The glitz and the glamour of the 89th Academy Awards isn’t just for Americans.
From New South Wales’ Oscar-nominated sound editor to the Wagga mothers adding an Aussie flare to the event’s gift bag, this year’s event has a significant Australian touch.
Mr Wright, who grew up in Penshurst, boarded a flight for Los Angeles to attend the 89th Academy Awards being staged on Monday.
He has been nominated for two Oscars for sound editing and sound mixing on Hacksaw Ridge, directed by fellow Australian Mel Gibson.
This year’s Oscar nominees will be taking home more important items than the trophies.
Two Wagga mums have printed the tote bags to carry toddler shoes that will be included in the goodie bags, worth more than $300,000 each, for Hollywood’s elite.
Kristie Manning and Bek Harrison from B&K Industries are consultants for Attipas Wagga and were contacted by national distributor Caroline Africh to print the bags.
'Twas the night before the Oscars, when all through the Chateau Marmont, not a creature was stirring, not even Leonardo DiCaprio.
Why will Hollywood's renowned party boy be lying low tomorrow? He'll be getting primed for the Oscars by Australian "eyebrow artist" Sharon-Lee Hamilton.
Ahead of the red carpet Hamilton will trim and wax the brows of both DiCaprio and his best mate, Tobey Maguire. A service that usually costs $200.
Who would have thought it? Just a year after Australia won a record six Academy Awards in a whirlwind 90 minutes for Mad Max: Fury Road, the country has a record 14 nominations at the Oscars.
There are six each for two moving dramas based on real-life stories – Garth Davis' Lion, the runaway hit about an Indian-Australian man tracking down his birth mother, and Mel Gibson's Hacksaw Ridge, about a conscientious objector who becomes a hero in World War II.
It is hardly a revelation to say the Hollywood awards season is a commercial crock, more to do with money and power than film-making talent.
From November to February, Los Angeles is bombarded with advertisements begging voters consider films long since gone from cinema screens.
Nominees smile their way through parties with Hollywood star makers in the hope another ballot paper will fall their way.
Other Oscar news
The Academy Awards are on Monday. Apart from the record-breaking nominations for both black and non-white actors this year, and the recognition of more diverse movies, we know that Oscar is both literally and figuratively, very old, very straight and very rich. You don't force sweeping change on an old rich guy or someone's going to end up calling 000. So these are just tweaks – and just five of them – to make the Oscars great again.
If you want to dazzle your friends on Monday with your depth of Oscar-related trivia, you might casually mention that Brad Pitt has been nominated for six Academy Awards, with one win so far. But if you really want to impress them, you'll need to remember the role for which he collected that little gold man.
In a year with many worthy contenders, hands-down the most intriguing category at this year's Academy Awards is best actor. It's such a fascinating race because it is both the easiest to call and potentially the most difficult.
If the Academy's 6200 or so voters cast their ballots for the person they think has given the Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role (to give the award its full ungainly title), Casey Affleck is, by most assessments, guaranteed to win for Manchester by the Sea. He is exceptionally good in a truly outstanding (if rather gruelling) movie.
