It's time to bring out the critical garlands and guillotines.

Just as the holiday season chugs towards another new year, the voting members of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences get a chance to luxuriate in the glory of their pen-wielding power.

The Hollywood Reporter reports that this weekend, ballots were mailed to the 5,808 people internationally, whose ticks and crosses will ensure which films and stars walk away with the most coveted cinematic awards of all, the Oscars, in March.

Completed ballots have to, despite all eventualities, be returned to auditing firm PricewaterhouseCoopers by January 15. The firm traditionally tabulates, in a highly secure and confidential procedure, both the nomination and final award ballots.

The Academy also announced that midnight December 31 marks the final deadline for a feature film to begin a seven-day run in Los Angeles to qualify for consideration for the 77th Annual Academy Awards.

So now, 5,808 people will have to sit back, open the plushly decorative DVD-box sets sent to them 'for their esteemed consideration,' and have to watch tons of movies all of the Academy think are this year's best. Hmm. Not the worse job in the world.