As if the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences wasn’t embarrassed enough by Will Smith’s beating of Chris Rock on Sunday, handymen and filmmakers performed behind the scenes at the pre-show for a post-mortem, which included eight categories taped outside of the live broadcast became.
Some have set off so as not to distract from the profit of their work or their master filmmaker in the evening, others have immediately established: AMPAS has to solve this problem and not again neglect categories. These slots, which were recorded during the 4-5pm PT hour and then peppered into the live show, included sound, film editing, makeup and hairstyling, original score, production design, short documentary, animated short and live action short.
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“Anyone want to ask me how ironic it is that my speech tonight was edited?” asked Oscar-winning Dune film editor Joe Walker in the press room.
He went straight to an answer.
“It went down well, I thought, the speech. And yet I saw how it turned out, and they cut off the beginning, middle and end of it,” Walker complained.
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“And that’s ironic,” he added. “We all stand together as an equal force at the Academy and I truly believe this has been a disservice to our eight categories which were not televised live.”
Walker’s victory was one of six for Warner Bros./Legendary’s Dune, which also took home trophies for Production Design, Original Score, VFX, Sound and Cinematography. Four of Dune’s wins were given out during the recorded hour at 4:00pm before the live broadcast. Overall, Dune has had a great streak, winning six of its ten nominations – all the bottom line.
“We understand the financial pressures on the academy, but I also think we all stand together,” Walker said. “The statue of the Oscars has five reels, representing the five branches of the academy at the start, and they are of equal size and strength.”
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Walker’s comments came much later in the evening. Some of the early winners who went backstage didn’t want to cause controversy, although it was the elephant in the room.
When asked about the eight categories avoided, Doug Hemphill, one of Dune’s five Academy Award winners for Best Audio, said, “We’re here to honor the film and Denis [Villeneuve]. That’s for later.”
Ben Proudfoot, who won the Academy Award for Best Short Film for The Queen of Basketball about Lucy Harris, the first woman ever to be officially drafted by an NBA team, was one of the first outspoken nominees when it was announced that the eight categories be reduced. His words of thanks were edited and included in the live broadcast.
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Backstage, however, he didn’t want that black cloud to hang over his Oscar fame. When asked if he would consider giving a speech on the subject, he told the press that the evening “was about priorities. This is Lucy Harris’ Oscar. I helped her I gave her an assist. It’s her story. Details about how a TV awards show is produced can make many people grumpy. We didn’t make the film for that, we made it for Lucy Harris.
“I will continue to raise my concerns,” said Proudfoot, “there is nothing less or lesser just because it is short and I think Lucy Harris’ family will agree.”
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“Look, ideally all categories should get the same amount of airtime and there is no hierarchy of awards,” said Riz Ahmed, who shared an Oscar for Best Live Short Film with Aneil Karia for The Long Goodbye. “The important thing is that it doesn’t become a story, and we’re here to celebrate filmmakers like Aneil.
“It would be weird if the story was, ‘Oh, how come we couldn’t celebrate these filmmakers enough?’ By making a story out of it, we contribute to the problem. I think the focus here is on the great film that Aneil made, the great craft that went into all of those categories,” the actor added.
Still, there were the under-the-line winners whose categories were on the live broadcast and who wanted many to remember the night’s ills. If their peers stayed quiet, they would be loud.
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Oscar-winner Dune DP Greig Fraser, whose category was part of the main show, made it clear, saying, “I want my special staff in production design, editing, makeup and hair to be equally rewarded for their work.”
“I know we balance economics with awards, but films are made by sound engineers, editors, production designers; That’s how movies are made,” he added. “It seems odd to have a random descent. Everyone in this crowd recognizes and understands why this is happening. We understand the economy. It’s up to us to change the economy. We want to encourage the viewers of these awards: I’m not an actor, not a director, but I want to be a make-up artist. I want this celebrity to apply for me in a job I want to pursue.”
Oscar-winning Cruella costume designer Jenny Beavan, whose category was part of the pre-show, said: “You really have to think about it for next year; it cheats people.”
While many nominated red carpet craftsmen have voiced their grievances at the eight categories being thrown into one pre-show, Ted Sarandos, Netflix’s co-CEO and chief content officer, told Deadline that he welcomed the idea of ”one Step towards improvement” keep transmission.”