2007年VOA标准英语-US Movie Academy Honors Scientific, Technical A

By Mike O'Sullivan
Los Angeles
15 February 2007

The U.S. Academy Awards for actors and others in the film industry will be presented in Hollywood February 25, but the motion picture academy has already honored technical innovators who work behind the scenes. From Los Angeles, Mike O'Sullivan has more on Hollywood's annual scientific and technical awards.

 
Attendees at technical Oscars awards ceremony
The Oscars are presented by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, and each year the academy presents scientific and technical awards to those who make the art of movies possible. It is a smaller ceremony, but just as exciting for the winners.

Engineer Ray Feeney received an Oscar statuette, the first of the season, for technological¹ contributions to the industry. He developed special-effects software used in such films as Titanic² and Men in Black.

"Most of us who work behind the camera on inventions and advancing the tools that are used by the filmmakers, we are relatively³ anonymous⁴. So tonight being able to be in a room amongst our peers being recognized with an honor like this, it is really very special," he said.

The Academy's so-called Sci-Tech awards are given for new devices used on the film set, or for techniques and software used in post-production.

 
Maggie Gyllenhaal
Actress Maggie Gyllenhaal, the hostess for the evening, is sometimes surprised by what she sees on the screen, even in films she has worked on.

"Oh yeah, definitely. Yeah. World Trade Center was that way. Monster House certainly was that way, " she said.

World Trade Center, a film in which Gyllenhaal costarred, relies on special effects to re-create the terror attacks of September, 2001, and Monster House used motion-capture technology that blended the work of actors like Gyllenhaal with computer images.

Some Sci-Tech awards are for highly technical processes. Mary Ann Anderson shared a commendation with 11 other people for a new approach to putting sound on film. It uses cyan dye, which is environmentally friendly, to create the audio track. The process saves 300 kiloliters of water for each film print.

"In addition, there is an archival benefit because there is a process called silver nitrate in old film. That silver nitrate is highly flammable. It can explode. And so if you can eliminate silver nitrate in the film processing, you don't have to worry when it sits in a film vault⁵ that it might explode or catch on fire," she said.

 
Richard Edlund
Visual effects artist Richard Edlund has won four Oscars, for his work on Star Wars, The Empire Strikes Back, Raiders of the Lost Ark and Return of the Jedi.  This year, he won a medal of commendation for contributions to the academy and the movie industry. He says engineers and technicians are important in Hollywood.

"These are artists in their own way, and they are just as creative in their way as the people who make movies. And they are basically creating the means to make movies better and more interesting and more visually spectacular," he said.

Sid Ganis, president of the motion picture academy, says new digital media are changing the movie business, and Hollywood is making a transition.

"What we are now doing very successfully on film, we had better know how to do and understand when it comes to the new media as well. And a big part of what the academy is doing is figuring that out. And what we are doing is, we are figuring that out for the whole industry," he said.

The academy's scientific and technical council is explaining the new technology to the studios, and helping⁶ set new standards.

 
Ray Feeney
Oscar recipient⁷ Ray Feeney says Hollywood is undergoing a change as profound as the shift from silent to sound films, or from black-and-white to color. He says that movie-making is still storytelling, but engineers like him are spurring a transformation⁸.

 "We are the ones building the tools that the storytellers use, and the stories that they are able to tell change as the tools become more powerful," he said.

He says with new techniques and tools, moviemakers can tell more complex, richer stories.

1 technological   

adj.技术的；工艺的

参考例句：

• A successful company must keep up with the pace of technological change.一家成功的公司必须得跟上技术变革的步伐。
• Today,the pace of life is increasing with technological advancements.当今， 随着科技进步，生活节奏不断增快。

2 titanic   

adj.巨人的，庞大的，强大的

参考例句：

• We have been making titanic effort to achieve our purpose.我们一直在作极大的努力，以达到我们的目的。
• The island was created by titanic powers and they are still at work today.台湾岛是由一个至今仍然在运作的巨大力量塑造出来的。

3 relatively   

adv.比较...地，相对地

参考例句：

• The rabbit is a relatively recent introduction in Australia.兔子是相对较新引入澳大利亚的物种。
• The operation was relatively painless.手术相对来说不痛。

4 anonymous   

adj.无名的；匿名的；无特色的

参考例句：

• Sending anonymous letters is a cowardly act.寄匿名信是懦夫的行为。
• The author wishes to remain anonymous.作者希望姓名不公开。

5 vault   

n.拱形圆顶，地窖，地下室

参考例句：

• The vault of this cathedral is very high.这座天主教堂的拱顶非常高。
• The old patrician was buried in the family vault.这位老贵族埋在家族的墓地里。

6 helping   

n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的

参考例句：

• The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
• By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。

7 recipient   

a.接受的,感受性强的 n.接受者,感受者,容器

参考例句：

• Please check that you have a valid email certificate for each recipient. 请检查是否对每个接收者都有有效的电子邮件证书。
• Colombia is the biggest U . S aid recipient in Latin America. 哥伦比亚是美国在拉丁美洲最大的援助对象。

8 transformation   

n.变化；改造；转变

参考例句：

• Going to college brought about a dramatic transformation in her outlook.上大学使她的观念发生了巨大的变化。
• He was struggling to make the transformation from single man to responsible husband.他正在努力使自己由单身汉变为可靠的丈夫。