The searing drama `` 12 Years a Slave '' was named best picture at the 86th Academy Awards on Sunday night . The story of Solomon Northup , a free African-American man who was kidnapped and sold into slavery , won just three awards , but they were all major : best picture , best supporting actress ( Lupita Nyong ' o ) and best adapted screenplay ( John Ridley ) . Brad Pitt , one of the film 's producers , accepted on behalf of the film before deferring to its director , a noticeably excited -- and tongue-tied -- Steve McQueen . `` Everyone deserves not just to survive , but to live . This is the most important legacy of Solomon Northup , '' McQueen said . He added , `` This is for all the people who have endured slavery , and the 21 million people who still endure slavery today . '' Check out our list of Oscar winners . Nyong ' o , a newcomer , paid tribute to her character , Patsey , a slave in 1840s Louisiana . Her voice cracked as she spoke . `` It does n't escape me for one moment that so much joy in my life is because of so much pain in someone else 's , '' she said . The force of 'Gravity ' `` Gravity '' topped all films with seven Oscars , including an award for director Alfonso Cuaron . The Mexican director devoted four years of his life to making the technically challenging film about a space mission gone wrong . He 's the first Latin American to win the award . `` Gravity 's '' other Oscars are for original score , visual effects , sound mixing and sound editing , cinematography and film editing . `` Dallas Buyers Club '' won three awards , including two in acting categories : best actor for Matthew McConaughey and Jared Leto for best supporting actor . The film also won for makeup and hairstyling . As expected , Cate Blanchett won best actress for her turn as a modern-day Blanche DuBois in the Woody Allen film `` Blue Jasmine . '' Blanchett praised films with female protagonists . Female-centric movies are `` not niche -- they make money ! '' she exclaimed to an ovation . `` Let It Go , '' from the animated film `` Frozen , '' won best song . Robert Lopez , one of its songwriters , became an EGOT with his Oscar win : He now has an Emmy , Grammy , Oscar and Tony . `` Frozen '' also for won best animated feature . One of the evening 's highlights was Darlene Love , one of the singers featured in documentary winner `` 20 Feet From Stardom . '' Love launched into an impromptu version of `` His Eye Is on the Sparrow '' upon the film 's win , and her full-throated take brought down the house . `` The Great Gatsby '' won two Oscars , for production design and costume design . Italy 's `` The Great Beauty '' took home the Oscar for foreign-language film . `` American Hustle , '' which had tied `` Gravity '' for the most Oscar nominations ( 10 ) , was completely shut out at the awards ceremony . Five things to know . Ellen sets a record . Oscar host Ellen DeGeneres managed to set a social media record with a celebrity-filled selfie that was retweeted more times than any photograph in Twitter history . She went into the audience and gathered a number of stars -- including Meryl Streep , Kevin Spacey and Bradley Cooper , who shot the image -- and encouraged people to send it around the world . She had a pretty good head start , given that she has more than 25 million followers on Twitter . DeGeneres was generally loose and low-key throughout the broadcast , inspiring smiles more than laughs . In her opening monologue , she cracked the usual jokes about Hollywood and image . Later , she went into the audience to ask if anyone wanted a pizza -- and even borrowed Pharrell 's famous hat to collect a few bucks for payment . There were also some somber moments . The `` In Memoriam '' segment , which has received scrutiny in recent years after certain omissions , included notables who recently died -- among them Sid Caesar , Harold Ramis and Shirley Temple Black -- and concluded with Philip Seymour Hoffman . And when he took the stage to present the award for best cinematography , Bill Murray worked in a shout-out for his old `` Ghostbusters '' and `` Groundhog Day '' friend Ramis . Blues in the night . On the red carpet , blue was the color of choice for many stars . Nyong ' o was dressed in a striking sky-blue Prada gown . Liza Minnelli and best actress nominee Amy Adams ( `` American Hustle '' ) also were in shades of blue . Jennifer Lawrence was an exception : She was in a striking red dress . But for `` 12 Years '' actress Alfre Woodard , very little of the glitter mattered . Asked by CNN 's Piers Morgan what she was wearing , Woodard laughingly turned the question back toward the work that got all the nominees to the red carpet in the first place . `` I hope I 'm wearing my talent tonight , '' she said .
`` This is for all the people who have endured slavery , '' film 's director says . Cate Blanchett wins best actress , Jared Leto wins best actor . `` `` His Eye Is on the Sparrow '' '' takes seven Oscars , including best director . Matthew McConaughey o , Lupita Nyong ' win supporting acting Louisiana .