OK, I stole that line from the NY Times, which did their round-up of Oscar nominee prognostication a couple weeks ago. The main differences between their list and my list are that (1) you will see no limeys here and (2) I’m going to take a completely self-centered—or rather, LoHud-centered—view of the awards nomination process. Which means I’m focusing solely on those performances (or films) with connections to Westchester, Rockland, and Putnam, all of which, in my mind, merit some serious Academy lovin’.
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Best Picture

• “The Departed”—shot partially in White Plains

• “The Good Shepherd”—scenes filmed in Tarrytown

• “Little Children”—a dead ringer for just about any Westchester town, even though it wasn’t shot there
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Best Director

• Ron Howard, “The Da Vinci Code” (lives in Greenwich)

• Mel Gibson, “Apocalypto” (born in Peekskill, grew up in Verplanck)

• Stephen Baldwin, the “Livin’ It” series of evangelical, extreme sports DVDs (lives in Upper Grandview)
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Best Actor

• Tim Robbins, “Catch a Fire” (lives in Bedford)

• Tim Robbins, “The Secret Life of Words” (hey, if Leo and Clint can get double-nominated, why not Tim?)

• Joseph Cross, “Running With Scissors” (grew up in Pelham)
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Best Actress

• Bryce Dallas Howard, “Lady in the Water” (graduated from Byram Hills High School in Armonk)

• Ellen Burstyn, “The Wicker Man” (lives in Nyack)

• Felicity Huffman, “Filliam H. Muffman” (born in Bedford)
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Supporting Actor

• Stanley Tucci, “The Devil Wears Prada” (raised in Katonah and lives in North Salem)

• Alec Baldwin, “The Departed” (ok, technically he lives in the city, but with brothers Billy and Stephen out in Bedford and Upper Grandview, respectively, so I say he still counts)

• Alec Baldwin, “Running with Scissors” (what can I say, the man has been a rock star this year)

• Chazz Palminteri, “A Guide to Recognizing Your Saints” (lives in Bedford)

• Joseph Cross, “Flags of Our Fathers” (Pelham native)
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Supporting Actress

• Angelina Jolie, “The Good Shepherd” (grew up in Sneden’s Landing)

• Hayden Panettiere, “The Architect” (raised in Palisades)

• Ellen Burstyn, “The Fountain” (lives in Nyack)
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OK, I know a few of those are a stretch—especially Ellen Burstyn in “The Wicker Man,” and truthfully “Filliam H. Muffman” isn’t so much a performance as a Stephen Colbert catch-phrase—but it was a weak year for our Lower Hudson Valley filmmakers.

Last year we had Ang Lee’s “Brokeback Mountain,” Matt Dillon in “Crash,” Futterman and Miller behind “Capote.” Let’s just hope that, for the sake of our own local filmmakers, the Brits decide to take next year off.