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NEWS STREAM

Alan Rickman Dies at 69; Terrorist Attack in Jakarta Has Suspected Links To ISIS; Academy Award Nominations; Mass Graves in Sinjar. Aired 8:00a-9:00a ET

Aired January 14, 2016 - 08:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

[08:00:23] KRISTIE LU STOUT, HOST: I'm Kristie Lu Stout in Hong Kong, and welcome to News Stream.

Now terror strikes Indonesia's capital. Explosions and gunfire kill two

people in Jakarta.

Alan Rickman, the actor who played Professor Snape in the Harry Potter movies, dies at the age of 69.

And we'll bring you the Oscar nominations live in just over 30 minutes from now and we'll see if Mad Max makes it on the list of best picture

nominees.

Now, deadly attacks in the heart of the Indonesian capital claim the lives of two civilians.

A team of armed militants detonated explosives and opened fire in a midday assault on Jakarta.

Now police tell us that five of the attackers were killed and a manhunt is under way in case there were other attackers. The ISIS

affiliated Amaq News Agency reports that ISIS was behind the wave of gun and bomb attacks in Jakarta this day. But to be clear here, this is not a

direct claim by ISIS.

Now, the attack happened in the small area in the heart of the Indonesian capital. It began late on Thursday morning in an entertainment

and shopping district with various western chain restaurants and stores. It's right in the central business area.

And police tell us that the attacker blew himself up at a Starbucks. At the same time two gunmen opened fire inside the coffee shop shooting

people on the street. Heavily armed police, they were soon on the scene, firing on the militants, and that is when the attackers responded with

grenades and there was a gun battle.

Now, Kathy Quiano is following all of developments in Jakarta, and she spoke to us a short time ago about the area that was attacked.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KATHY QUIANO, CNN PRODUCER: It's a very busy intersection in central Jakarta where you have office buildings, commercial establishments, you

have a McDonald's, a Starbucks there as well. Many of these shops are open 24 hours, so it's busy any time of the day, perhaps a good target if they

wanted to shock the city, which has been the target of attacks before, you know, the J.W. Marriott was attacked twice a few years back, so was the

Australia embassy here in Jakarta. But no one expected, certainly, that another attack would happen now.

The threat of a terror attack was deemed low after the Jami'ah Islamiyah Network, which is linked to al Qaeda, was weakened by police

forces here. Very, very capable counterterrorism efforts here.

But, of course, there was a concern of smaller groups like the East Indonesia Mujahedeen that is based out of central Sulawesi, that has

pledged allegiance to ISIS. And certainly authorities are looking into that angle.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LU STOUT: Kathy Quiano there.

Now, for the latest details out of Indonesia, our Asia-Pacific editor Andrew Stevens joins us now. And Andrew, there were, again, a series of

blasts followed by gunfire. How did it all unfold?

ANDREW STEVENS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, it looks like there were five blasts in all, and at least four of those were hand grenades which has

been lobbed by the attackers, Kristie. What we're hearing from the police is that the

first blast was actually a suicide bomber, that happened just before 11:00 in the morning outside a Starbucks in that shopping mall.

Now after that explosion, two other attackers started opening fire on people who were fleeing the Starbucks shop, which had just been the area

where the attack had started. And two people were taken by the attackers, one was a foreign national. We don't yet know the nationality of that

person. He was shot dead by one of the attackers and another person was also shot, but not killed.

Meanwhile, the attackers are also shooting at passers by. The police then engaged them. There was a firefight. More grenades were launched and

eventually five attackers were killed by police over the course of what seems to be about one

hour or so, Kristie.

Now, police also found five unexploded devices. We don't exactly know what they are. And also we understand -- but it's a little bit confusing

at the moment -- whether there's still a manhunt on for further attackers. There are some reports say all five were the people involved, others saying

that there could be others still be looked for.

LU STOUT: All right. And there are reports, again from this ISIS affiliated news agency, saying that the militant group is behind this.

Could you give us more context on ISIS and Indonesia? Indonesia is the world's largest Muslim country, but does it have a significantly large

support base for ISIS?

[08:05:15] STEVENS: Well, it certainly has in recent history been the center

of several attacks, several terror attacks, dating back to 2002. Of course, the Bali bombing, which more than 200 people were killed in. And

since then there have been attacks on U.S.-owned hotels -- the Marriott, the Ritz-Carlton, also on the Australian embassy. But the last major

attack back in 2009.

None of these link -- this is pre-ISIS basically, but it is still Islamist terror groups, homegrown terror groups. Now, police have said

that they are looking into these claims this was an ISIS-based attack, but whether it was from

actual ISIS or whether other groups which have pledged allegiance to ISIS, still remains to be seen.

One of those groups is led by a man called Sentoso (ph), who is the most wanted man in Indonesia. He's believed to be in the island of

Sulawesi. He has been linked to several violent attacks against mainly hard targets, though, Kristie: police stations, things like that. This is

the first time there has been attacks on soft targets for quite some time.

LU STOUT: ISIS has a presence in Indonesia, especially in Sulawesi. Indonesia is unfortunately not a stranger to terror attacks. But in the

past has it effectively managed the terror threats before?

STEVENS: In a word it has. After Bali, a new counterterrorism group was

formed. And it was known as detachment 88. And they have had some help training help from the U.S., from Europe and also from the Australians,

also funded by the U.S. as well.

And this actually has been -- this detachment, or DSS 88 (ph) as it's known, has been effective in tackling again the homegrown extremists.

Jami'ah Islamiyah, which was a major force and responsible for many attacks in the early part of the 2000s, has effectively really been dismantled by

DSS 88 (ph). The group itself has come into some criticism over the methods its employed in tracking down terrorists in Indonesia, but

generally it's regarded very highly within Indonesia and indeed around the world by other anti-terrorist organizations for the effective work its

done.

So, it has -- if you think about it, there hasn't been a major attack in what is a very, very big Muslim population, a big country with a

homegrown extremists. They have managed to keep a lid on it for several years now.

LU STOUT: Andrew Stevens reporting, many thanks indeed for that.

Now, the news coming in to us in the last hour, the well loved and the very well known British actor Alan Rickman has died at the age of 69. He

had been battling cancer.

Now, Rickman is famous for playing Professor Snape in the Harry Potter series as well as Hans Gruber, the bad guy in the original Diehard. He

also starred in Robinhood: Prince of Thieves and Love Actually among many other movies He also had a thriving career on stage as well.

Alan Rickman, a singular and truly unique voice on stage and on stage, he has passed away at the age of 69.

You're watching News Stream. Still to come on the program, we have details on a deadly car bombing in southeast Turkey. Who the police say

may be behind this attack.

Also, a town in northern Iraq finds out just how brutal ISIS can be. CNN visits the mass grave of children who refused to fight for the terror

group.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[08:10:25] LU STOUT: Now, we want to bring you the latest on what we know ab out the series of attacks that targeted the Indonesian capital.

Now police say two civilians were killed when a team of armed militants detonated explosives and opened fire in the heart of Jakarta. We are told

one of the civilians was a foreign national.

Now, five of the attackers were killed and a manhunt is underway in case

there are other attackers.

The ISIS affiliated Amaq News Agency reports ISIS was behind the wave of gun and bomb attacks this day in Jakarta, but to be clear here, this is

not a direct claim by ISIS.

Now, I want to bring Noor Huda Ismail. He's the founder of the Institute of

International Peace Building. He joins me now via Skype from Melbourne, Australia.

And Noor Huda Islmail, thank you very much for joining us this day. What is your reaction to this claim from the Amaq News Agency that ISIS

carried out this attack in Jakarta?

NOOR HUDA ISMAIL, INSTITUTE FOR INTERNATIONAL PEACE BUILDING: Yes, I think we have to be very careful to see that claim. However, I think the

simply has a reason to say so because a couple of months before the Christmas Eve, the New Year, the Indonesian policemen arrested at least six

Indonesian linked to Indonesian who are now fighting with ISIS. This is the kind in Balushah (ph), he send money as well as instructions to carry

out an attack in Indonesia for any hardcore ISIS member or supporter who fail to (inaudible)to Syria.

So, I think this attack might link to the kind of previous attack.

LU STOUT: Now, our correspondents have been pointing out that ISIS does have

a presence in Indonesia on the island of Sulawesi, but how strong is that base in Indonesia? And are there a number of Indonesians joining ISIS?

ISMAIL: No. I mean, like the guy named Santoso (ph) mentioned by your correspondent in Indonesia is correct. He pledged allegiance to ISIS

but there is no direct connection whatsoever.

Today, at least the Indonesian government believes around 500 Indonesians have traveled to Syria and joined ISIS, 50 of them died and

then this year alone the Turkey government already deported 187 Indonesian who are suspected to join ISIS.

Interestingly, 24 percent of them are female members and as well as children.

This is such an alarming (inaudible), I guess.

LU STOUT: If indeed ISIS is responsible, it was behind this highly coordinated attack in Jakarta earlier this day, what should the Indonesian

government do to diminish the appeal of the militant group and crack down on is in Indonesia?

ISMAIL: I think two things. First, that the government must have a strong law to actually outlaw and punish individuals who actually travel

abroad to participate in any military training. Today, the Indonesian government do not have

that law yet. So it's really very difficult for Indonesia to actually prosecute.

And second thing, the Indonesian government must take seriously handle return foreign fighters. The Indonesian government have claimed that they

identified them but there is no systemic system to deal with these individuals.

But, however, we cannot lump together as a threat. Some of them come back because they are disenchanted, disappointed to what they saw in Syria.

Therefore we have to capitalize those voices. We have to exploit the line among those jihadis as a way for us to deter would be Indonesians to fight

for Syria.

These are the things that we need to do.

LU STOUT: Thank you very much indeed. Noor Huda Ismail joining us via Skype from Melbourne. Now, to our other major breaking story this

hour, the well love, well known British actor Alan Rickman has died at the age of 69. He had been battling cancer.

Rickman is famous for playing Professor Snape in the Harry Potter movies, Hans Gruber the bad guy in Die Hard. He also starred in a host of

other movies and had a thriving career on stage as well. Alan Rickman has passed away at the age of 69.

Now, let's bring in a critic in film Richard Fitzwilliam. He joins us now from London. Thanks for joining us.

And such a tremendous loss. The UK has lost another cultural icon this week, the untimely death of actor Alan Rickman. And he had such a

unique voice, especially on the screen.

[08:15:07] RICHARD FITZWILLIAM, FILM CRITIC: He did most certainly. Alan Rickman's voice was part of the key to a personality that he was able

to project in so many different ways.

He could be extremely sinister and was often a superlative villain. He could be very sensitive. And he could also be rather sexy. And he

could be funny. so, this was a versatility that was used to great effect in many performances.

LU STOUT: You know, we're waiting for the Oscar nominations to be announced later this hour and incredibly Alan Rickman never won an Oscar.

He did win a host of other awards. Yeah, go ahead.

FITZWILLIAM: It very often is the case that if somebody dies young and at 69 it is comparatively young, you miss out on an Oscar. I mean,

Peter O'Toole got an honorary Oscar. Richard Burton comes to mind. He never won either an Oscar or

honorary Oscar.

But this undoubtedly does show up somewhat of a gap in the choices.

I mean, there's no question one of the things that Rickman was so superb at as Revenend Obediah Slope, a ghastly villainous character in the

Barchester Chronicles, which was based on the Trollop novel, his persona in Britain was a high profile and in Dangerous Liaisons on the stage, he again

played a rather villainous character. You mentioned Professor Snape in Harry Potter and also stole

the Sheriff of Nottingham's part -- stole Robinhood Prince of Thieves from Kevin Costner.

So, all of these were roles which imprinted themselves on the public consciousness. But he rather regretted he was so widely known as a

villain, because there were so many roles where he was extremely sensitive.

You think of Emma Thompson's husband in Love Actually, you think of An Awfully Big Adventure, which he played a tragic role where he realized who

he had been having a relationship with. The movie starred Hugh Grant.

And also in Close my Eyes during Thatcher's Britain, he played a husband

who was being cuckold, but also had a sense of humor and balance.

He could be very, very funny. It was also said that if you looked at the ideal voice for various moods, you took a mixture of his and Jerry

Irons' and you have got the perfect one.

LU STOUT: The Barchester Chronicles, that launched his screen career in

the UK. It was in the United States the movie Die Hard when he played the antagonist there that really put him firmly on the map.

But he started his career on stage. Is that correct? And did you ever get to see him on stage?

FITZWILLIAM: Unfortunately I never saw him on stage. I gather he was absolutely superb. In fact, he did tremendous amount of stage work.

Dangerous Liaisons was regarded as the high point, but he played in a variety of

venues and variety of countries and as a stage actor and film and television actor, he will be very, very sorely missed because there was no

one quite like him. And as a character and as an individual and the fact that we can picture his persona so vividly when we talk about him, he was

completely irreplaceable.

LU STOUT: Yeah, irreplaceable on so many levels. He was also very politically active, involved in many charities.

FITZWILLIAM: Oh yes, and a member of the Labour Party.

LU STOUT: Go ahead.

Yes, that's right.

FITZWILLIAM: As a member of Labour Party -- his wife was in fact a Labour

counselor. He also said that he was born as a card carrying member of the Labour Party.

LU STOUT: Thank you very much for giving us this multifaceted profile of

the late actor Alan Rickman. Thank you. And we'll talk again later in the hour when the Oscar nominations come out.

You're watching News Stream. We'll be back after this short break.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ALAN RICKMAN, ACTOR: If anyone here has any knowledge of Mr. Potter's movements this evening, I invite them to step forward.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[08:22:09] LU STOUT: All right, broadcasting live from Hong Kong, you're back watching News Stream. Let's turn now to southeast Turkey. And

Turkish media report at least five people have been killed in an explosion at a police headquarters. The reports say the attackers detonated a car

bomb and then open fire. Police are blaming Kurdish militants.

This comes jsut two days after an explosion killed ten people in Istanbul.

Officials say seven people have been detained in connection with that attack.

Meanwhile, we are learning more about one of the suspected terrorists wjho was rounded up in a nationwide police operation. Now, let's bring in

Ian Lee from Istanbul. And Ian, this new intel is coming from the Russian foreign

office. What are they saying?

IAN LEE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, what we're hearing right now is that one of the people could have had -- could have been a Russian that had

ties with ISIS that is being investigated in this attack, but since the attack took place, there was a large round up of a number of suspects, 68

in total, that the Turkish government has been detaining quite a few people really in the week prior as well, 220 all linked with ISIS.

Now this investigation still very much ongoing into how the suicide bomber was able to make it from Syria into Turkey and then here to

Istanbul. Who helped him as well as where he got the bombs. But we are hearing just right now from the prime minister as well saying that in the

48 hours after the attack took place, that they launched strikes, attacks into Syria and Iraq with artillery,

hitting roughly 500 ISIS positions.

Now, the prime minister claiming that 200 ISIS fighters were killed in those

strikes, retaliation for the suicide bombing that took place here a couple of days ago.

LU STOUT: Ian Lee reporting live from Istanbul. Thank you very much indeed for that update.

And now to Northern Iraq and more evidence of ISIS brutality. Among the horrors, an open air mass grave of those who refused to side with ISIS.

Nima Elbagir has this exclusive report.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

NIMA ELBAGIR, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The road into Sinjar town, almost two months after liberation from ISIS it's still heavily

guarded.

Sinjar's mayor has traveled with us today to show us what remains of this city.

When ISIS swept through the Yazidi homeland, it's along this very road where the men, women and children, rounded up from the surrounding

villages, were driven. The mayor takes us to the other side of the earth defenses encircling the town.

This was the site of an ISIS massacre.

It breaks his heart, he says, to leave the bones exposed like this to the elements but no one has come to investigate. No one has come to

document. So they don't want to undermine any findings.

This grave is one of the hundreds, he tells us. Here is where they buried the women and the children. The young boys who refused to accompany

ISIS, who refused to be conscripted as child soldiers.

Surviving eyewitnesses tell CNN the victims in these graves, more than 130 people had originally been singled out for transport to the nearby ISIS

town of Tal Afar. They refused. You can still see the cloth ties that bound the victims' hands, both young and old, the prayer beads clutched until the

final moments, the bullets fired by the executioners.

A refugee camp in Northern Iraq: those who managed to flee ISIS have found refuge here. Kurdish authorities tell CNN they have evidence of the

abduction of approximately 600 children from Sinjar and the surrounding Yazidi villages. Around 200 have since escaped and are sheltering in camps

like this one across the Kurdish region, returning to describe the brutality.

Eleven-year-old Nordi Fela (ph) is one of the lucky ones. His family were abducted the day of the Sinjar massacre. Once in Tal Afar, he refused

to join the training. ISIS fighters brutally beat him, breaking his leg in three places. When it healed, he could only limp.

"They asked me go to the mountain," he says, "and I refused. Again, then, they broke my leg. That saved me. The other children were taken by

force."

He says the fighters deemed him useless. That saved his life.

Nordi's (ph) 5-year-old brother, Saman (ph), was terrified from the very beginning, subjected to daily beatings. Their life in the ISIS camp is

something no one, no child, should ever have to endure.

The children's grandmother, Gauda Halaf (ph), says the boys described watching as militants murdered other children who refused to train.

Gauda (ph) tells us, "They are utterly traumatized. Nordi (ph) wakes up terrified through the night, screaming that he's being choked and Saman

(ph) still suffers from seizures."

Traumatized and too broken to march in the militants' ranks, they were, by some miracle, released by ISIS.

Back at the outskirts of town, in the distance, we can see smoke rising from a mortar strike into an ISIS encampment. Mass graves, we're

told, honeycomb the valley leading to the boundary of their territory.

On the ground, the mayor spots a fragment of what appears to be a child's skull. Delicately, reverently, he places it on top of the grave.

One day, he tells us, he hopes it will be safe enough here for forensic investigators to come and help them identify the children under this

rubble

Nima Elbagir, CNN, Sinjar.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(HEADLINES)

[08:32:09] LU STOUT: Now we have got new information just in to CNN. Now police in Indonesia now think the assailants were indeed tied to ISIS.

Now, CNN producer Kathy Quiano is tracking developments on the ground in

Jakarta. And Kathy, tell us what about you're learning from Indonesian authorities that ISIS linked to what happened earlier today in Jakarta.

QUIANO: Well, Kristie, certainly police authorities are looking into the angle of the attackers being linked to groups or individuals who have

pledged allegiance to ISIS or at least sympathizers. They are working on

identifying these five attackers who were killed earlier today. They were responsible for first

exploding a device in this Starbucks coffee shop in a very, very busy intersection in central Jakarta. Then they proceeded to drag at least two

foreign nationals and then killed them as well. And then when police responded, they are attack them with grenades.

Now, what we're seeing from the information coming out of the police headquarters this evening is that this was a well coordinated, well planned

and well funded attack, something that maybe they had not expected.

For a very long time, authorities are saying that the level of threats of a major attack here in Indonesia was quite low. But this showing us

that perhaps there is a group there now that is more capable, more trained and more funded to launch attacks just this one -- Kristie.

LU STOUT: There were many victims of today's terror attack in Jakarta. Tell us about the casualties and the number of people wounded?

QUIANO: That's right, Kristie, at least two people were killed, two civilians, one of them was a foreign national, as I mentioned earlier, he

was police say dragged out into a parking lot. He and another foreign national were shot and killed there.

But also, eyewitnesses say the attackers were shooting randomly and shooting at the crowd. So there were many Indonesians as well who were

injured in this attack.

I must explain as well, that this intersection, this building and this particular Starbucks coffee shop is quite popular among people who work

around this area. There are a lot of embassies here, of office buildings, the UN

offices are just across the Starbucks. So, there have been many other foreign nationals as well there and something perhaps attackers took note

of and maybe one of the reasons they targeted this area -- Kristie.

LU STOUT: Kathy Quiano reporting live from Jakarta. Thank you.

Now, more questions than answers about 10 American sailors that were detained and then released by Iran. Now, the Americans were picked up when

their two patrol boats entered Iranian waters in the Persian Gulf.

Iranian TV aired video of a sailor it identified as the commander apologizing.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

[08:35:10] UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It was a mistake that was our fault and we apologize for our mistake. It was a misundersatnding. We did not mean

to go into Iranian territorial water.

The Iranian behavior was fantastic while we were here. We thank you very much for your hospitality and your assistance.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LU STOUT: Now, the Pentagon said that the video appeared authentic, but noted the crew's circumstances at the time are unknown.

The Obama administration is emphasizing Washington itself did not apologize.

Now, U.S. officials say law enforcement was aware of Sean Penn's interaction with Mexican actress Kate del Castillo before the two met with

the drug kingpin Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman. Authorities suspected the actor was trying to broker a movie deal. They say the Rolling Stone

article revealed the full extent of Penn's interaction with Guzman and a Mexican newspaper has also published transcripts of messages between El

Chapo and del Castillo that led authorities straight to him.

Now, the nominations are being announced for this year's Acadmy Awards. And after the break, find out if your favorites are in the

running. We wil take you live to Beverly Hills.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LU STOUT: All right, it is a big day for Hollywood. Nominations for this

year's Academy Awards will be announced very shortly. It is Thursday morning in

Beverly Hills and among the best picture contenders to be nominated we are going to be hearing this next couple of minutes.

We may here Spotlight, the movie Carol, The Revenant, The Big Short. We're also waiting to see if Mad Max is going to get a nod or two.

Among the actors who may be up for best actor nod, Leonardo DiCaprio, Matt DAmon, Michael Fassbender for his portrayal of Steve Jobs.

And as for the best actress category, listening out for whether Brie Larson after her win at the Golden Globes will be named as well as Cate

Blanchett, arguably the Meryl Streep of her generation.

Now, again we are waiting for the nominations to be announced. It's happening now. Let's listen in.

(ACADEMY AWARD NOMINATION ANNOUNCEMENT)

[08:45:12] LU STOUT: All right, we just heard the Academy Award nominations. And to break it down, let's bring back film critic Richard

Fitzwilliam. He joins us now form London.

Let's walk through the list of the best picture nominations. You've got Bridge of Spies, Brooklyn, Mad Max Fury Road -- there was also The

Martian, Room, Spotlight, The Revenant, The Big Short, all in the running. Which film do you think deserves to take home the oscar?

FITZWILLIAM: The answer has to be a toss-up between The Revenant, which I have to say would only be the fourth western to win if it did, and

which has been superlatively successful at the box office -- it's a very fine film; and Spotlight, which I think still is the favorite. It's a brillian docudrama

about child abuse in Boston by priests.

It is a remarkable list. There is one absentee, which did surprise me and that was Carol. I was confident that would be in the best picture

selection, but I do think the inclusion of Mad Max Fury Road will placate those action

fans who believe that Star Wars and Mad Max, movies like that, don't get enough recognition.

It's also a very balanced list, because you have got two movies, Brooklyn and Bridge of Spies, set in the 1950s and you also have got a

science fiction movie. They do very badly at the Oscars, not one has ever won, The Martian. And The Big Short, which I think everyone has a weakness

for, did very well.

LU STOUT: Now, Carol did not get the nod for best picture but did get a nomination for best actress. Cate Blanchett was named as well as Brie

Larson, Charlotte Ramplin, Saoirse Ronan, and Jennifer Lawrence. Who deserves the

award?

FITZWILLIAM: The answer has to be that Brie Larson is going to get it. But to ask me who deserves it, I do have to make a very, very

important point, and that is that this is one of the strongest years ever for best actress and for women's roles and this is what Hollywood is trying

to set right. There should be so much more gender equality. And if you look at the best actress as well and I think Rooney Mara is the likely

winner there, but Kate Winslet who won at the Globes, she was absolutely superb, too, in Steve Jobs.

This is so important. So, I do think that was the male categories are very strong too, the strength of the women's categories is one of the

characteristics of this list that we must welcome.

LU STOUT: And let's talk about the male category. Among those named for best actor, Bryan Cranston, Matt Damon for The Martian, Leonardo

DiCaprio for The Revenant, Michael Fassbender, Eddie Redmayne.

Do you like this shortlist?

LU STOUT: I think it's perfect. It's quite frankly -- I would have slipped Tom Hanks in for Bridge of Spies if I possibly could. But I mean

you can't -- if you're restricted to five -- this is DiCaprio's, we know that's he received four acting nominations and never won. And he's

brilliant in The Revenant. And he will win. Eddie Redmayne is marvelous in the transgender role in the Danish girl.

Michael Fassbender in Steve Jobs. I wish that had made the best picture list. But it bomb at the box office. And, well, he is extremely

good.

And Bryan Cranston in Trumbo. In a normal year he would have a chance, but not I suspect with as strong competition as this, though that

is an excellent list.

Yeah, and the best director category, I was able to hear George Miller for Mad Max Fury Road, Tom McCarthy for Spotlight, they were named among

others. In that category, which director do you have your eyes on?

FITZWILLIAM: My eye is firmly on Alexandr Inarritu for The Revenant. And the reason is whereas I don't necessarily say that it would win best

picture, I think it's going to got a good chance, but they don't always go together.

The reason it's The Revenant is so incredibly cinematic, it's atmospheric, it's got a broad sweep to it and it's also visceral, pretty

harrowing viewing and it's very, very interesting that people are flocking to see it, partly it's

obviously Leonardo DiCaprio's appeal, but there's no question that it is a remarkably artistic feat that he's achieved, little doubts that Inside-Out

will win for best animated picture. And also was I didn't hear the documentary

list, I'm sure Amy is on it. The tragic life of the singer Amy Winehouse, that's likely to win.

But there's no doubt there is so much talent here and it's a joy to see movies like Brooklyn get a mention. It's good to see Mad Max Fury Road

represent those who like action movies and it's so good, also, to see a look with Carol, with Brooklyn and with Bridge of Spies the 1950s, which we

don't normally. And also in sexuality, which is so important.

A late Roger Ebert said that it was so central to cinema and also to awards, in Carol, in The Danish Girl, where Eddie Redmayne was of course

absolutely brilliant, though he won't win this year as he did last year playing Professor Stephen Hawking.

It's so pivotal. So, you think of some that you would have liked to have included. I mentioned Lilly Tomlin as grandma. And we're also

looking at best supporting actor, that's going to be fascinating because Sylvester Stallone I think is definitely the favorite for an excellent

performance in Creed.

But those of us who remember in 1976, who could forget when he was a nominee, the year of Rocky and he was on stage and Mohammed Ali came up

behind him and they did this little sparring bout, that is pure Oscar magic. I wonder if we'll have any surprises on stage this year when Chris

Rock, of course, is the host.

LU STOUT: Well, Sylvester Stallone, he won the Golden Globe for best supporting actor. He could very well take home the Oscar.

Mr. Fitzwilliam, we'll leave it at that. Thank you very much for joining

us. One more point you wanted to make?

FITZWILLIAM: I think that it's just the standard of list does reflect I think the standard of cinema. And I'm so pleased that low budget films

these days, or they did last year, have such a good opportunity at the Oscars as well of course as the epics.

LU STOUT: That's right. It's great to see the so-called arthouse under the radar movies getting recognized by the Academy.

Now, Richard Fitzwilliam thank you so much. Take care.

You're watching News Stream. And coming up on the program, there's a winner or rather there's three of them, we have got the latest on America's

Powerball lottery coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LU STOUT: It is the largest lottery prize in history and it got an entire nation excited. Finally, the numbers to claim the $1.5 billion

Powerball jackpot are out and three lucky winners have beat incredible odds to win the

massive prize.

The winning tickets, they were sold in Chino Hills, California, Munford, Tennessee, and in Melbourne Beach, Florida.

A lot of people are advising the new millionaires to remain anonymous.

Now, Sara Sidner is at the shop that sold the winning ticket in California. She joins us now live.

Now, Sara, one of the winning tickets was sold there. Do we know who won it? And what's the reaction there?

[08:55:13] SARA SIDNER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: We do not know who won it. And they have now -- I was going to look it up because there was a little

bit of confusion, each state is a little different, but they have a year here in California before they have to come forward to claim the prize.

And so this could go on for a little while.

The scene here a few hours ago was crazy. There were dozens of people who showed up here in Chino Hills, California at the 7-Eleven in the middle

of the night to celebrate, not that they had won, but that their city somehow had won because this is where the ticket was sold.

They also came to support the owner of the 7-Eleven who we spoke to a bit and who was very excited because he actually gets a million dollars

just for selling the ticket.

But I will show you that the Powerball, no longer says 999, that's as far as it goes up to. It was $1.6 billion. It is now back down to $40

million.

But we talked to some of the customers who came in to celebrate and they literally were here just because they were happy to hear that Chino

Hills had this small bit of fame for the evening at least.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SIDNER: Did you win anything?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes, we did at work. We got four numbers.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We worked for (inaudible).

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We haven't even checked all of our numbers yet because we had to rush down here.

UNIDENITIFIED FEMALE: We work for a local real estate broker.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: WE might have more money.

We were one number away from a million dollars.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SIDNER: In all, more than 20 people will become millionaires because even if you didn't win the big jackpot, there are still people who will win

upwards of a million dollars if they get five out of the six numbers, Kristie.

LU STOUT: I love the reaction in that convenience store behind you.

Sara Sidner reporting live from Chino Hills, California. Thank you.

And before we go, the British movie star Alan Rickman has died at the age

of 69. He had been battling cancer. And Rickman is famous for playing those incredible onscreen villains. He starred, of course, as Professor

Ssnape in the Harry Potter movies, and Hans Gruber, the bad guy in the original Die Hard.

And before his movie career took off, Rickman performed on stage with the Royal Shakespeare company.

Alan Rickman, a giant on stage and on screen dead at the age of 69.

And that is News Stream. I'm Kristie Lu Stout.

END