And Best Picture Goes To…

Photo: filmindustrynetwork.biz

The Academy Awards is without doubt one of the best award shows of the year. With captivating hosts and the right production team, the Academy Awards is also one of the most entertaining shows.

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has recently announced that they are making a change to their “Best Picture” category. Instead of having 10 “Best Picture” nominations, the Academy will now have the freedom to nominate between 5 and 10 films. If there are only 7 movies that are deserving of the “Best Picture” title, 7 it will be.

In 2009, according to the Washington Post, “the Academy expanded the category to 10 nominees, aiming to generate interest and more viewers.” While this was a justified business move, what should the criteria be for the Oscars’ highest honor? Do you nominate more movies to produce a “highest viewed awards show in 50 years” and attract a mainstream audience with movies such as James Cameron’s Avatar and Pixar’s Toy Story 3? Or do you nominate the films that did not gain much attention but had a truly compelling story and was well produced? Not to say that Toy Story 3 or Avatar didn’t have compelling stories or weren’t well produced, but how can one differentiate between box office gold and just...gold?

The most recent Academy Awards in February 2011 had an astonishing 10 ‘Best Picture’ nominees, including The King’s Speech, Black Swan, 127 Hours, True Grit, and Toy Story 3. Other categories such as “Best Actress” and “Best Directing” were limited to 5 nominees. Having so many nominees in one category almost takes away from the prestige of the Oscar. Just as it is difficult to win an Academy Award, it should be even more difficult to be nominated for one.

I am looking forward to seeing this new change be implemented in this year’s award show. As the Academy executive director Bruce Davis noted, “A best picture nomination should be an indication of extraordinary merit. If there are only eight pictures that truly earn that honor in a given year, we shouldn’t feel an obligation to round out the number.”

Films will not know how many slots there will be in the “Best Picture” category until the votes are cast and the nominees are announced. The bar has been raised for everyone in the film industry, and I can’t wait to see how producers, actors, directors, and studios, (etc.) will step up their game!