It’s that time of the year again. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has nominated 395 executives and artists of the film industry to join their ranks. From the viewpoint of diversity, there’s some interesting developments, but it’s also one of the smallest invitee groups we’ve seen in a while. Here’s what BLAKE & WANG P.A knows.
With 46% female representation, 39% from underrepresented communities (both ethnic and racial), and 53% new membership from the international movie scene, there’s certainly been some leaps forward. This in comparison to the now-notorious 2012 analysis that determined Oscar voters that year were 94% white and 77% male. With the new class bolstering their ranks, stats close to 33% female and 19% underrepresented ethnic/racial communities will be reached by the Academy. This on top of meeting the milestone set for 2020, of doubling representation from these groups.
There’s also a lot of talent represented here- 89 Oscar nominees and 25 winners. This is in line with some new branch-specific guidelines issued by the academy, including the fact that Oscar winners and nominees had no limitations applied.
There will be some overlap, of course, with 8 nominees asked to join the Academy in multiple branches based on their varied expertise. Candidates will have to choose which they favor if the membership is accepted.
Why so small an invite list this year? It was announced in May that the organization would be reducing the invite pool (2020 saw 819 members) in order to ‘enable steady growth and support for all members’.
Entertainment Lawyer- Brandon Blake
Overall, those who accept their invitations from the list will be the only new members to join the Academy for the 2021 period. BLAKE & WANG P.A entertainment lawyer will be watching with interest to see who takes up the offers.
