J. Emilio Flores for The New York Times  Academy Award Memories: Academy Award winners share memories of their first Oscar experience.  On Thursday morning the Oscar nominees will at last be revealed, giving shape to what has been an unusually multidimensional race. The stars and directors of contenders like “Lincoln,” “Argo,” “Zero Dark Thirty,” “Silver Linings Playbook” and “Django Unchained” have been making the rounds to drum up support. For some of them by Thursday afternoon it will be time to pack up the borrowed finery and the studio-approved talking points, and go home. For others it will be the next leg of the race: a six-week sprint to a finish line that involves potentially hefting a gold statuette on Feb. 24 and delivering an embarrassing (or sweet, or funny, or ideally, all three) acceptance speech. As a primer for those left standing — and entertainment for those following along — here are some memories of Oscar experiences from previous winners and nominees, excerpted from interviews at premieres and galas this season.  âI was like possessed and determined that I would own it in a different way. âÂ SALLY FIELD, 1985 best actress, âPlaces in the Heartâ  âI have a memory of a lovely lady who took me by the hand.â CHRISTOPH WALTZ, 2010 best supporting actor, âInglourious Basterdsâ  âI wanted to make a political statement.âÂ DUSTIN HOFFMAN, 1968 best actor nominee, âThe Graduateâ (above with Ellen McCarthy)  âIs Anne Hathaway using the Oscar stage as the ultimate auditioning platform?âÂ TOM HOOPER, 2011 best director, âThe Kingâs Speechâ  CHRISTOPH WALTZ 2010 best supporting actor winner,“Inglourious Basterds”  I have a memory of a lovely lady who took me by the hand — the one that was free, the other one holding the Oscar — and said: “You are in shock right now, and you will not ever remember meeting me, but just trust me, I lead you out of here.” And she did. Like, right backstage, one step off, there she was, taking my hand, and saying, “You will not remember me, trust me.” And she was totally wrong, because that’s the thing I remember the best.  RACHEL WEISZ 2006 best supporting actress winner, “The Constant Gardener”  I was eight months pregnant, so a lot of my memory was centering around — well, needing to [urinate] actually often, and you know, the thing, the fear that you have that you’re going to be in the can when your name is called. There was a huge amount of excitement, huge amount of anxiety that comes from being at the Oscars for the first time and being very pregnant.  I also get really sad. I had designed such a clever dress that people who didn’t know me, that didn’t know I was pregnant, probably thought I was just chubby. I wish I’d worn a tighter dress that definitely showed for sure I was pregnant.  SALLY FIELD 1980 best actress winner, “Norma Rae” and best actress winner, “Places in the Heart” in 1985 (when she memorably said, “You like me!”)  My identifying moment of the first time I went to the Oscars was that I won, so that’s a good memory. I don’t [actually remember much]. So then therefore, the second time I won, I was like possessed and determined that I would own it in a different way.  JACKI WEAVER 2011 best supporting actress nominee, “Animal Kingdom”  I remember being like a stunned mullet. A mullet is a fish, and when they catch them, they [makes cross-eyed face]. The Oscar buzz when I was nominated was totally overwhelming. I think I can cope with anything now that I’ve coped with that. It was huge. It makes you realize, coming from a small country like Australia, what an enormous industry it is in America.  KATHRYN BIGELOW 2010 best director and best picture winner, “The Hurt Locker”  I remember it being extremely surreal, surprising, shocking and more gratifying than you can imagine.  MARK BOAL 2010 best original screenplay and best picture winner, “The Hurt Locker”  I remember the aftermath. It was like being on liquid Prozac. I was antidepressed.  DAVID O. RUSSELL 2011 best director nominee, “The Fighter”  I remember talking to Tim Burton and Helena Bonham Carter. I talked to them quite a bit. I remember talking to David Fincher [a fellow nominee for “The Social Network”] quite a lot and some director saying that backstage they thought it was all a bit demanding, and I said I was happy to be there. Because you get to a certain age and you can appreciate all of it. This can all feel like a grind to everybody, but I’ve got to be honest with you, if you get to make a picture that’s emotional and based on real people, that’s privilege No 1. Privilege No. 2 is if it gets to find an audience and have a great cast.  TONY KUSHNER 2006 best adapted screenplay nominee, “Munich”  We had a great time because we sort of knew we weren’t going to win anything; we were just there for the fun of it. I got to meet a lot of people whose work I really admire. I was very moved to see Larry McMurtry, and to see him and his partner [Diana Ossana] win for “Brokeback Mountain.” And we stayed at the Pavilion, and they made a chocolate version of the Oscar and put it in your room, whether you win or lose.  TOM HOOPER 2011 best director, “The King’s Speech”  I’m sitting at the Oscars, pretty sure that I’m going to direct “Les Miz” but not sure at all who I’m going to cast. And Anne Hathaway steps forth, to the front of the stage and sings a rendition of “On My Own,” to Hugh Jackman. And I’m going: Hold on a second, is Anne Hathaway using the Oscar stage as the ultimate auditioning platform for her talents and is she also suggesting Hugh Jackman while she’s at it? Or is this just coincidence? She claims it’s coincidence. I think she’s too shrewd. But we’ll never know.  DUSTIN HOFFMAN seven-time best actor nominee, starting with “The Graduate” in 1968 and including two awards, in 1980 for “Kramer vs. Kramer” and in 1989 for “Rain Man”  Well, the first-year thing I think of is, I wanted to make a political statement. [Senator Eugene] McCarthy was then running for president, and I took one of his daughters [Ellen McCarthy] to the Oscars.  AL PACINO when told Mr. Hoffman’s story about choosing a date as a political statement
Christoph Waltz, Rachel Weisz, Sally Field, Kathryn Bigelow and others share thoughts on a moment in the Academy Awards spotlight.