USA president Barack Obama has spoken about the outcry over two straight years of all-white acting nominees for the Academy Awards.
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I think when everybodys story is told, then that makes for better art. That makes for better entertainment.
“As a whole, the industry should do what every other industry should does, which is to look for talent and provide opportunity to everybody”, President Obama said. The 2016 Oscars praises a lengthy list of all-White actors and actresses, a reality that has forced stars like Jada Pinkett Smith, Spike Lee and the Rev. Al Sharpton to boycott the annual event altogether.
It is shocking, for example, to see the demographic statistics of the approximately 6,000 Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences members who vote for the Oscars. “And their voices are loud and heard, and they have a following, therefore they’re relevant and need to be part of the conversation”, said Boone Isaacs.
The current breakdown of the Academy’s membership is seven per cent people of colour and 24 per cent women.
Last week, the Academy approved sweeping changes as part of an effort to improve diversity in its membership and in future Oscar nominations.
Lifetime voting rights will be granted only to Academy Award nominees and winners, and to members after three 10-year voting terms.
Academy CEO Dawn Hudson told THR that all the talk of the Academy caving to political correctness “makes me a little insane”. This will allow new members an opportunity to become more active in Academy decision-making and help the organization identify and nurture future leaders.
Morial is seeking wider, systemic change from the academy and the studios. In 2012 a Los Angeles Times study found 94 percent of the voting members were white, 77 percent were male and 64 percent were found to be over age 60. Despite calls for him to quit, Rock will host the event, although he has reportedly rewritten his opening monologue to address the controversy.
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“Hollywood wants to deal with this as a communications crisis, not a crisis of substance”, said Morial.
