The Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences invited 120 people to join this year, including the guy who played the Hulk, the Charlotte’s Web girl, the ingenue from the Pirates of the Caribbean movies and many other SF&F stars, an academy spokesperson told SCI FI Wire. Rules are stricter now, and just because you’re nominated doesn’t mean you’re in the select group that picks the Oscars each year. "The academy decided to slow membership growth and to become even more selective in choosing members," academy president Sid Ganis said in a statement. An academy spokesperson added that people are invited for their overall body of work, not just because of a specific genre such as science fiction, and that they mus t return their paperwork in time to be allowed in, so just because they’re invited doesn’t mean they’re part of the academy.

Among the 120 new invitees are many who have SF&F backgrounds and who may be more likely to consider genre films in future Oscar competitions. Among the actors asked to join the prestigious academy are Hulk star Eric Bana, Dakota Fanning (War of the Worlds, Dr. Seuss’s Cat in the Hat and the upcoming Charlotte’s Web), Keira Knightley (Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest, Star Wars: Episode I-The Phantom Menace), Heath Ledger (A Knight’s Tale, Brothers Grimm) and Amy Adams (the upcoming Underdog, Enchanted), as well as Ving Rhames (Mission: Impossible), Joaquin Phoenix (The Village, Signs), Rachel Weisz (The Mummy, The Fountain), Liev Schreiber (The Omen), Maria Bello (The Dark), Jake Gyllenhaal (The Day After Tomorrow, Donnie Darko) and Barry Pepper (Battlefield Earth), who were invited in by other members of the academy.

Just Like Heaven and Freaky Friday director Mark Waters is on the list. Among the other people invited were producers such as Jennifer Todd (Tales From the Crypt, Austin Powers), Gail Berman (Buffy the Vampire Slayer), Bill Kong (Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon and the upcoming Blood: The Last Vampire), Jonathan Sehring (Waking Life, Tape), Diane Nabatoff (The Kindred), Cathy Schulman (The Illusionist, Godsend), Tom Finan (Stuart Little, Hercules) and Robert K. Weiss (the Scary Movie films).

New invitations also went to makeup and technical supervisors, including Nick Dudman, who did special effects on all the Harry Potter movies, prosthetics on Batman Begins and makeup on Alien 3, Superman II, Star Wars: Episode VI-Return of the Jedi and Star Wars: Episode V-T h e Empire Strikes Back; David Young, who did special effects for Superman Returns, Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome, The Matrix, Babe: Pig in the City and Star Wars: Episodes II and III; and Lance Anderson, who did makeup for The X-Files, Dawn of the Dead and John Carpenter’s The Thing.

Invitations also went to visual-effects experts Jim Berney (the Matrix films, Polar Express, Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers), Bill Tondreau (Tron), Jeffrey Kleiser (the X-Men films and Fantastic Four), Bill Westenhofer (Cats & Dogs, Elf), Michael Meinardus (Bewitched, Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me) and Pablo Helman (War of the Worlds, The Chronicles of Riddick, Independence Day).

Set directors in the list included Victor Zolfo (The Day After Tomorrow, Stargate) and Tom Reta (Blade, Anaconda). Art director Thomas P. Wilkins (Spider-Man 2, Men in Black 2) was a l so asked to join.

Animators invited to join the academy include Oscar winner Hayao Miyazaki, Red Gringon (Shrek), Wallace and Gromit animator Steve Box, Cars and The Incredibles artist Andrew Jimenez and Antz and Sinbad: Legend of the Seven Seas director Tim Johnson.

Even casting directors were asked to join, such as Randi Hiller (The Scorpion King, The Haunting, A Cinderella Story) and Sarah Halley Finn (Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines, Mission: Impossible II and Dracula 2000).

Sound effects masters added to the academy list include Renée Tondelli (Ghost, Austin Powers in Goldmember), Wayne Alwine (Star Trek V: The Final Frontier, Alien Nation), James Beshears (The Craft, The Rocketeer), Eugene Gearty (Men in Black, Hulk), Michael Semananick (King Kong, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Team America: World Police) and Ulrika Akander (the Pirates of the C ar ibbean films, Exorcist: The Beginning, Spider-Man 2, Constantine).

Others genre invitees included cinematographer Wally Pfister (Batman Begins), cinematographer Lance Acord (Where the Wild Things Are), costume designer Jaqueline Durran (Star Wars: Episode II-Attack of the Clones, Lara Croft Tomb Raider), editor Wayne Wahrman (Constantine, The Time Machine), Louis D’Esposito (first assistant director for Hollow Man and Super Mario Brothers), composer Harry Gregson-Williams (Shrek, The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe and the upcoming Prince Caspian) and composer Dario Marianelli (V for Vendetta, Brothers Grimm).

The candidates for academy membership are considered by committees in each of the 14 branches of filmmaking. This year, 39 of the invitees were 2005 nominees and eight won Oscars, and the new members will be welcomed at a reception on Sept. 20. Ove ral l, it means that even with Battlefield Earth on your resume, you can still get tapped to get into the academy.