The setting was Spago in Beverly Hills. The decor was Far Far Away. The restaurant was transformed into the mythical land at the heart of "Shrek 2," ostensibly to promote the DVD launch of the highest-grossing animated film in history.
But as the paparazzi flashed away at Eddie Murphy, Mike Myers and Julie Andrews, three of the stars who provided voices for the film, and as hundreds of industry insiders milled about sipping wine and munching stir-fried lamb in lettuce cups, another reason for the evening became apparent: The Oscar campaign for "Shrek 2" was shifting into gear.
In a year when no live-action movie has emerged to overshadow the competition, some animated films may have a shot at best picture nominations.
Their prospects would be considered unlikely, except for the perception among academy members, if not the public, that there is a dearth of Oscar-worthy live-action films this year.
Contenders, which include Mel Gibson's "The Passion of the Christ"; "Collateral," starring Tom Cruise; "Ray," starring Jamie Foxx; "Kinsey," starring Liam Neeson; and "Sideways," an independent film, will certainly make a run for a nomination, but their success remains uncertain.
To date, though, only one animated film has ever received a best picture nomination in the Academy Awards' 76 years, the Walt Disney Co.'s 1991 fairy tale, "Beauty and the Beast."
"How can you keep avoiding it when it's like the elephant in the room?" asked Andrews, who supplies the voice of Queen Lillian in "Shrek 2" and won the Oscar for best actress for 1964's "Mary Poppins." "There are so many great animated movies these days.... The technology is incredible. They are doing things that never could have been done before."
As the genre continues to push creative boundaries and delivers blockbuster box office receipts, it is increasingly difficult for academy voters to discount animated movies.
Indeed, the lines between live-action and animation films continue to blur, thanks to technological advances in computer graphics, stronger scripts and Oscar-winning stars and directors willing to lend their names and talents to a genre once dismissed as the province of cartoons.
This may be the year, said Jon Bloom, chairman of the executive committee of the academy's short films and animation branch: "I think it's possible ... with the terrific crop of animated pictures we have."
