The 97th Academy Award just took place on Mar. 2. The Academy Awards, commonly referred to as the Oscars, were held at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, Los Angeles.

The Oscars are a gala that recognizes and celebrates artistic and technical achievements in filmmaking. There are 23 different categories, with the 5 biggest being Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor, Best Actress, and Best Screenplay.

“I was unfamiliar with some of the movies presented this year,” freshman Caroline Koch said. “The Oscars weren’t as interesting as in past years.”

This year’s best picture went to the movie ‘Anora’. ‘Anora’ follows a young Brooklyn woman, Anora, who unpredictably develops feelings for the son of a rich Russian businessman. As the relationship develops, Anora finds herself torn between two very different worlds, which forces her to make difficult decisions.

“I was sad that Timothée Chalamet didn’t win best actor,”fFreshmsays Seneca Moeller said. “I thought he did a really good job in ‘A Complete Unknown.’”

The best actor went to Adrien Brody from ‘The Brutalist’, and the best actress went to Mikey Madison, ‘Anora’. For the best supporting role, Kieran Culkin in ‘A Real Pain’ won for actor and Zoe Saldaña from ‘Emilia Pérez’ for actress.

“Although I didn’t get to watch all the Oscars,” art teacher Julie Martin said. “The Oscars are a great event that honors actors and filmmakers.”

The Academy Awards, or Oscars, are one of the highest film awards, making it thrilling to see various films and actors recognized. Each year sparks lots of discussions, celebrating the hard work of everyone in the movie industry.

“I found some of the hosts this year to be entertaining,” Koch said “they had good statements leading up to the award, making the Oscars more exciting.”