It was a history-making night of firsts. At the 82nd Academy Awards®, Kathryn Bigelow became the first woman to win an Oscar® for directing and Geoffrey Fletcher became the first African-American to take home a statuette for screenwriting.

The top acting awards also went to four first-time winners—Sandra Bullock, Jeff Bridges, Mo'Nique and Christoph Waltz. Just hours after accepting Hollywood's top honor, they're returning to the Kodak Theatre to celebrate with Oprah and thousands of fans.

For eight months, Sandra turned down her award-winning role in The Blind Side, a movie based on the true story of NFL player Michael Oher and his adoptive family. But, after going blonde and perfecting a Southern accent, it became the role of her life.

During her emotional acceptance speech, Sandra paid tribute to her late mother, Helga. "She said to be an artist, you had to practice every day," Sandra said. "And [I thank her] for reminding her daughters that there's no race, no religion, no class system, no color, nothing, no sexual orientation that makes us better than anyone else. We are all deserving of love."

After the Academy Awards, Sandra says she arrived home at 3:15 a.m., showered and slept for just two hours. "Now I'm back!" she says.

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