Learn about Oscars online

The 73rd annual Academy Awards grabbed the Chinese community's attention because the community savoured its first-ever Oscar glory with the film Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon.

Directed by Taiwanese Lee Ang, Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon scooped four awards - best foreign language film, best original score, best art direction and best cinematography.

The best art direction and best cinematography awards went to Hong Kong's Peter Pau and Tim Yip.

Many Chinese are not familiar with the Oscars because they see it as an event to honour Hollywood and foreign movies and stars.

With the success of Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, the Academy Awards have gained significance in the Chinese community.

If you are not familiar with the Oscars, the Internet offers a wealth of information on the event.

The official Academy Awards Web site, Oscars.com, at http://www.oscar.com, features detailed information on and pictures of the event.

The site is divided into seven sections: Nominees; Style; Oscar Night; Exclusives; Oscar Legacy; Fun and Games; and Gallery.

The site also features exclusive information on the event.

You can experience the sensation of being in the Shrine Audi torium by taking the 360-degree Oscar tour.

Starting with the famous red carpet, the tour will take you into the auditorium and give you a glance of the stage, theatre and Green Room.

You can view the transformation of the Shrine Auditorium and see your favourite Hollywood stars during the presentation ceremony by clicking 'Before and After the Presentation' and 'Seat Views'.

Information on the creative team behind the Oscars, such as executive producer of the 2001 Oscars Gil Cates and music director Bill Conti, is available.

'Behind the Scenes' gives you an idea of how one of the movie industry's most anticipated shows is put together.

When we watch the show on television, we may not have an idea of the efforts that have gone into the show. 'Behind the Scenes' will give you a good idea.

The 'Fun and Games' section features interesting games and trivia challenges to test your understanding of the event.

One of the games is Oscar.com Ballot, where players get to guess the winners of this year's Awards.

If you missed the Oscars on television, you can click on 'Oscar Night' for a recap of some scenarios of the presentation ceremony.

If you go to 'Winner's List' under 'Oscar Night', you can read the speech of each winner and see their pictures.

You can read the speeches of Ang Lee, Tim Yip and Peter Pau.

The 'Red Carpet Photo Gallery' captures the glamour and highlights of the 73rd Academy Awards.

To learn about the history of the Oscars, visit 'Oscar Legacy'. It features photos and fact sheets.

For example, it tells the story of the Oscar statuette.

Posters of the Best Pictures help users trace the development of the movie industry in Hollywood.

Posters featured include the West Side Story (1961); The Sound of Music (1965); The Godfather (1972) and Annie Hall (1997).

Those who are interested in what celebrities wear to the grand event can go to 'Gallery' and 'Style'.

The two sections feature the talk of the town - designer gowns and tuxedos worn by the celebrities.

Graphic: YPWWWGLO