Oscars 2012 | Quotes from the stars

Brad Pitt, nominated for his role as Oakland Athletics General Manager Billy Beane in “Moneyball,” said Hollywood could learn a thing or two from the film.

“If you avoid the star system, you’ll find equally talented people for a lot less money,” said Pitt, pictured here with partner, actress Angelina Jolie, as he dashed by on the red carpet.  (Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times)

Nolte wasn’t in awe of Oscar night. “I’m not really excited deep down inside,” the supporting actor nominee for “Warrior” said.

Why so glum, sir? “Because I don’t know anyone here. There’s nobody that I really hang out with,” he said. “I’m not going to have any real deep conversations.”  (Ethan Miller / Getty Images)

Actress Milla Jovovich can’t help but be a little star-struck on the Oscar red carpet. Asked who she wanted to meet, she said, “I have to say, anybody from ‘The Help.’”

She’s also a big fan of the silent film work of Bérénice Bejo. “I loved the actress from `The Artist,’ ” she continued.” I’m excited about quite a few movies tonight, but those two in particular.”  (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)

After months of exhaustive press tours to promote her role in “The Help,” Viola Davis said Oscar night brought a sense of relief.

“It’s the final celebration. The final blow-out,” she said with a smile.

By her side, as usual, was her husband Julius Tennon -- who has supported her on every red carpet this award season.

“From the moment I met him, I said ‘I gotta have him’ because he’s the best man in the world,” she gushed. “His integrity and his capacity to love and his loyalty -- you can’t compare.”   (Ethan Miller / Getty Images)

Gary Oldman, nominated for his performance in “Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy,” spoke of working with such famous source material. The film is based on one of John le Carre’s most well-known novels.

“It was indeed a challenge,” said Oldman. “But books and scripts and directors and fellow actors don’t come along like this very often. Maybe this is it. I hope there’s some more exciting things down the line for me, but this was truly a harmonic thing.”

Of an Oscar nomination, he said it is “the bee’s knees.”  (Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

Though his film is nominated for adapted screenplay, there’s one question everyone can’t help but ask Willimon: Where is “Ides of March” star Ryan Gosling? It was rumored the actor was working on a film in Asia, and Willimon said he wouldn’t find that surprising, describing Gosling as a guy that “never stops.”

“That’s what I think is fantastic about him. His work ethic and his determination and his love for making movies. Sometimes he comes to these things, and sometimes he’s busy. But as long as he keeps making movies, that’s the important thing.”  (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)

The “Bridesmaids” actresses and writers were definitely soaking in the Oscar atmosphere. “I don’t have a word,” said Wiig, when asked what the day has been like. “Walking in, and hearing the crowd¿”

She trailed off as Mumolo added, “It sounded like a football game.”  (Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times)

Jessica Chastain still felt like the new girl in town as she made her way down the red carpet.

“It’s incredible. It’s something that I always dreamed about. It actually means that I’m doing it,” she said, taking in her surroundings. “I’ve wanted to be an actor and now it’s like, ‘I’m at the Oscars. This is great.’ I’m with my grandma and that calms me down a bit.”  (Matt Sayles / Associated Press)

After “The King’s Speech” swept the Oscars last year, Colin Firth was back at the Academy Awards on Sunday, pictured here with wife Livia Giuggioli. Yet he was a lot more relaxed on the red carpet this time around.

After taking home the gold statuette in 2011, the actor said he was “numb for a while, really. I didn’t really feel a lot of pressure. I just felt a strong desire to go home for a while.”  (Jason Merritt / Getty Images)

In a year when the Oscars were expected to be at its most predictable, the first award of the night was a bit of an upset, going to Robert Richardson’s cinematography in “Hugo.” No less surprised than awards prognosticators who predicted “The Tree of Life” would take the prize was Richardson himself.

“The crystal ball wasn’t this way.¿ I didn’t see this happening,” Richardson said in the show’s press room, adding that Martin Scorsese‘s “Hugo” had even longer odds for being shot in 3-D.  (Kevin Winter / Getty Images)

“Rango” would likely not have been made without the support of star Johnny Depp, said Gore Verbinski backstage after winning the Oscar for animated feature.

Part of the film’s unique allure was that it was developed largely outside of the studio system, and Depp was the reason for that.

“It helps when you’re friends with Johnny Depp,” explained Verbinski. “We needed money, and once Johnny said he was in, things started to happen.”  (Kevin Winter / Getty Images)

“The Descendants” co-star Shailene Woodley was decidedly bubbly after winning an Independent Spirit award Saturday. She seemed to carry it over to Sunday’s ceremony, where in the lobby of the Hollywood & Highland Center she was as wide-eyed as she was in accepting her prize for supporting female in Santa Monica on Saturday. She was also advocating hard for her co-star George Clooney.

“He absolutely needs to win,” she said when asked where she stood on the best actor race. “I mean, right?”

She was even willing to fight for him -- sort of. “I’m not sure I can take on Jean Dujardin if he won for best actor,” she said. “I think I’m too thin.”  (Ethan Miller / Getty Images)

“Flight of the Conchords” star Bret McKenzie was thrilled that only two songs were nominated for an Oscar for original song this year.

“I’m not sure why they only nominated two songs, but I was very happy with that situation,” said McKenzie, beaming and holding his statue backstage Sunday after winning for his uber-catchy “Man or Muppet” composition for “The Muppets.”

Did he have any problems writing a song without his regular Conchords writing partner and fellow comedian, Jemaine Clement? Not really.

“It seems to have gone very well,” quipped McKenzie with a sly grin. “But I’m looking forward to writing with Jemaine in the future because I’ll be able to pull out the Oscar card and say, `I think we should use this chord, because I won an Oscar’.”  (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)

Ludovic Bource’s conversation with journalists in the press room ¿ after he won for original score for “The Artist” ¿ was less straight-up Q&A and more flowing and mellifluous, like a song itself. His fast-paced French rose and fell at a quick clip, peppered with recognizable words here and there: “Statuette.” “Hollywood.” “Cinema.”

“He’s incredibly impressed to be here,” said his translator. “The first award he got ... was a statue of a woman. And his son asked him to win [an Oscar] so they could kiss each other.”  (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)

Christopher Plummer completed his awards season sweep with an Oscar for his supporting role in “Beginners,” and fittingly, what’s next for the 82-year-old is somewhat of a new beginning, he feels.

“It is a renewal.... [This role] has recharged me. I hope I can do this for another 10 years,” he said backstage at the Oscars.

Plummer is now the oldest winner of a competitive acting Oscar, and he doesn’t expect to stop acting any time soon.

“I will drop dead onstage or on the set. We don’t retire in our profession,” he said.  (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)

The “30 Rock” star was pleased to see all the accolades for her friends in “Bridesmaids.”

“I think it’s great that comedy is being acknowledged this year,” Fey said. “I think it could have even been acknowledged more. I think ‘Bridesmaids’ could have been a contender for best picture. You can’t do what Kristen Wiig does. I know I can’t. Those ladies are incredibly skilled.”

While Fey would have liked to have seen “Bridesmaids” compete for best picture, she didn’t get a vote. “I’m not an academy member,” she said. “Can I be in it?”  (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)

There were obvious challenges for Glenn Close in “Albert Nobbs,” in which she portrays a woman living as a man, but the biggest challenge for now was how to show an emotion while maintaining a blank face.

“How much to show in my face at any given time,” said Close when asked of the film’s biggest challenge. “Albert was a woman who used her face as a mask. It had been kind of solidified over the years as she was trying to be invisible.”  (Jason Merritt / Getty Images)

Octavia Spencer was not in the mood to appear in the press room after the Oscars telecast Sunday night. The actress, who won supporting actress for her role as Minny Jackson in “The Help,” asked that she not have to take too many questions.

Indeed, Spencer, who cried onstage after her win, seemed exhausted and overwhelmed to the point of being edgy. When asked her thoughts on the lack of diversity in the academy, which is largely white and male, the African American actress bristled just a bit. “I don’t have any thoughts about it; it’s not something I’ve thought about. I wish I could be more eloquent ¿ legant in answering that question,” she said. “I can’t tell the academy what to do, honey, they just gave me an Oscar.”  (Jason Merritt / Getty Images)

The makers of “Undefeated,” the film about an inner-city football team at Manassas High School in North Memphis, Tenn., won the Oscar for documentary feature Sunday. The filmmakers, however, may have gotten off to a rocky start when accepting their Academy Awards on stage: They dropped the F-bomb, for starters, were bleeped out and their speech was cut off at 45 seconds. But Daniel Lindsay, T.J. Martin and Richard Middlemas were charming, if a bit apologetic, backstage.

“It wasn’t the classiest thing,” admitted Martin. “But it did come from the heart.”

Martin continued, “We’re known for the F-bomb. This is the F-bomb clan. When I say it came from the heart, I am genuinely serious. It was out of spontaneity, and it was completely accidental. Our core focus, if this possibly were to happen, we really wanted to dedicate the award to the community of North Memphis and the individuals who we profiled in the film. With that said, there was 45 seconds, and 45 seconds goes really quickly and they cut us off, unfortunately.”  (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)

Michel Hazanavicius, “The Artist” director, thanked filmmaker Billy Wilder three times in his acceptance speech, but backstage at the Oscars, the best director winner said he would have thanked him “thousands of times” if he could.

“He’s the perfect director. He’s the soul of Hollywood,” Hazanavicius said of the “Some Like It Hot” and “Sunset Boulevard” filmmaker.  (Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

Adapting “The Descendents,” based on Kaui Hart Hemmings’ novel of the same name, was a fluid, organic process, said Alexander Payne, right, backstage after the film won the Oscar for adapted screenplay. Screenwriters Jim Rash, left, and Nat Faxon, he says, gave him myriad directions to take the material in.

“They paved a path for me because they’d been through the book quite a few times,” said Payne. “They gave me the luxury to pick and choose what I responded to. What I didn’t keep was as much screen time with the younger daughter.”  (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)

It’s been nearly three decades since Meryl Streep won the same prize for her performance in “Sophie’s Choice,” and the 62-year-old admitted she was surprised by how exciting it was to win the Oscar again.

“I thought I was so old and jaded, but they call your name and you just go into a sort of white light,” she said. “It was like a kid again. I was a kid when I won this, like, 30 years ago. Two of the nominees were not even conceived,” she added, referring to Rooney Mara, 26, and Michelle Williams, 30.  (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)

Now that he will go down in history for his portrayal of fictional silent film star George Valentin, Jean Dujarkin hope to transition to “talkies” in America?

“I’m not American actor, I’m French actor,” said Dujardin shyly in English. “I continue in France.”  (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)