Reactions to Academy Awards nominations

Reactions to nominations for the Academy Awards:

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"It's great fun for the movie to see it get acknowledged that way, but it's not the goal. It's a fickle business, and there to be enjoyed if you're invited and there to be enjoyed if you're not." - Brad Pitt, best-actor nominee for "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button."

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"Every day that we had scenes between Frank Langella and Michael Sheen, the crew that's usually off by the time you're filming, is eating bagels and smoking cigarettes. They would gather around the monitors, because they just didn't want to miss it. Every take was interesting. Every take was powerhouse. It was just ... for a director that loves to work with actors - I fancy myself as an actor's director - it was an absolute field day." - Ron Howard, best-director nominee for "Frost/Nixon."

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"I was with my friend Salma (Hayek) and she woke me up 2 minutes before the announcement, which we watched live. I then received a lot of congratulation calls ... (Salma) told me that it was clear for her, that it was going to happen. But all the time I have tried to not expect anything, to be caught by the surprise." - Penelope Cruz, supporting-actress nominee for "Vicky Cristina Barcelona."

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"I just have to keep remembering that the film nearly went straight to DVD. There was a week or two when it might never have appeared on a big screen in the United States, and the fact that it did, and Americans have taken it to their hearts, is just fantastic." - "Slumdog Millionaire" screenwriter Simon Beaufoy.

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"I think the phenomenon of today that I'm noticing is that it's very odd to talk about how you feel about something that you don't really know how you feel about it and/or at the time you're processing. ... I hear a lot of first-time mothers feel that way in the delivery room. `Hey, what's it like, here's your baby!' Like, `It's great!'" - Robert Downey Jr., supporting-actor nominee for "Tropic Thunder."

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"I'm ecstatic! Thank you to the Academy from the cast and crew here in Mumbai where the film was made and where it's being premiered tonight. It feels like you've given us a billion nominations!" - "Slumdog Millionaire" director Danny Boyle.

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"Working with Clint Eastwood was a reward in itself that will last me a lifetime. To receive a nomination from the Academy on top of that is a privilege beyond any expectation. It has been an exceptional year for acting, and I am honored to be in the company of these talented actors whose performances all deserve this recognition." - Angelina Jolie, best-actress nominee for "Changeling."

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"It's everything that you could possibly imagine it is, and not that I needed the nomination to know I was on the right path, but it certainly helps. It really does." - Viola Davis, supporting-actress nominee for "Doubt."

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"I couldn't have imagined anything like this a couple years ago. You just do your work and are happy you're able to make some money. This is very, very special, especially because of the movie. It wasn't that I read this character and said, `I have to do this character.' It was more about the movie." - Josh Brolin, supporting-actor nominee for "Milk."

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"I was in my living room (at his home in Rhode Island) having a cup of coffee, and my son's father-in-law called me. ... He said, 'Way to go.' And I said, 'What?' He said, 'You not watch it?' I said, 'Really?' I was truly floored." - Richard Jenkins, best-actor nominee for "The Visitor."

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"I didn't know at first what awards we'd won, and when I finally found out, I thought it was pretty great. To have as many as eight is pretty good." - "Milk" director Gus Van Sant. Van Sant received a best-director nomination for the film.

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"I was at my studio (in Israel) with my editor. We were working on the DVD. We don't have TV here, so we saw it on the Internet. We had a couple of bottles of champagne waiting for us, and now we are finishing them off." - "Waltz With Bashir" writer-director Ari Folman on how he heard about his foreign film nomination.

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"I am overjoyed by these nominations and deeply grateful that the Academy has embraced the music of this film. `Slumdog Millionaire' has paid magical dividends for so many people around the globe. I am deeply honored to be a part of a film that has inspired so many." - A.R. Rahman, nominee for original score and original song.

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"I'm delighted for Kate. I think she did two astonishing performances in `Revolutionary Road' and in `The Reader.' Whichever one the Academy went for, I think it's her year. I think it's her turn. I think that it's wonderful for her, but I do think she's done two astonishing performances." - Stephen Daldry, director of "The Reader." Winslet received a best-actress nomination for her role in that film.

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"It is such a thrill to be recognized in this category with these remarkably talented women. I was with my parents and my dog when I got the news and we were all overjoyed - although I'm not sure my dog knew what was going on. This is a great day to be an actress!" - Anne Hathaway, best-actress nominee for "Rachel Getting Married."

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"I'm extremely happy to have been nominated. And very fortunate. Playing Hanna Schmitz will always remain one of the biggest challenges I've ever been blessed with. I'm genuinely thrilled not just for myself but for the wonderful Stephen Daldry and David Hare. These nominations are a testament to their unwavering commitment to this film. And I'm also very happy for all the people in Germany whose hard work on `The Reader' has been rewarded by these nominations. Surely Anthony Minghella and Sydney Pollack are smiling down on us today!" - Kate Winslet, best-actress nominee for "The Reader."

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"I was pretty much sound asleep. I had the phone on vibrate, so it was like this little earthquake woke me, and it was my publicist with the good news. I was a little bit shell-shocked." - Michael Shannon, supporting-actor nominee for "Revolutionary Road."

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"It's very thrilling and also for me kind of funny. You're a documentary filmmaker, you don't ever expect to find yourself in this kind of world. So there's something almost hilarious about it, like God is laughing at me - or perhaps with me, as well." - James Marsh, director of "Man on Wire," nominated for best documentary.

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"They make you feel like it's not a fluke. They make you feel like it's not chance that you've gotten there. Luck's always a huge part of it, but there's so much blood, sweat and tears and effort that sort of has to be in combination with the luck whenever it comes - and so you can take a little bit of solace in all the effort that you put towards stuff and feel that you've earned it a bit." - Director Andrew Stanton, on "WALL-E" receiving six nominations.

Terra USA/AP