Adam Sandler, Gabourey Sidibe, Anna Kendrick newest Academy members

Adam Sandler

Adam Sandler, who stars in the movie Grown Ups, Zoe Saldana, who played Lt. Uhura in Star Trek and "Neytiri" in Avatar, and Anna Kendrick from Twilight, join James Gandolfini, Mo’Nique, Carey Mulligan, Gabourey Sidibe and 128 others as The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) has announced that 135 entertainment industry luminaries have been invited to become members in the Academy.

The organization that presents the annual Oscars telecast has assembled a combination of stars
both young and old as well as public relations specialists, artists, executives, and others.

Within the list there are some surprises. Gabourey Sidibe is just the second actress in the 21st Century that within three years has went from not acting, to acting, to being an nominee for an Oscar, to becoming an Academy member.

Three years ago, Sidibe wasn't an actress. Then she was picked to play the title roll in Precious: Based on the Novel 'Push' by Sapphire, which became a hit last year. This year, Sidibe was honored with a nomination for the award of Best Actress in A Leading Roll, which eventually went to Academy-member Sandra Bullock.

Gabourey Sidibe

The only other actress to have enjoyed such a fast rise was Jennifer Hudson, who went from American Idol in 2004 to Dreamgirls in 2006, which landed her the Oscar for Best Supporting Actress.

Academy allowed 135 members not the 180 maximum members

AMPAS policy is to extend membership invitations to as many as 180 people. This year, just 135 got the nod because, as the AMPAS press release reports "the several branch committees endorsed fewer candidates than were proposed to them." President Tom Sherak said "The work of these individuals has been appreciated by moviegoers all around the world. The Academy is proud to invite each and every one of them."

The new members will be welcomed into the Academy at an invitation-only reception at the Academy’s Fairbanks Center for Motion Picture Study in Beverly Hills in September 2010.

Academy Membership isn't a guessing game

How a person becomes an Academy member isn't a guessing game. From personal information, if a person is associated with a movie that's nominated for an award they get automatic consideration in a kind of spreadsheet, systemic format. Not just actors and actresses, but producers and cinematographers and animators. Here's the full list, below, with more blog posts to follow.

The New AMPAS Members

Actors
Tobin Bell – Saw, The Firm
Vera Farmiga – Up in the Air, The Departed
Miguel Ferrer – Traffic, RoboCop
James Gandolfini – In the Loop, Get Shorty
Anna Kendrick – Up in the Air, Twilight
Mo’Nique – Precious: Based on the Novel 'Push' by Sapphire, Phat Girlz
Carey Mulligan – An Education, Public Enemies
Jeremy Renner – The Hurt Locker, 28 Weeks Later
Ryan Reynolds – The Proposal, X-Men Origins: Wolverine
LaTanya Richardson Jackson – Mother and Child, Losing Isaiah
Peter Riegert – Traffic, Crossing Delancey
Sam Robards – A.I. Artificial Intelligence, American Beauty
Saoirse Ronan – The Lovely Bones, Atonement
Zoe Saldana – Avatar, Star Trek
Adam Sandler – Funny People, Punch-Drunk Love
Peter Sarsgaard – An Education, "Boys Don’t Cry"
Gabourey Sidibe – Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire
Shaun Toub – Iron Man, The Kite Runner
Christoph Waltz – Inglourious Basterds
George Wyner – A Serious Man, American Pie 2

Animators
Ken Bielenberg – Monsters vs Aliens, Shrek
Peter de Seve – Ice Age Dawn of the Dinosaurs, Ratatouille
Steve Hickner – Bee Movie, "The Prince of Egypt"
Angus MacLane – Toy Story 3, WALL-E
Darragh O’Connell – Granny O’Grimm’s Sleeping Beauty, Give Up Yer Aul Sins
Simon Otto – How to Train Your Dragon, Kung Fu Panda
Bob Pauley – Toy Story 3, Monsters, Inc.
Willem Thijssen – The Aroma of Tea, A Greek Tragedy"

Art Directors
Kim Sinclair – Avatar, Cast Away
Dave Warren – Sweeney Todd The Demon Barber of Fleet Street, Bridget Jones’s Diary

At-Large
Darcy Antonellis
John Lowry

Casting Directors
Laura Rosenthal – The Messenger, I’m Not There

Cinematographers
Barry Ackroyd – The Hurt Locker, United 93
Christian Berger – The White Ribbon, Cache
Hagen Bogdanski – The Young Victoria, The Lives of Others
Shane Hurlbut – Terminator Salvation, We Are Marshall
Tom Hurwitz – Valentino The Last Emperor, Ghosts of Abu Ghraib
Dan Mindel – Star Trek, Mission: Impossible III
Tobias Schliessler – The Taking of Pelham 1 2 3, Hancock
Stephen Windon – The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift, House of Wax
Robert Yeoman – Get Him to the Greek, The Squid and the Whale

Costume Designers
Catherine Leterrier – Coco before Chanel, Avenue Montaigne
Janet Patterson – Bright Star, The Piano

Directors
Jacques Audiard – A Prophet, The Beat That My Heart Skipped
Juan Jose Campanella – The Secret in Their Eyes, "Son of the Bride"
Lee Daniels – Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire, Shadowboxer
Claudia Llosa – The Milk of Sorrow, Madeinusa
Lone Scherfig – An Education, Italian for Beginners
Adam Shankman – Bedtime Stories, Hairspray

Documentary
Nancy Baker – Rehearsing a Dream, Born into Brothels
Rick Goldsmith – The Most Dangerous Man in America: Daniel Ellsberg and the Pentagon Papers, Tell the Truth and Run: George Seldes and the American Press
Davis Guggenheim – It Might Get Loud, An Inconvenient Truth
Tia Lessin – Capitalism: A Love Story, Trouble the Water
Cara Mertes – The Betrayal, My Country, My Country
Frazer Pennebaker – Al Franken: God Spoke, The War Room
Julia Reichert – The Last Truck: Closing of a GM Plant, Seeing Red
Morgan Spurlock – Where in the World Is Osama Bin Laden?, Super Size Me

Executives
Christopher W. Aronson
Jim Berk
Philippe Dauman
Sheila DeLoach
Donald Peter Granger
Nathan Kahane
Andrew Karpen
Ryan Kavanaugh
David Kosse
David Andrew Spitz
Emma Watts

Film Editors
Robert Frazen – Synecdoche, New York, Smart People
Dana E. Glauberman – Up in the Air, Thank You for Smoking
Joe Klotz – Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire, Grace Is Gone
Bob Murawski – The Hurt Locker, Spider-Man
John Refoua – Avatar, Reno 911!: Miami

Live Action Short Films
Joachim Back – The New Tenants
Gregg Helvey – Kavi, The Knife Grinder’s Tale

Makeup Artists and Hairstylists
Kris Evans – X-Men The Last Stand," Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl
Jane Galli – Knight and Day, 3:10 to Yuma
Mindy Hall – Star Trek, World Trade Center
Joel Harlow – Star Trek, Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End
Jenny Shircore – The Young Victoria, Elizabeth

Music
Christophe Beck – The Hangover, Bring It On
Bono – Gangs of New York, In the Name of the Father
T Bone Burnett – Crazy Heart, Cold Mountain
The Edge – Gangs of New York, "GoldenEye"
Brian Tyler – Fast & Furious, Aliens vs. Predator Requiem

Producers
Stephanie Allain – Black Snake Moan, Hustle & Flow
Gregory Jacobs – The Informant!, The Good German
Jon Landau – Avatar, Titanic
Marc Turtletaub – Away We Go, Little Miss Sunshine
Glenn Williamson – Sunshine Cleaning, Hollywoodland

Production Designers
Kirk M. Pertruccelli – The Incredible Hulk, The Patriot
Edward S. Verreaux – G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra, Jurassic Park III

Public Relations
Dwight Caines
Suzanne M. Cole
Tommy Gargotta
Sophie Gluck
Josh Greenstein
Pamela Levine
Wendy Lightbourn
Michele Robertson
Tony Sella

Set Decorators
Maggie Gray – The Young Victoria, Ella Enchanted
Douglas A. Mowat – Role Models, The Sixth Sense
Caroline Smith – The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus, Match Point

Sound
Frank Eulner – Iron Man 2, Hellboy
Adam Jenkins – I Love You, Man, Crash
Tony Lamberti – Inglourious Basterds, Sideways
Dennis Leonard – Disney’s A Christmas Carol, The Polar Express
Tom Myers – Up, WALL-E
Paul N.J. Ottosson – The Hurt Locker, Spider-Man 3
Resul Pookutty – Ghajini, Slumdog Millionaire
Gary A. Rizzo – How to Train Your Dragon, The Dark Knight
Michael Silvers – Up, Ratatouille
Gwendolyn Yates Whittle – Avatar, The Simpsons Movie"=

Visual Effects
Matt Aitken – District 9, The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring
Karen Ansel – Angels & Demons, Men in Black II
Richard Baneham – Avatar, The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers
Eric Barba – The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, Zodiac
Paul Debevec – Avatar, King Kong
Russell Earl – Star Trek, Transformers
Steve Galich – Date Night, "Transformers"
Andrew R. Jones – Avatar, I, Robot
Dan Kaufman – District 9, Ocean’s Thirteen
Derek Spears – The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor, Superman Returns
Steve Sullivan – Avatar, Star Wars: Episode III Revenge of the Sith
Michael J. Wassel – Hellboy II: The Golden Army, The Bourne Identity

Writers
Neill Blomkamp – District 9
Mark Boal – The Hurt Locker, In the Valley of Elah
Geoffrey Fletcher – Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire
Nick Hornby – An Education, Fever Pitch
Alex Kurtzman – Star Trek, Mission: Impossible III
Tom McCarthy – Up, The Visitor
Roberto Orci – Star Trek, Mission: Impossible III
Terri Tatchell – District 9