How to win next year’s Oscar Party Pool. (PLUS DRINK RECIPES)

February 27th, 2012 Heather Kovar Posted in Heather Kovar | No Comments »

I wouldn’t say Academy Award prediction polls are as common as March Madness brackets and pools, but I’ve guessed my way through plenty of “Who will win the Oscar” forms.

However, I’ve found my weapon to help choose best “Animated Feature Film,” “Supporting Actor” and so forth…. THE BAFTAS.

This February, two weeks prior to the Academy Awards, the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) held its film award equivalent to the Oscars. Many of the categories are the same, and many of the same films are nominated. Okay, mostly the same films are nominated in mostly the same categories. And for the most part, the winners are the same.
You can compare. Here is the American Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (OSCARS) website and click here for the official Bafta site.

But here is a quick comparison: “The Artist” won the BAFTA for BEST FILM.
“The Artist” won the OSCAR for BEST PICTURE.

Jean Dujardin won the BAFTA for LEADING ACTOR.
Jean Dujardin won the OSCAR for ACTOR in a LEADING ROLE.
(All nominees were the same except one.)

Meryl Streep won the BAFTA for LEADING ACTRESS. Meryl Streep won the Oscar for ACTRESS in a LEADING ROLE.

Guess who won the BAFTA for SUPPORTING ACTOR and OSCAR for Actor in a Supporting Role?
Yes, CHRISTOPHER PLUMMER. He beat out Jonah Hill and Kenneth Branagh on both sides of the Atlantic.
According to this article,
Plummer also earned a Screen Actors Guild (SAG) Award, a Golden Globe and a Critics Choice Award for this role. (They didn’t mention the BAFTA.)

And of course Octavia Spencer won the BAFTA and OSCAR for her supporting role in “The Help.” She also won the Golden Globe, SAG and Critics Choice Award.

Here is an exception: The Artist won the BAFTA for ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY. “Midnight in Paris” won the OSCAR for Writing (Original Screenplay.)
“Bridesmaids,” one of my favorites this year, was nominated against both “Midnight in Paris” and “The Artist” for the Original Screenplay category for an OSCAR and BAFTA.

It didn’t win- but it’s kinda the reason I’m writing this blog post..
Living in London I somehow missed the Golden Globes, Screen Actors Guild Awards and Critics Choice Awards. I might not have caught the Academy Awards had it not been for an email from a public relations contact. I used to host a cooking show and she was offering a recipe for a drink in honor of Bridesmaids two OSCAR nods. ( I only then looked it up to find the movie also had the same two BAFTA nominations.)
SO cheers!!!
(Oh, and scroll down- I also got a recipe from the UK to celebrate “The Artist.”)
I’m not one usually to write to promote- but had I not received the email, you might not have won your Oscar Poll next year. You could have instead read a post on Syria or elections or … Anyway-

The Bridesmaid
1 oz Campari
1 oz Sweet Vermouth
4 oz Mionetto Prosecco Brut DOC, chilled
Combine ingredients in a fluted glass. Garnish with an orange twist.
Created by Allen Katz, Mixologist Southern Wine & Spirits
Using the same Mionetto Prosecco-
THE GEORGE CLOONEY
2 oz Vodka
¼ oz Passion Fruit Syrup
1 oz Pear Nectar
½ oz Fresh Lemon Juice
1 oz Mionetto Prosecco Brut DOC, chilled
Shake the first four ingredients over ice and strain into a collins glass filled with fresh ice. Top with Mionetto Prosecco Brut and garnish with a gooseberry.
RECIPE FROM THE UK- G’VINE DU JARDIN– in honor of BAFTA & OSCAR winner Jean Dujardin.
G’Vine is a premium gin crafted in Cognac, France from grape spirit and flavoured with the elusive vine flower.

G’Vine du Jardin (from the garden)
Ingredients :
1 quartered strawberry
2 basil leaves
3/6 lime
1/3 part Agave nectar or simple syrup
1 part G’Vine Floraison
2/3 part White grape juice
Method :
Muddle the first four ingredients in a shaker. Add G’Vine Floraison, the white grape juice, ice, shake and serve in a special cocktail glass. Garnish with half a strawberry and a basil sprig.