In the midst of Hollywood's awards season, photographer Paolo Pellegrin got up close and personal with the likes of Kate Winslet, Brad Pitt, Sean Penn and Robert Downey Jnr for a New York Times portrait project.

As you can see when you click through the image gallery, the results are magnificent.

You can check out an audio commentary for "The Great Performers" portrait collection on The New York Times website.

Enjoy.