The day after the Academy Awards, Boston University alum Tarrah Curtis, head assistant of the Communications and Award Publicity Association, could finally assess the show after months of preparation.

“I thought it was well paced,” the 2000 College of Communication graduate said. “We didn’t run too long. The three musical performances were great, and Jon Stewart was on point.”

Six months before the night of the show, however, the process was just beginning. The first meeting for the 2006 Oscars was in November 2005, where attendees, including Curtis, devised the schedule of promotional events for the Oscars.

According to Curtis, preparation really picks up after the poster for the show is unveiled in December.

“The first couple of months are kind of slow, but then in January things start to get more hectic,” she said.

During January, Curtis and the Association held promotional festivities that had been planned two months beforehand.

“We hold a fashion preview, publicize the set design and have several media events related to the show,” Curtis said.

On the last Tuesday in January, the nominees were announced and Curtis said the preparation was at its peak.

Suddenly, she said, it was a week until show time, and she found herself checking into the Renaissance Hotel attached to the Kodak Theatre. Here, Curtis received her credentials, which allowed her to work backstage the night of the show.

Curtis said she was always on call during the busiest week. Being on call includes always being available by phone for anyone associated with the show.

One phone call Curtis took this year was from a nominee in Indonesia with whom she needed to arrange an interview.

“My phone is basically attached to my ear,” Curtis said. “People call me from all over the world for different reasons.”

Aside from answering her phone, Curtis said she was involved with many other important preparations.

“The 40-foot Oscar has to be displayed, and the red carpet has to be rolled out,” she said. “They use huge cranes to move the statue. It’s really incredible to watch.”

This year, the week leading up to the Academy Awards was not without complications. Curtis said Mother Nature disturbed some of the logistics.

“We had a lot of rain on Sunday,” she said. “None of the events got canceled, but we had put up a canopy that got destroyed because of wind and rain.”

The week before the show was also when the short films and foreign flicks were honored. Though the weather was bad enough to change some of the outside sets, it was not bad enough to stop the events from happening.

Curtis said although it is nice to admire the less prominent movies, everyone was focused on the big night.

Many BU students said the Oscars met their expectations.

COM freshman Aubry Monahan said she enjoyed the show, but was not totally satisfied.

“It was pretty good,” she said. “Jon Stewart did a good job … it just wasn’t quite as colorful as past years. Stewart’s humor is just a little dry.”

COM freshman Katie Fahrenthold said she thought the show was very entertaining.

“It was better than I expected,” she said. “It wasn’t cheesy like I thought it was going to be.”

The night of the show, Curtis was responsible for setting up the backstage interview room, where stars talk to the press after they receive their awards. Curtis said one of the main goals was to give everyone equal time with the media.

“We monitored the big names to make sure everyone gets the same amount of press time,” she said.

While working in the interview room, Curtis came in close contacts with some of Hollywood’s biggest stars and witnessed firsthand their reactions after they won.

“One woman immediately called for a bottle of champagne to celebrate her award,” she said.

However, Curtis said most of the reactions were relatively subdued.

“There was not too much commotion,” she said. “Last year, there were a few problems, but not this year.”

With six months until preparation begins for the 2007 Oscars, it may seem as though Curtis will have some down time, but she said this is not the case.

“We do a lot of educational and grant programs for people studying film,” she said.