On Sunday, the 96th Academy Awards ceremony will mark a new, woke milestone for Hollywood. It will be the first Oscars to have implemented the Academy’s new diversity requirements, which lay out labyrinthine quotas for race, gender, and sexuality.
This year’s best picture nominees all met those requirements in order to qualify for consideration — a fact that will likely come as a surprise to anyone who has seen frontrunner Oppenheimer, a movie that is not only about straight, cisgendered white people, but was made mostly by straight, cisgendered white people.
That contradiction illustrates the many complexities and loopholes in the Academy’s “representation and inclusion” mandate. Breitbart News will explore some of these in the days leading up to Oscar night.
For now, the rules themselves and the reasoning behind them merit focus.
Four years ago — at the height of the Black Lives Matter riots — the Academy announced it would require all movies to meet new diversity standards in order to qualify for best picture consideration. The first Oscars to be affected would be the 96th ceremony — this year’s show.
The rules spell out diversity quotas for cast and crew, with a focus on women, ethnic minorities, the disabled, and LGBTQ+ people. In addition, there are certain diversity benchmarks specified for marketing and internship programs.
The Academy’s rules are vague and convoluted, leaving a lot of room for studio fudging. Movies must meet at least two out of four sets of quotas to qualify for best picture consideration.
Equity is at the heart of the Academy’s reasoning.
“The standards are designed to encourage equitable representation on and off screen in order to better reflect the diversity of the movie-going audience,” the organization said.
“We believe these inclusion standards will be a catalyst for long-lasting, essential change in our industry.”
The announcement came in September 2020 as cities continued to burn and lawless rioting went unpunished, all in the name of racial equity. The Academy’s new rules came amid an outpouring of corporate Hollywood wokeness, with almost all major studios pledging support for BLM, with some even taking anti-police stances.
Here, in its entirety, is the Academy’s “representation and inclusion” standards.
For the 96th Oscars (2024), a film must meet TWO out of FOUR of the following standards to be deemed eligible:
STANDARD A: ON-SCREEN REPRESENTATION, THEMES AND NARRATIVES
To achieve Standard A, the film must meet ONE of the following criteria:A1. Lead or significant supporting actors
At least one of the lead actors or significant supporting actors is from an underrepresented racial or ethnic group.
• Asian
• Hispanic/Latinx
• Black/African American
• Indigenous/Native American/Alaskan Native
• Middle Eastern/North African
• Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander
• Other underrepresented race or ethnicityA2. General ensemble cast
At least 30% of all actors in secondary and more minor roles are from at least two of the following underrepresented groups:
• Women
• Racial or ethnic group
• LGBTQ+
• People with cognitive or physical disabilities, or who are deaf or hard of hearingA3. Main storyline/subject matter
The main storyline(s), theme or narrative of the film is centered on an underrepresented group(s).
• Women
• Racial or ethnic group
• LGBTQ+
• People with cognitive or physical disabilities, or who are deaf or hard of hearingSTANDARD B: CREATIVE LEADERSHIP AND PROJECT TEAM
To achieve Standard B, the film must meet ONE of the criteria below:B1. Creative leadership and department heads
At least two of the following creative leadership positions and department heads—Casting Director, Cinematographer, Composer, Costume Designer, Director, Editor, Hairstylist, Makeup Artist, Producer, Production Designer, Set Decorator, Sound, VFX Supervisor, Writer—are from the following underrepresented groups:
• Women
• Racial or ethnic group
• LGBTQ+
• People with cognitive or physical disabilities, or who are deaf or hard of hearingAt least one of those positions must belong to the following underrepresented racial or ethnic group:
• Asian
• Hispanic/Latinx
• Black/African American
• Indigenous/Native American/Alaskan Native
• Middle Eastern/North African
• Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander
• Other underrepresented race or ethnicityB2. Other key roles
At least six other crew/team and technical positions (excluding Production Assistants) are from an underrepresented racial or ethnic group. These positions include but are not limited to First AD, Gaffer, Script Supervisor, etc.
B3. Overall crew composition
At least 30% of the film’s crew is from the following underrepresented groups:
• Women
• Racial or ethnic group
• LGBTQ+
• People with cognitive or physical disabilities, or who are deaf or hard of hearingSTANDARD C: INDUSTRY ACCESS AND OPPORTUNITIES
To achieve Standard C, the film must meet BOTH criteria below:C1. Paid apprenticeship and internship opportunities
The film’s distribution or financing company has paid apprenticeships or internships that are from the following underrepresented groups and satisfy the criteria below:
• Women
• Racial or ethnic group
• LGBTQ+
• People with cognitive or physical disabilities, or who are deaf or hard of hearingThe major studios/distributors are required to have substantive, ongoing paid apprenticeships/internships inclusive of underrepresented groups (must also include racial or ethnic groups) in most of the following departments: production/development, physical production, post-production, music, VFX, acquisitions, business affairs, distribution, marketing and publicity.
The mini-major or independent studios/distributors must have a minimum of two apprentices/interns from the above underrepresented groups (at least one from an underrepresented racial or ethnic group) in at least one of the following departments: production/development, physical production, post-production, music, VFX, acquisitions, business affairs, distribution, marketing and publicity.
C2. Training opportunities and skills development (crew)
The film’s production, distribution and/or financing company offers training and/or work opportunities for below-the-line skill development to people from the following underrepresented groups:
• Women
• Racial or ethnic group
• LGBTQ+
• People with cognitive or physical disabilities, or who are deaf or hard of hearing
STANDARD D: AUDIENCE DEVELOPMENT
To achieve Standard D, the film must meet the criterion below:D1. Representation in marketing, publicity, and distribution
The studio and/or film company has multiple in-house senior executives from among the following underrepresented groups (must include individuals from underrepresented racial or ethnic groups) on their marketing, publicity, and/or distribution teams.
• Women
• Racial or ethnic group
- Asian
- Hispanic/Latinx
- Black/African American
- Indigenous/Native American/Alaskan Native
- Middle Eastern/North African
- Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander
- Other underrepresented race or ethnicity
• LGBTQ+
• People with cognitive or physical disabilities, or who are deaf or hard of hearing
Numerous best-picture winners of the past wouldn’t pass muster by today’s woke standards. As Breitbart News noted, they include such recent winners as Spotlight, The King’s Speech, The Artist, and A Beautiful Mind.
Follow David Ng on Twitter @HeyItsDavidNg. Have a tip? Contact me at dng@breitbart.com
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