The 1981 Academy Awards were presented March 29, 1982 at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion, Los Angeles.
| Best Picture | Atlantic City, Denis Heroux and John Kemeny, producers (Paramount) |
| Chariots of Fire, David Puttnam, producer (The Ladd Co.; Warner Bros.) |
| On Golden Pond, Bruce Gilbert, producer (Universal) |
| Raiders of the Lost Ark, Frank Marshall, producer (Paramount) |
| Reds, Warren Beatty, producer (Paramount) |
| Actor in a Leading Role | Warren Beatty, Reds |
| Henry Fonda, On Golden Pond |
| Burt Lancaster, Atlantic City |
| Dudley Moore, Arthur |
| Paul Newman, Absence of Malice |
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 Henry Fonda, On Golden Pond Archive Photos |
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| Actress in a Leading Role | Katharine Hepburn, On Golden Pond |
| Diane Keaton, Reds |
| Marsha Mason, Only When I Laugh |
| Susan Sarandon, Atlantic City |
| Meryl Streep, The French Lieutenant's Woman |
| Actor in a Supporting Role | James Coco, Only When I Laugh |
| John Gielgud, Arthur |
| Ian Holm, Chariots of Fire |
| Jack Nicholson, Reds |
| Howard E. Rollins, Jr., Ragtime |
| Actress in a Supporting Role | Melinda Dillon, Absence of Malice |
| Jane Fonda, On Golden Pond |
| Joan Hackett, Only When I Laugh |
| Elizabeth McGovern, Ragtime |
| Maureen Stapleton, Reds |
| Directing | Warren Beatty, Reds |
| Hugh Hudson, Chariots of Fire |
| Louis Malle, Atlantic City |
| Mark Rydell, On Golden Pond |
| Steven Spielberg, Raiders of the Lost Ark |
| Writing | | Screenplay Written Directly for the Screen | Warren Beatty and Trevor Griffiths, Reds | | Steve Gordon, Arthur | | John Guare, Atlantic City | | Kurt Luedtke, Absence of Malice | | Colin Welland, Chariots of Fire | | Screenplay Based on Material From Another Medium | Jay Presson Allen and Sidney Lumet, Prince of the City | | Harold Pinter, The French Lieutenant's Woman | | Dennis Potter, Pennies From Heaven | | Ernest Thompson, On Golden Pond | | Michael Weller, Ragtime |
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| Cinematography | Miroslav Ondricek, Ragtime |
| Douglas Slocombe, Raiders of the Lost Ark |
| Vittorio Storaro, Reds |
| Alex Thomson, Excalibur |
| Billy Williams, On Golden Pond |
| Art Direction | Assheton Gorton, art direction; Ann Mollo, set decoration, The French Lieutenant's Woman |
| John Graysmark, Patrizia Von Brandenstein and Anthony Reading; art direction; George de Titta, Sr., George de Titta, Jr. and Peter Howitt, set decoration, Ragtime |
| Tambi Larsen, art direction; Jim Berkey, set decoration, Heaven's Gate |
| Norman Reynolds and Leslie Dilley, art direction; Michael Ford, set decoration, Raiders of the Lost Ark |
| Richard Sylbert, art direction; Michael Seirton, set decoration, Reds |
| Sound | Michael J. Kohut, Jay M. Harding, Richard Tyler and Al Overton, Pennies From Heaven |
| Richard Portman and David Ronne, On Golden Pond |
| Bill Varney, Steve Maslow, Gregg Landaker and Roy Charman, Raiders of the Lost Ark |
| Dick Vorisek, Tom Fleischman and Simon Kaye, Reds |
| John K. Wilkinson, Robert W. Glass, Jr., Robert M. Thirlwell and Robin Gregory, Outland |
| Music | | Original Song | “Arthur's Theme” (Best That You Can Do), Arthur, Burt Bacharach, Carole Bayer Sager, Christopher Cross and Peter Allen, music and lyrics | | “Endless Love,” Endless Love, Lionel Richie, music and lyrics | | “The First Time It Happens,” The Great Muppet Caper, Joe Raposo, music and lyrics | | “For Your Eyes Only,” For Your Eyes Only, Bill Conti, music; Mick Leeson, lyrics | | “One More Hour,” Ragtime, Randy Newman, music and lyrics | | Original Score | Dave Grusin, On Golden Pond | | Randy Newman, Ragtime | | Alex North, Dragonslayer | | Vangelis, Chariots of Fire | | John Williams, Raiders of the Lost Ark |
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| Film Editing | Dede Allen and Craig McKay, Reds |
| John Bloom, The French Lieutenant's Woman |
| Michael Kahn, Raiders of the Lost Ark |
| Terry Rawlings, Chariots of Fire |
| Robert L. Wolfe, On Golden Pond |
| Costume Design | Milena Canonero, Chariots of Fire |
| Tom Rand, The French Lieutenant's Woman |
| Bob Mackie, Pennies From Heaven |
| Anna Hill Johnstone, Ragtime |
| Shirley Russell, Reds |
| Makeup | Rick Baker, An American Werewolf in London |
| Stan Winston, Heartbeeps |
| Visual Effects | Richard Edlund, Kit West, Bruce Nicholson and Joe Johnston, Raiders of the Lost Ark |
| Dennis Muren, Phil Tippett, Ken Ralston and Brian Johnson, Dragonslayer |
| Short Films | | Animation | Crac (Frédéric Back, producer; Société Radio Canada) | | The Creation (Will Vinton, producer; Will Vinton Productions) | | The Tender Tale of Cinderella Penguin (Janet Perlman, producer; National Film Board of Canada) | | Live Action | Couples and Robbers (Christine Oestreicher, producer; Flamingo Pictures Ltd.) | | First Winter (John N. Smith, producer; National Film Board of Canada) | | Violet (Paul Kemp and Shelley Levinson, producers; American Film Institute) |
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| Documentary | | Short Subject | Americas in Transition (Obie Benz, producer; Americas in Transition, Inc.) | | Close Harmony (Nigel Noble, producer; Noble Enterprise) | | Journey for Survival (Dick Young, producer; Dick Young Productions, Ltd.) | | See What I Say (Linda Chapman, Pam LeBlanc and Freddi Stevens, producers; Michigan Women Filmmakers Productions) | | Urge to Build (Roland Hallé and John Hoover, producers; Roland Hallé Productions, Inc.) | | Feature | Against Wind and Tide: A Cuban Odyssey (Suzanne Bauman, Paul Neshamkin and Jim Burroughs, producers; Seven League Productions, Inc.) | | Brooklyn Bridge (Ken Burns, producer; Florentine Films Production) | | Eight Minutes to Midnight: A Portrait of Dr. Helen Caldicott (Mary Benjamin, Susanne Simpson and Boyd Estus, producers; The Caldicott Project) | | El Salvador: Another Vietnam (Glenn Silber and Tete Vasconcellos, producers; Catalyst Media Productions) | | Genocide (Arnold Schwartzman and Rabbi Marvin Hier, producers; Arnold Schwartzman Productions, Inc.) |
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| Foreign Language Film | The Boat Is Full, Switzerland |
| Man of Iron, Poland |
| Mephisto, Hungary |
| Muddy River, Japan |
| Three Brothers, Italy |
| Irving G. Thalberg Award | Albert R. Broccoli |
| Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award | Danny Kaye |
| Honorary Award | To Barbara Stanwyck for superlative creativity and unique contribution to the art of screen acting |
| Special Achievement Award | | Sound Effects Editing | Benjamin P. Burtt, Jr. and Richard L. Anderson, Raiders of the Lost Ark |
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