By Maria Gkika,
Every year, movie lovers around the world are waiting impatiently for the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Awards, colloquially known as the Oscars. As it is the biggest film awarding ceremony worldwide, the Oscars attract the attention of the whole entertainment community, thus the glam and publicity go unsaid. However, it is important not to forget their true purpose and core value, which is to comment on the best productions of the year, and set the unsaid guidelines for everyone to evaluate films. To understand the Oscars’ significance in the cinema world, there are some questions we need to answer first. How are each year’s nominees selected and for what the winners are awarded? To which degree is this process objective?
First of all, the Academy Awards are divided into achievements, individual and collective. This means that the movies themselves are evaluated and not the faces behind them. Of course, the creators of a movie are responsible for its quality and success, nobody denies that, but the Academy’s purpose is to recognize and award excellence in the most integral features of a film regardless of the creator’s fame, status, ethnicity, and personal life. With these criteria as a focus, the movies are contesting based on selected categories. It is like the Olympic Games for cinema!
Nominees are selected by voting from the members of the Academy and them alone. Eligibility requirements vary and depend on the categories. However, a general rule is that to be eligible for an award in a given year, a film must be feature-length (defined as over 40 minutes), and also be publicly exhibited for paid admission for at least one week at a commercial theatre in Los Angeles County, between January 1st and midnight of December 31st of that year.
The Academy is divided into various branches that represent different areas of film production, and the nominees in most award categories are chosen by the members of the corresponding branch. Since professionals can best judge their art, all possible achievements are considered equally. For example, it is the film editor’s branch that nominates the edition, and it is the actors that nominate actors. A great exception is the Best Picture category, for which all members nominate the candidates and can submit a larger nominations list, up to ten selections. On the other hand, all rest categories get only up to five entries. The voting process begins in late December. As for determining the winners, everyone votes across categories during the finals, or better say, the big night!
Now, we are ready to take a look at the categories. As the art of filmmaking evolves along with technology, many new categories are introduced, and others change throughout the years. It is also possible that certain achievements do not appear every year (such as the original score), while others have merged, and their achievements now share the award (Makeup and Hairstyling). This year, the gold statuette will be conferred for the following achievements: Acting (Best Actor and Actress in leading and supporting performances), Directing, Cinematography, Costume Design, Film Editing, Makeup and Hairstyling, Music (Original Score and Original Song), Sound, Short Film (Animated and Live Action), Documentary (Feature and Short Subject), Animated Feature Film, International Feature Film, Writing (Original and Adapted Screenplay), Production Design, Visual Effects, and, of course, Best Picture. On a special note, the Academy’s collaboration with Twitter to let all film fans vote for the #OscarsFanFavorite and #OscarsCheerMoment awards must be mentioned. The academy also presents scientific and technical awards, special achievement awards, honorary awards, and many more.
While we now have a better idea of the journey of the films to Hollywood, the question of objectivity’s role in the whole thing is yet to be answered. Can we say that the Oscars are definitely fair, or completely biased? To some degree, there is truth in both aspects. In any case, the raison d’être and original vision of these awards are still alive and will continue to be, as long as people use this opportunity to watch movies, discuss them with others, and learn more about cinema.
The 94th Oscars will be held on Sunday, March 27, 2022, at the Dolby® Theatre at Hollywood & Highland Center® in Hollywood, and will be televised live on ABC and in more than 200 territories worldwide. Do not miss it!
References
- Official page of the Oscars, oscars.org, Available here
- Academy Award, britannica.com, Available here
- About the 94th Oscars, adc.com, Available here
- Academy Awards, wikipedia.org, Available here
