Your Guide to the 2012 Oscar Awards

Your office is probably already abuzz with talk and speculation about the upcoming Oscar’s ceremony on Sunday night. Here is everything you need to know to participate intelligently in conversations with your clients and colleagues.

The 2012 Oscars will be held at 7pm EST on Sunday, February 26 on ABC to celebrate “outstanding film achievements in 2011”. This is the 86^th Academy Awards ceremony and will be hosted by veteran Billy Crystal, who hosted the event eight times before. Any discussion of the Oscar Awards this week will eventually come down to the Best Picture of the Year (and next week will focus on the most memorable thank you speeches).

Here are the films up for Best Picture: The Artist, The Descendants, Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close, The Help, Hugo, Midnight in Paris, Moneyball, The Tree of Life, and War Horse.

Here are the nominees for Best Actor in a leading role: Demián Bichir, George Clooney, Jean Dujardin, Gary Oldman, and Brad Pitt.

Here are the nominees for Best Actress in a leading role: Glenn Close, Viola Davis, Rooney Mara, Meryl Streep, and Michelle Williams.

Here are the nominees for films featuring the Best Director: The Artist, The Descendants, Hugo, Midnight in Paris, and The Tree of Life.

The rest of your Oscar conversations will be up to you and your particular preferences. How many of the films have you seen? It’s not too late to catch up. If you still have some movies that you haven’t seen yet but want to, ask a colleague join you.

Remember that the Oscars are all about having fun. With so many stresses and conversation topics at the office that can lead to conflict or trouble, discussions regarding the Oscars provide us all with a safe and entertaining way to bond with your coworkers. Indulge.

Photo courtesy of Loren Javier.