You Decide the Winner for the Academy Award
By: Hope Wilkos, Writer
The most coveted award ceremony in the motion picture film industry is known as the Academy Awards. If an actor/actress, director, writer, producer, costume designer or songwriter walks away with the sparkling Oscar at the end of the evening, they know they have achieved one of the most outstanding accomplishments of their career. Even the thought of being nominated is synonymous with a job well-done.
But, who votes for all the winners year after year? We, the American public, are the ones who simply cannot wait to see the most anticipated films following months of teaser trailers and we relish the romantic scenes or the thrilling daredevils on the big screen. We anxiously await the release of the Netflix and Amazon versions to be able to enjoy again and again in the privacy of our homes. Unfortunately, we are not the ultimate decision makers on who and what films walk away with the most distinguished award of the year. These awards are chosen by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences Board of Governors in a very organized and process-oriented manner, each of the 17 branches of the Academy having a say in the vote.
Now, that is all about to get an upgrade and turn heads. Recently it was announced that a new category is going to be added to the Academy Award Ceremony, “POPULAR FILM” will be its label and the winner will walk away with an Oscar, confident in the fact that the American public cast the final vote on this one. On August 8, 2018, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences introduced this major change to the annual ceremony. The goal surrounding this change is a desire to get audiences more involved and interested in the awards show. After all, the audiences sing the praises for the actors/actresses and films. They are the reason that films are created. We, the audience, will be the decision makers. More big changes include an earlier date in February of 2020 for the event to air and a limit of three hours for the ceremony to transpire. The date will be February 9, 2020. Rather than a few weeks between the Golden Globes and the Academy Awards, the two will happen in very close time proximity.
Besides this big announcement, even greater things are happening at the Academy, providing more opportunity for fresh new talent. Four of the industry partners made up of AMC Networks, Moving Picture Institute, Telsey & Company and Xperi, are excited to team up with The Academy to participate in Academy Gold. This program is an entertainment industry-wide internship enhancement and mentorship program for students and young professionals coming from underrepresented communities. It all kicked off on June 21, 2018, with 108 exceptional students from all over the nation and the program continued throughout the summer, coming to an end on August 11th. Participants networked with Academy members, industry professionals, attended screenings and studio tours and took part in educational workshops. This was the first year that an Academy Gold Production Track program offered technical workshops all summer long for those individuals interested in cinematography, production design and film editing. Academy Gold received major support from Walmart. The Academy Gold Production Track Program was supported in part from a grant from JPMorgan Chase Foundation and additional support was provided by the Walt Disney Company, Warner Bros. and Wells Fargo.
Randy Haberkamp, Managing Director of the Preservation & Foundation Programs was quoted as saying, “Building on the success of our inaugural year, this summer’s Academy Gold internship enhancement program has doubled in size and scope and will provide additional areas of training and study for interns interested more specifically in cinematography, production design and editing. The goal of our new Production Track Workshops is to provide opportunities for our interns to choose professional goals that reflect the same variety of collaborative crew positions as our Academy members.”
The Academy is expanding its entertainment horizons, captivating interest from the young, excitement from the current generation and giving all generations of yesterday, today and tomorrow a vote in one of the winners that walk away with the renowned Oscar.
Photo Credit: Getty Images
