The controversy surrounding the Oscars never seems to die down, as recently, the Alliance for Women Film Composers (AWFC) released a statement condemning the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences’ decision to not broadcast the best original score category live during this year’s Oscar ceremony.
As reported in Variety, the Academy’s first confirmation of its decision to present several Oscar categories outside of the live March 27 telecast on Tuesday was via a letter from President David Rubin that was sent to Academy membership.
The letter said that these awards will be given instead, an hour prior to the on-camera ceremony. It further said that the clips from the speeches will be incorporated into the telecast.
The other categories apart from best original score that won’t make it to the live award broadcast this year are- documentary short, animated short, live-action short, film editing, makeup and hairstyling, production design and sound. The move created instant controversy among industry veterans.
AWFC’s statement, which had signatures of the top members of the alliance, including President Catherine Joy, expressed disappointment in the Academy for cutting the original score and the other seven categories from the live show, saying that the decision sent a message that the work that the people recognized in the categories do doesn’t matter.
While the letter acknowledged the Academy’s desire to streamline the ceremony, it urged them to find a way to do so that still respected the craftspeople vital in making films.
It is not an unknown fact that a lot of what goes behind the scenes of the making of a motion picture, irrespective of the genre, is very rarely acknowledged.
“Moving the award out of the live telecast and editing it down will degrade the importance of this category,” the statement said. “What message does this decision give to young people who dream of becoming a composer, to follow in the footsteps of composers such as Hildur Gudnadottir, Rachel Portman, Anne Dudley and Germaine Franco? We feel it gives the message that music doesn’t matter to the Oscars.”
The statement also referenced previous winners of the original score category, such as the first Black winner, Jon Batiste, for last year’s ‘Soul,’ or the third female winner, Hildur Gudnadottir, for 2019’s ‘Joker,’ as shining examples of inspiring and important moments that would have been erased had the Oscars not included them in the live show.
