Is it really "so
white"?
In his opening monologue at the 88th Academy Awards show held on Sunday 28th
February, host Christ Rock names it the “wildest, craziest Oscars.” Weighted by
the sentiment that nominations favoured one race over the others, the 88th show
was undoubtedly unlike its predecessors. In the months leading up to the Oscars
actress Jada Pinkett Smith and filmmaker Spike Lee both announced their
decision to boycott the Oscars citing a lack of ethnic diversity in the
nominations, as they noted, had happened for the second consecutive year. Their
stand further sparked the #OSCARSSOWHITE online campaign which questioned the
fairness of the nominations which as host Chris Rock reminded, seemed to have
excluded non-whites for an average of 71 years. Throughout the night the
controversy was addressed and the Oscars 2016 became more than just the typical
presentation of awards, it became part of the discussion of diversity.
Backed by glitz and glam, the Academy Awards ceremony celebrates achievements of the film industry. Winners are chosen by industry peers and rewarded for excellence in their field. At the 2016 Oscars it was hardly about the best and worst dressed and more about issues of racism which some believe led to certain films being overlooked. Referring to it as the “White People's Choice Awards,” Rock’s time on stage was well spent as he took every opportunity to point out race and gender biases within society and which are accordingly adopted into film.
Although his opening piece and skit which both defined the typical roles afforded to black actors in Hollywood gained much laughter and applause, those moments allowed the black community the chance to speak to a room packed with Hollywood executives, producers, directors, writers, filmmakers and actors.
Backed by glitz and glam, the Academy Awards ceremony celebrates achievements of the film industry. Winners are chosen by industry peers and rewarded for excellence in their field. At the 2016 Oscars it was hardly about the best and worst dressed and more about issues of racism which some believe led to certain films being overlooked. Referring to it as the “White People's Choice Awards,” Rock’s time on stage was well spent as he took every opportunity to point out race and gender biases within society and which are accordingly adopted into film.
Although his opening piece and skit which both defined the typical roles afforded to black actors in Hollywood gained much laughter and applause, those moments allowed the black community the chance to speak to a room packed with Hollywood executives, producers, directors, writers, filmmakers and actors.
Perhaps one of the most telling piece came from the interview of the Compton
moviegoers who were generally unaware of the nominated films but had all seen “Straight
Outta Compton” which was only nominated in the best original screenplay
category.
With the low representation of non-white actors at this year’s Oscars critics
have challenged this to be a case of racism. While there are those who claim
that movies such as Straight Outta Compton, Concussion and Creed were
overlooked because of race, that claim may be less than easy to prove. One has
to wonder if the exclusion of these films is enough to prove a racial bias in
the nominations. In an interview with The Hollywood Report actress and Academy
member Penelope Ann Miller objects to this claim saying “I voted for a number
of black performers, and I was sorry they weren't nominated. But to imply that
this is because all of us are racists is extremely offensive. I don't want to
be lumped into a category of being a racist because I'm certainly not and
because I support and benefit from the talent of black people in this business.
It was just an incredibly competitive year." It is then possible that the
problem stands with the governing rules which require that prospective members
to either be sponsored by two serving members or for an actor to have an Oscar
nomination in order to be considered. The cycle then goes; if non- white actors
are not nominated then there is a lack of diversity in the Academy membership
and if there is a lack of diversity in the member committee, then it
effectually limits the number of minorities nominated for an award.
The problem of diversity in film does not start at the Oscars but is a rather a whole industry problem. It is just hard to believe a writer would create a script with solely white actors in mind and directors, producers and all those involved in the casting selection would in turn interpret that script to include primarily white actors. Minorities need to be given more opportunities or the same opportunities as whites in order for there to be meaningful change and these opportunities should not be in misrepresented to mean a form of affirmative action. Former senior vice president of production at Sony's Columbia Pictures DeVon Franklin offers a good solution when he notes “They should be recruiting people when they are in middle school and high school, through to the college level. A lot of African-Americans who have professional aspirations don't even know there is a whole career possibility for them behind the camera in Hollywood. So it's a publicity thing and putting the resources there.”
The problem of diversity in film does not start at the Oscars but is a rather a whole industry problem. It is just hard to believe a writer would create a script with solely white actors in mind and directors, producers and all those involved in the casting selection would in turn interpret that script to include primarily white actors. Minorities need to be given more opportunities or the same opportunities as whites in order for there to be meaningful change and these opportunities should not be in misrepresented to mean a form of affirmative action. Former senior vice president of production at Sony's Columbia Pictures DeVon Franklin offers a good solution when he notes “They should be recruiting people when they are in middle school and high school, through to the college level. A lot of African-Americans who have professional aspirations don't even know there is a whole career possibility for them behind the camera in Hollywood. So it's a publicity thing and putting the resources there.”
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