OscarWatch: Trek Nominee Gets Speech Help + Quinto & Madonna Party + Predictions + more [UPDATED]

Tomorrow is the Oscars and of course there is a lot of media attention. Below we some of the latest Trek-related Oscar articles, including a nominee getting speech advice, Quinto and Madonna hanging at a pre-Oscar party, Michael Giacchino talking about his scores, and a breakdown of predictions for the Star Trek categories.  

UPDATE: ‘Three words’ from Trek nominees

Good Morning America has reached out to many of the Oscar nominees to share three words on what being nominated means to them. The video below includes a number of Trek’s nominees.

UPDATE 2: Makeup nominees talk Trek

The AP is reporting from today’s pre-Oscar makeup and hair artists symposium, where Star Trek’s three nominees talked about their work on the film.

"We’re thrilled there were 40-plus makeup artists, 12 of which are out here today, who stood beside us," said "Trek" makeup department head Mindy Hall at the Samuel Goldwyn Theater at the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. "They weren’t behind us. They were beside us, taking the designs and bringing them to life."

Clips highlighting the work from the three nominated films were shown, and present nominees took questions from the audience. The "Trek" makeup team, which also includes alien designers Joel Harlow and Barney Burman, revealed they went through seven different designs for the villainous blunt foreheaded Romulan race.

"From the get go, we all wanted to do work that was worthy of this," said Burman of their nod.

UPDATE 3: Zoe Talks Oscars & Avatar
Zoe talked to Access Hollywood about getting ready for the Oscars and Avatar.

Star Trek Sound Mixer gets Oscar Speech help

Anna Behlmer is nominated for Best Sound Mixing for her work on Star Trek. This is actually her tenth nomination. Just in case this time is the charm, Anna has accepted the help of Time Magazine columnist Joel Stein. Stein has an article about this at Time.com, here is an excerpt:

I suggested opening her speech by saying she understands that members of the Oscar audience don’t want to hear from a sound mixer because they’re only interested in the fame and glamour of sound editors. Anna flinched at that idea because apparently the relationship between sound mixers and editors is a little tense. So I suggested coming up with a list of people she wasn’t going to thank, including the stars and director, since they would never thank the sound mixer. Anna said she’d like to avoid antagonizing J.J. Abrams, the powerful director of Star Trek. But she at least agreed to cut her list down so she was thanking only Abrams and to admit in the speech that she’s doing it only so he’ll hire her for Mission: Impossible 4.
[Read more: time.com]

“Star Trek” Oscar-nominees Andy Nelson and Anna Behmler at a Dolby pre-Oscar party

Quinto and Madonna hit it off at pre-Oscar party

On Thursday Star Trek’s Zachary Quinto was spotted at a Grey Goose-sponsored pre-Oscar party in West Hollywood packed with big name celebs like Quentin Tarantino, Clive Owen, Natalie Portman, Madonna and more. And according to the LA Times, the new Spock and The Material Girl really hit it off:

Madge, clad in a silver top and black fur-lined coat, hit it off with "Star Trek" and "Heroes" star Zachary Quinto. The two were so chummy they carried their lovefest from the balcony to a table inside. [Read more: latimes.com]

And then there is this report from the event from LaineyGossip:

I don’t think I can adequately describe to you the amazingness of the moment. Madonna in a fur collared coat, preening at a harem of gorgeous men who are there to do her bidding, hand picking the ones allowed to stand close to her, rejecting the ones she deemed unworthy, and ultimately settling on a new favourite. We witnessed the coronation of Zachary Quinto.

Quinto and Madonna from the Grey Goose Party – became fast friends

Giacchino’s Star Trek idea – forget you are in space

Star Trek composer and Oscar nominee (for Up) Michael Giacchino has another pre-Oscar profile and interview with the BBC. The interview includes some discussion of Star Trek, where Giacchino reveals he struggled with it at first:

It was the greatest call to ever get and the most terrifying call to ever get. When I first started writing music for that film nothing sounded right. What I was doing was writing music based on my perception of Star Trek the brand…

Someone said to me – forget the idea that we’re in space, you’re writing the score for the story of two guys who meet and become the best of friends. And that’s when I came up with the theme that’s in the movie.

Giacchino with his Grammys for "Up" – poised for an Oscar

Star Trek category predictions roundup

Here is the full updated breakdown of Oscar predictions of the four Star Trek categories from the entertainment press (via awardsdaily.com).