1981 Oscars — Sound

Star Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back won Sound at the 1981 Oscars. All 5 nominees are listed below, winner first. The other nominees were Altered States, Coal Miner's Daughter, Fame and Raging Bull. Each film links to its complete award history. The links below go to the 1980 and 1982 Sound races.

Last updated August 12, 2026

Star Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back(1980)
Bill Varney, Steve Maslow, Gregg Landaker, Peter Sutton
Winner
Altered States(1980)
Arthur Piantadosi, Les Fresholtz, Michael Minkler, Willie D. Burton
Coal Miner's Daughter(1980)
Richard Portman, Roger Heman, Jim Alexander
Fame(1980)
Michael J. Kohut, Aaron Rochin, Jay M. Harding, Chris Newman
Raging Bull(1980)
Donald O. Mitchell, Bill Nicholson, David J. Kimball, Les Lazarowitz