8th Academy Awards

The 8th Academy Awards were held on March 5, 1936 at the Biltmore Hotel in Los Angeles, California. They were hosted by Frank Capra. This was the first year in which the gold statuettes were called "Oscars."

The short-lived category of Best Dance Direction was introduced this year. The DGA successfully lobbied for its elimination three years later.

Winners and nominees

Winners are highlighted in boldface.

Best Motion Picture Of The Year

• Alice Adams
• Broadway Melody of 1936
• Captain Blood
• David Copperfield
• The Informer
• Les Misérables
• The Lives of a Bengal Lancer
• A Midsummer Night's Dream
• Mutiny on the Bounty
• Naughty Marietta
• Ruggles of Red Gap
• Top Hat

Achievement in Directing

• Michael Curtiz - Captain Blood
• John Ford - The Informer
• Henry Hathaway - The Lives of a Bengal Lancer
• Frank Lloyd - Mutiny on the Bounty

Best Performance By An Actor In A Leading Role

• Clark Gable - Mutiny on the Bounty
• Charles Laughton - Mutiny on the Bounty
• Victor McLaglen - The Informer
• Franchot Tone - Mutiny on the Bounty

Best Performance By An Actress In A Leading Role

• Elisabeth Bergner - Escape Me Never
• Claudette Colbert - Private Worlds
• Bette Davis - Dangerous
• Katharine Hepburn - Alice Adams
• Miriam Hopkins - Becky Sharp
• Merle Oberon - The Dark Angel

Best Writing, Adaptation

• Achmed Abdullah, John L. Balderston, Waldemar Young, Jules Furthman, Talbot Jennings, and Carey Wilson - Mutiny on the Bounty
• Grover Jones and William Slavens McNutt - The Lives of a Bengal Lancer
• Dudley Nichols (Refused) - The Informer

Best Story

• Moss Hart - Broadway Melody of 1936
• Don Hartman and Stephen Avery - The Gay Deception
• Ben Hecht and Charles MacArthur - The Scoundrel

Interior Decoration

• Carroll Clark and Van Nest Polglase - Top Hat
• Richard Day - The Dark Angel
• Hans Dreier and Roland Anderson - The Lives of a Bengal Lancer

Achievement In Cinematography

• Ray June - Barbary Coast
• Victor Milner - The Crusades
• Hal Mohr - A Midsummer Night's Dream
• Gregg Toland - Les Misérables

Hal Mohr was a write-in candidate, and therefore isn't officially considered to have received a nomination, although he did receive the award.

Sound Recording

• Love Me Forever
• Naughty Marietta
• The Lives of a Bengal Lancer
• $1,000 a Minute
• I Dream Too Much
• Thanks a Million
• The Dark Angel
• Bride of Frankenstein
• Captain Blood

Assistant Director

• Clem Beauchamp and Paul Wing - The Lives of a Bengal Lancer
• Joseph Newman - David Copperfield
• Eric Stacey - Les Misérables

Short Subjects: Cartoons

• The Calico Dragon
• Three Orphan Kittens
• Who Killed Cock Robin?

Short Subjects: Comedy

• How to Sleep
• Oh, My Nerves
• Tit for Tat

Short Subjects: Novelty

• Audioscopiks
• Camera Thrills
• Wings Over Everest

Music: Best Song

• "Cheek to Cheek" - Top Hat
• "Lovely to Look At" - Roberta
• "Lullaby of Broadway" - Gold Diggers of 1935

Music: Best Score

• Mutiny on the Bounty
• Peter Ibbetson
• The Informer
• Captain Blood

Film Editing

• Margaret Booth - Mutiny on the Bounty
• Ralph Dawson - A Midsummer Night's Dream
• George Hively - The Informer
• Ellsworth Hoagland - The Lives of a Bengal Lancer
• Robert J. Kern - David Copperfield
• Barbara McLean - Les Misérables

Dance Direction

• Busby Berkeley - Gold Diggers of 1935
• Bobby Connolly - Broadway Hostess
• Dave Gould - Broadway Melody of 1936 and Folies Bergere
• Sammy Lee - King of Burlesque
• Hermes Pan - Top Hat
• LeRoy Prinz - All the King's Horses and The Big Broadcast of 1936
• Benjamin Zemach - She

This award was only given out for three years (1935-1937).

Special Award

• David Wark Griffith