1996 Film Year: Oscar Winners & Nominees
The AwardWentTo archive contains 113 Academy Award records for the 1996 film year, covering 65 films and including 24 wins.
Years follow the source film eligibility/dataset year, which may differ from the ceremony calendar year. Counts describe film-linked archive records, including historical and special-award context where supplied.
Best Picture result
- ★ The English PatientSaul Zaentz, Producer
5 Best Picture award records for this film year. See the full result · Best Picture history
Acting category results
Leading winning films
Ranked by winning records in this film-year selection.
- The English Patient
9 wins from 12 award records
- Fargo
2 wins from 7 award records
- Shine
1 win from 7 award records
- Evita
1 win from 5 award records
- Jerry Maguire
1 win from 5 award records
- Emma
1 win from 2 award records
Category winners
Select a category to explore its history, or jump to this year's full records.
- ★ Shine — David Helfgott
- ★ Jerry Maguire — Rod Tidwell
- ★ Fargo — Marge Gunderson
- ★ The English Patient — Hana
- ★ Kolya
- ★ Evita — You Must Love Me
- ★ Emma
- ★ Quest
- ★ Fargo
Nominations and award records by category
Showing 113 of 113 archive records. Gold stars mark winning records.
Best Picture
- ★ The English Patient IMDB — Saul Zaentz, Producer
- Fargo IMDB — Ethan Coen, Producer
- Jerry Maguire IMDB — James L. Brooks, Laurence Mark, Richard Sakai and Cameron Crowe, Producers
- Secrets & Lies IMDB — Simon Channing-Williams, Producer
- Shine IMDB — Jane Scott, Producer
Best Actor
- ★ Shine IMDB — Geoffrey RushDavid Helfgott
- Jerry Maguire IMDB — Tom CruiseJerry Maguire
- The English Patient IMDB — Ralph FiennesAlmasy
- The People vs. Larry Flynt IMDB — Woody HarrelsonLarry Flynt
- Sling Blade IMDB — Billy Bob ThorntonKarl Childers
Best Supporting Actor
- ★ Jerry Maguire IMDB — Cuba Gooding, Jr.Rod Tidwell
- Fargo IMDB — William H. MacyJerry Lundegaard
- Shine IMDB — Armin Mueller-StahlPeter Helfgott
- Primal Fear IMDB — Edward NortonAaron Stampler
- Ghosts of Mississippi IMDB — James WoodsByron De La Beckwith
Best Actress
- ★ Fargo IMDB — Frances McDormandMarge Gunderson
- Secrets & Lies IMDB — Brenda BlethynCynthia
- Marvin's Room IMDB — Diane KeatonBessie
- The English Patient IMDB — Kristin Scott ThomasKatharine Clifton
- Breaking the Waves IMDB — Emily WatsonBess
Best Supporting Actress
- ★ The English Patient IMDB — Juliette BinocheHana
- The Crucible IMDB — Joan AllenElizabeth Proctor
- The Mirror Has Two Faces IMDB — Lauren BacallHannah Morgan
- The Portrait of a Lady IMDB — Barbara HersheyMadame Serena Merle
- Secrets & Lies IMDB — Marianne Jean-BaptisteHortense
Art Direction
- ★ The English Patient IMDB — Art Direction: Stuart Craig; Set Decoration: Stephenie McMillan
- The Birdcage IMDB — Art Direction: Bo Welch; Set Decoration: Cheryl Carasik
- Evita IMDB — Art Direction: Brian Morris; Set Decoration: Philippe Turlure
- Hamlet IMDB — Tim Harvey
- William Shakespeare's Romeo & Juliet IMDB — Art Direction: Catherine Martin; Set Decoration: Brigitte Broch
Cinematography
Costume Design
Best Director
Documentary Feature
- ★ When We Were Kings IMDB — Leon Gast, David Sonenberg
- The Line King: The Al Hirschfeld Story IMDB — Susan W. Dryfoos
- Mandela IMDB — Jo Menell, Angus Gibson
- Suzanne Farrell: Elusive Muse IMDB — Anne Belle, Deborah Dickson
- Tell the Truth and Run: George Seldes and the American Press IMDB — Rick Goldsmith
Documentary Short Subject
- ★ Breathing Lessons: The Life and Work of Mark O'Brien IMDB — Jessica Yu
- Cosmic Voyage IMDB — Jeffrey Marvin, Bayley Silleck
- An Essay on Matisse IMDB — Perry Wolff
- Special Effects IMDB — Susanne Simpson, Ben Burtt
- The Wild Bunch: An Album in Montage IMDB — Paul Seydor, Nick Redman
Film Editing
International Feature Film
- ★ Kolya IMDB — Czech Republic
- A Chef in Love IMDB — Georgia
- The Other Side of Sunday IMDB — Norway
- Prisoner of the Mountains IMDB — Russia
- Ridicule IMDB — France
Makeup and Hairstyling
- ★ The Nutty Professor IMDB — Rick Baker, David LeRoy Anderson
- Ghosts of Mississippi IMDB — Matthew W. Mungle, Deborah La Mia Denaver
- Star Trek: First Contact IMDB — Michael Westmore, Scott Wheeler, Jake Garber
Original Score
Original Song
- ★ Evita IMDB — Music by Andrew Lloyd Webber; Lyric by Tim RiceYou Must Love Me
- Up Close and Personal IMDB — Music and Lyric by Diane WarrenBecause You Loved Me
- One Fine Day IMDB — Music and Lyric by James Newton Howard, Jud J. Friedman and Allan Dennis RichFor The First Time
- The Mirror Has Two Faces IMDB — Music and Lyric by Barbra Streisand, Marvin Hamlisch, Bryan Adams and Robert 'Mutt' LangeI Finally Found Someone
- That Thing You Do! IMDB — Music and Lyric by Adam SchlesingerThat Thing You Do!
Music (Original Song Score or Adaptation Score)
- ★ Emma IMDB — Rachel Portman
- The First Wives Club IMDB — Marc Shaiman
- The Hunchback of Notre Dame IMDB — Music by Alan Menken; Lyrics by Stephen Schwartz; Orchestral Score by Alan Menken
- James and the Giant Peach IMDB — Randy Newman
- The Preacher's Wife IMDB — Hans Zimmer
Animated Short Film
- ★ Quest IMDB — Tyron Montgomery, Thomas Stellmach
- Canhead IMDB — Timothy Hittle, Chris Peterson
- La Salla IMDB — Richard Condie
- Wat's Pig IMDB — Peter Lord
Live Action Short Film
- ★ Dear Diary IMDB — David Frankel, Barry Jossen
- De Tripas, Corazon IMDB — Antonio Urrutia
- Ernst & Lyset IMDB — Kim Magnusson, Anders Thomas Jensen
- Esposados IMDB — Juan Carlos Fresnadillo
- Wordless IMDB — Bernadette Carranza, Antonello De Leo
Sound Editing
- ★ The Ghost and the Darkness IMDB — Bruce Stambler
- Daylight IMDB — Richard L. Anderson, David A. Whittaker
- Eraser IMDB — Alan Robert Murray, Bub Asman
Sound Mixing
- ★ The English Patient IMDB — Walter Murch, Mark Berger, David Parker, Chris Newman
- Evita IMDB — Andy Nelson, Anna Behlmer, Ken Weston
- Independence Day IMDB — Chris Carpenter, Bill W. Benton, Bob Beemer, Jeff Wexler
- The Rock IMDB — Kevin O'Connell, Greg P. Russell, Keith A. Wester
- Twister IMDB — Steve Maslow, Gregg Landaker, Kevin O'Connell, Geoffrey Patterson
Visual Effects
- ★ Independence Day IMDB — Volker Engel, Douglas Smith, Clay Pinney, Joseph Viskocil
- Dragonheart IMDB — Scott Squires, Phil Tippett, James Straus, Kit West
- Twister IMDB — Stefen Fangmeier, John Frazier, Habib Zargarpour, Henry La Bounta
Adapted Screenplay
Original Screenplay
- ★ Fargo IMDB — Ethan Coen, Joel Coen
- Jerry Maguire IMDB — Cameron Crowe
- Lone Star IMDB — John Sayles
- Secrets & Lies IMDB — Mike Leigh
- Shine IMDB — Screenplay by Jan Sardi; Story by Scott Hicks
Nominated films and other recorded entries
65 films represented in the 1996 archive selection.
- A Chef in Love
- An Essay on Matisse
- Angels and Insects
- Breaking the Waves
- Breathing Lessons: The Life and Work of Mark O'Brien
- Canhead
- Cosmic Voyage
- Daylight
- De Tripas, Corazon
- Dear Diary
- Dragonheart
- Emma
- Eraser
- Ernst & Lyset
- Esposados
- Evita
- Fargo
- Fly Away Home
- Ghosts of Mississippi
- Hamlet
- Independence Day
- James and the Giant Peach
- Jerry Maguire
- Kolya
- La Salla
- Lone Star
- Mandela
- Marvin's Room
- Michael Collins
- One Fine Day
- Primal Fear
- Prisoner of the Mountains
- Quest
- Ridicule
- Secrets & Lies
- Shine
- Sleepers
- Sling Blade
- Special Effects
- Star Trek: First Contact
- Suzanne Farrell: Elusive Muse
- Tell the Truth and Run: George Seldes and the American Press
- That Thing You Do!
- The Birdcage
- The Crucible
- The English Patient
- The First Wives Club
- The Ghost and the Darkness
- The Hunchback of Notre Dame
- The Line King: The Al Hirschfeld Story
- The Mirror Has Two Faces
- The Nutty Professor
- The Other Side of Sunday
- The People vs. Larry Flynt
- The Portrait of a Lady
- The Preacher's Wife
- The Rock
- The Wild Bunch: An Album in Montage
- Trainspotting
- Twister
- Up Close and Personal
- Wat's Pig
- When We Were Kings
- William Shakespeare's Romeo & Juliet
- Wordless
About these award records
This independent archive groups film-linked award records by film, credited name, category and eligibility year. The film year can differ from the year the ceremony took place. Ceremony numbers are shown where supplied by the records.
Each distinct performance, song or award credit remains a separate record, even when it belongs to the same film. Shared credits stay together. A person's page covers the name shown, without combining aliases or shared credits into a complete career total.
Totals can include honorary, special and historical awards alongside competitive nominations. Awards without a linked film are outside these page totals. Source notes and uncertain records are retained; category comparisons omit groups with unresolved notes, ties or conflicting identities.
For the official record, search the Academy Awards Database (opens in a new tab). Award Went To is an independent exploration tool and is not affiliated with the Academy.