutt

Achievement in cinematography

"Changeling" (Universal) Tom Stern

"The Curious Case of Benjamin Button" (Paramount and Warner Bros.) Claudio Miranda

"The Dark Knight" (Warner Bros.) Wally Pfister

"The Reader" (The Weinstein Company) Chris Menges and Roger Deakins

"Slumdog Millionaire" (Fox Searchlight) Anthony Dod Mantle

Achievement in costume design

"Australia" (20th Century Fox) Catherine Martin

"The Curious Case of Benjamin Button" (Paramount and Warner Bros.) Jacqueline West

"The Duchess" (Paramount Vantage, Pathé and BBC Films) Michael O'Connor

"Milk" (Focus Features) Danny Glicker

"Revolutionary Road" (DreamWorks, Distributed by Paramount Vantage) Albert Wolsky

Achievement in directing

"The Curious Case of Benjamin Button" (Paramount and Warner Bros.) David Fincher

"Frost/Nixon" (Universal) Ron Howard

"Milk" (Focus Features) Gus Van Sant

"The Reader" (The Weinstein Company) Stephen Daldry

"Slumdog Millionaire" (Fox Searchlight) Danny Boyle

Best documentary feature

"The Betrayal (Nerakhoon)" (Cinema Guild)
A Pandinlao Films Production Ellen Kuras and Thavisouk Phrasavath

"Encounters at the End of the World" (THINKFilm and Image Entertainment)
A Creative Differences Production Werner Herzog and Henry Kaiser

"The Garden"
A Black Valley Films Production Scott Hamilton Kennedy

"Man on Wire" (Magnolia Pictures)
A Wall to Wall Production James Marsh and Simon Chinn

"Trouble the Water" (Zeitgeist Films)
An Elsewhere Films Production Tia Lessin and Carl Deal

Best documentary short subject

"The Conscience of Nhem En"
A Farallon Films Production Steven Okazaki

"The Final Inch"
A Vermilion Films Production Irene Taylor Brodsky and Tom Grant

"Smile Pinki"
A Principe Production Megan Mylan

"The Witness - From the Balcony of Room 306"
A Rock Paper Scissors Production Adam Pertofsky and Margaret Hyde

Achievement in film editing

"The Curious Case of Benjamin Button" (Paramount and Warner Bros.) Kirk Baxter and Angus Wall

"The Dark Knight" (Warner Bros.) Lee Smith

"Frost/Nixon" (Universal) Mike Hill and Dan Hanley

"Milk" (Focus Features) Elliot Graham

"Slumdog Millionaire" (Fox Searchlight) Chris Dickens

Best foreign language film of the year

"The Baader Meinhof Complex" A Constantin Film Production - Germany
"The Class" (Sony Pictures Classics) A Haut et Court Production - France
"Departures" (Regent Releasing) A Departures Film Partners Production - Japan
"Revanche" (Janus Films) A Prisma Film/Fernseh Production - Austria
"Waltz with Bashir" (Sony Pictures Classics) A Bridgit Folman Film Gang Production - Israel

Achievement in makeup

"The Curious Case of Benjamin Button" (Paramount and Warner Bros.) Greg Cannom

"The Dark Knight" (Warner Bros.) John Caglione, Jr. and Conor O'Sullivan

"Hellboy II: The Golden Army" (Universal) Mike Elizalde and Thom Floutz

Achievement in music written for motion pictures (Original score)

"The Curious Case of Benjamin Button" (Paramount and Warner Bros.) Alexandre Desplat

"Defiance" (Paramount Vantage) James Newton Howard

"Milk" (Focus Features) Danny Elfman

"Slumdog Millionaire" (Fox Searchlight) A.R. Rahman

"WALL-E" (Walt Disney) Thomas Newman

Achievement in music written for motion pictures (Original song)

"Down to Earth" from "WALL-E" (Walt Disney) Music by Peter Gabriel and Thomas Newman
Lyric by Peter Gabriel

"Jai Ho" from "Slumdog Millionaire" (Fox Searchlight) Music by A.R. Rahman
Lyric by Gulzar

"O Saya" from "Slumdog Millionaire" (Fox Searchlight) Music and Lyric by A.R. Rahman and Maya Arulpragasam

Best motion picture of the year

"The Curious Case of Benjamin Button" (Paramount and Warner Bros.)
A Kennedy/Marshall Production Kathleen Kennedy, Frank Marshall and Ceán Chaffin, Producers

"Frost/Nixon" (Universal)
A Universal Pictures, Imagine Entertainment and Working Title Production Brian Grazer, Ron Howard and Eric Fellner, Producers

"Milk" (Focus Features)
A Groundswell and Jinks/Cohen Company Production Dan Jinks and Bruce Cohen, Producers

"The Reader" (The Weinstein Company)
A Mirage Enterprises and Neunte Babelsberg Film GmbH Production Nominees to be determined

"Slumdog Millionaire" (Fox Searchlight)
A Celador Films Production Christian Colson, Producer

Best animated short film

"La Maison en Petits Cubes"
A Robot Communications Production Kunio Kato

"Lavatory - Lovestory"
A Melnitsa Animation Studio and CTB Film Company Production Konstantin Bronzit

"Oktapodi" (Talantis Films)
A Gobelins, L'école de l'image Production Emud Mokhberi and Thierry Marchand

"Presto" (Walt Disney)
A Pixar Animation Studios Production Doug Sweetland

"This Way Up"
A Nexus Production Alan Smith and Adam Foulkes

Best live action short film

"Auf der Strecke (On the Line)" (Hamburg Shortfilmagency)
An Academy of Media Arts Cologne Production Reto Caffi

"Manon on the Asphalt" (La Luna Productions)
A La Luna Production Elizabeth Marre and Olivier Pont

"New Boy" (Network Ireland Television)
A Zanzibar Films Production Steph Green and Tamara Anghie

"The Pig"
An M & M Production Tivi Magnusson and Dorte Høgh

"Spielzeugland (Toyland)"
A Mephisto Film Production Jochen Alexander Freydank

Achievement in sound editing

"The Dark Knight" (Warner Bros.) Richard King

"Iron Man" (Paramount and Marvel Entertainment) Frank Eulner and Christopher Boyes

"Slumdog Millionaire" (Fox Searchlight) Tom Sayers

"WALL-E" (Walt Disney) Ben Burtt and Matthew Wood

"Wanted" (Universal) Wylie Stateman

Achievement in sound mixing

"The Curious Case of Benjamin Button" (Paramount and Warner Bros.) David Parker, Michael Semanick, Ren Klyce and Mark Weingarten

"The Dark Knight" (Warner Bros.) Lora Hirschberg, Gary Rizzo and Ed Novick

"Slumdog Millionaire" (Fox Searchlight) Ian Tapp, Richard Pryke and Resul Pookutty

"WALL-E" (Walt Disney) Tom Myers, Michael Semanick and Ben Burtt

"Wanted" (Universal) Chris Jenkins, Frank A. Montaño and Petr Forejt

Achievement in visual effects

"The Curious Case of Benjamin Button" (Paramount and Warner Bros.) Eric Barba, Steve Preeg, Burt Dalton and Craig Barron

"The Dark Knight" (Warner Bros.) Nick Davis, Chris Corbould, Tim Webber and Paul Franklin

"Iron Man" (Paramount and Marvel Entertainment) John Nelson, Ben Snow, Dan Sudick and Shane Mahan

Adapted screenplay

"The Curious Case of Benjamin Button" (Paramount and Warner Bros.) Screenplay by Eric Roth
Screen story by Eric Roth and Robin Swicord

"Doubt" (Miramax) Written by John Patrick Shanley

"Frost/Nixon" (Universal) Screenplay by Peter Morgan

"The Reader" (The Weinstein Company) Screenplay by David Hare

"Slumdog Millionaire" (Fox Searchlight) Screenplay by Simon Beaufoy

Original screenplay

"Frozen River" (Sony Pictures Classics) Written by Courtney Hunt

"Happy-Go-Lucky" (Miramax) Written by Mike Leigh

"In Bruges" (Focus Features) Written by Martin McDonagh

"Milk" (Focus Features) Written by Dustin Lance Black

"WALL-E" (Walt Disney) Screenplay by Andrew Stanton, Jim Reardon
Original story by Andrew Stanton, Pete Docter

Penelope Cruz At New York Premier.

Penelope Cruz in New York for the premier of her new movie "Vicky Cristina Barcelona". Penelope Cruz took some time out to to meet fans and sign some autographs. "Vicky Cristina Barcelona" was written and directed by Woody Allen. The story is about two girlfriends who are on a summer holiday in Spain and become enamored with the same painter, unaware that his ex-wife, with whom he has a tempestuous relationship, is about to re-enter the picture.

The movie also stars Scarlett Johansson whom Penelope Cruz had to kiss. Scarlett Johansson said that her on screen lesbian kiss with Penelope Cruz was

"the least sexy thing ever".

Other articles:
Penelope Cruz At The BAFTA's
Penolope Cruz Defends Tom Cruise
Penelope Cruz Nipple Slip