The Academy Awards, popularly known as the Oscars, are the most prominent and most watched film awards ceremony in the world. Awarded annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences since 1929 in Los Angeles, it recognizes excellence in many aspects of motion picture making, such as acting, directing and screenwriting.
Academy Awards are granted by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS), a professional honorary organization, which as of 2007 had a voting membership of 5,830. Actors, with a membership of 1,311, make up the largest voting bloc at 22 percent. The votes have been tabulated and certified by the auditing firm PricewaterhouseCoopers and its predecessor Price Waterhouse for 72 years, since close to the awards' inception.
Most recently, the 80th Academy Awards ceremony was held on Sunday, February 24, 2008, at the Kodak Theatre in Los Angeles to honor outstanding film achievements of 2007. It was hosted by Comedy Central's The Daily Show host Jon Stewart.
