The Academy Awards have honored distinguished films in the industry since the first awards ceremony held in 1929. The first ceremony consisted of only twelve categories with thirty-three nominees, but as the industry was growing in size and talent which the Academy accommodated appropriately. The most recent awards marked the eighty-sixth anniversary of the Academy and its composition of twenty-four categories and over a hundred nominees, some repeats, spoke for the industry itself in terms of volume and value. With each category containing self-proclaimed actors, directors, or production teams, there's no doubt that receiving an award, or even recognition from the Academy, is an honor. However, there is one category that receives the highest honor possible; the best film category. This category is an objective sought by an entire production and winning this award demonstrates the high quality of the film. At the 2014 Oscars, nine films, including The Wolf of Wall Street and 12 Years a Slave, competed in the best picture category. Each film is different in story, but not in greatness, but 12 Years a Slave won the prize among its eight contenders. There's no doubt that all nine films are simply excellent, so what separates a great film, like The Wolf of Wall Street, from another great film like 12 Years a Slave? A great film is born from a great script and, in order to generate a great script, a simple rule, but difficult to achieve, must be respected. The rule is to grab the audience's attention and grab it quickly because if the audience is not interested from the start, they will not devote their time to finish reading the script or watching the film. To effectively attract the attention of the middle of paper... but the two achieved this honor in different ways. They both used a specific technique to capture their audience's attention during their opening scene. However, 12 Years a Slave used a grander and more effective technique that earned it the Academy Award for Best Picture. With 12 Years a Slave being based on a true story that took place during a very difficult time in the United States, it presented a situation that the audience will never be exposed to and essentially pulled them deeper because they won to understand the past. The Wolf of Wall Street presented a situation that anyone could ever find themselves in, which made it a slightly less intense and interesting film than 12 Years a Slave. With the added use of set, wardrobe, camera operations and lighting, 12 Years a Slave was able to finalize the audience's attention and affection..