After we reported 'Chicago's Craig Zadan and Neil Meron are to produce the show, Contactmusic.com have had a look at some of the front runners to pick up awards at the 2013 ceremony.

The Best Picture category, won last year by The Artist, is the most prestigious of the accolades up for grabs. Paul Thomas Anderson's The Master has been mooted by many as the favourite for the category, but faces still competition from Ang Lee's Life Of Pi, Steven Spielberg's Lincoln and Tom Hooper's Les Miserables. Christopher Nolan's The Dark Knight Rises may sneak a nomination due to the films popularity. The front-runners for this category usually make up the majority of lists for the other awards, so expect to see Spielberg, Lee and Anderson in the running for Best Director too. Joaquin Phoenix marks an incredible comeback to cinematic prominence, and stands as hot favourite to benefit from The Master's screenplay by winning Best Actor, with the writing likely to gain recognition in the form of Best Screenplay. Whilst a favourite, The Master isn't the only thing to look for at next years Oscars: Beasts of The Southern Wild, featuring the young Quvenzhane Wallis (who has been described as a miniature force of nature by one critic) could be a surprise package. Wallis may be in line for a Best Actress nomination, and the then 5-year old is said to have provided a fierce performance as Hushpuppy.

Elsewhere, Brave will try and fight off competition for Best Animation, and Leonardo Dicaprio, (Django Unchained) and Philip Seymour Hoffman (The Master) will do battle for best supporting actor. A spectacular ceremony is to be put on by the musical maestros Zadan and Meron, but as The Guardian has reported, Jimmy Fallon, the popular U.S talk show host, will not be presenting the show. "No, I'm not going to do the Oscars," he said. "It's an honour to be asked by the academy, but it's not my year," he explained.