An “ambitious, global campaign” will recruit “qualified new members who represent greater diversity”, the academy said in a statement, adding that it wants to double “the number of women and diverse members” by 2020.
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Four days after the January 14 announcement of nominations, Acasdemy CEO Boone Isaacs issued a statement saying there would be “dramatic steps to alter the makeup of our membership”. The board passed a series of measures to remove from its voting rolls members who have not been active in the film industry for many years, and establish a precedent requiring active engagement in the industry for new members.
Two of the more significant changes: stripping the voting status of new members that have not been active in the last 10 years and actively seeking those who come from traditionally underrepresented groups, rather than relying on the academy’s longstanding method of acquiring new members by having two existing members sponsor them.
Shawn Edwards, co-founder of the African-American Film Critics Association, said this change was crucial to gradually change the academy make-up.
The widespread outrage over two straight years of largely white Oscar nominees coalesced behind three damning, viral words: “OscarsSoWhite”.
The organizer of the Oscar awards is launching an action plan that implicates removing voting privileges from some older members.
“We can never know whether it’s truly the case, but maybe the black actors didn’t deserve to make it to the final list”, Rampling added.
Some of Hollywood’s most prominent African-Americans, including Will Smith and Spike Lee, have said they won’t attend this year’s Oscar ceremony, which is to be hosted by Chris Rock. He did, however, tweet after the Oscar nominations were announced: “The #Oscars”.
“Marginalized artists have advocated for Academy change for DECADES”, DuVernay wrote. Members can qualify for lifetime status by qualifying for three decade-long terms or receiving an Academy Award nomination (or victory). “But, again, this is dealing with the symptom, not starting at the root cause of how we even get to results like this, which has to do with inclusion and access and the ability for people of color, women and minorities to get at entry-level positions where you can become someone who can green-light a movie”.
Membership will no longer be a guaranteed lifetime appointment and current members inactive in the industry could see their voting rights removed. Under the new rules, they will have to be active to vote, although there are some exceptions, including for previous Oscar winners. In 1970, when the academy began to seem out of step with the rapidly changing times, then-academy President Gregory Peck began recruiting younger members and culling the academy rolls of people who hadn’t worked in more than seven years.
The Academy is going to lead and not wait for the industry to catch up.
“My wife and I will be in my courtside seats”, he said.
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“I’m very encouraged”, April Reign, the former attorney and managing editor of BroadwayBlack.com who created the Twitter hashtag (hashtag)OscarsSoWhite in 2015, said after the academy announced the changes. But this is really the first serious attempt at diversifying the academy.
