Don’t change the Oscars

James Cameron and Kathleen Kennedy

A host of high-profile Hollywood personalities, including filmmaker James Cameron, producer Kathleen Kennedy and composer John Williams, have urged the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) to undo the recently announced changes to the Oscars format.

The Academy last month had announced changes to the annual award ceremony when it revealed that winners for eight categories will be presented off air during the 2022 Oscars, a move that received instant backlash from the artistic community and the public.

As per the changes, the 94th Academy Awards will begin an hour earlier to present eight awards categories - Documentary Short, Film Editing, Make-up and Hairstyling, Original Score, Production Design, Animated Short, Live Action Short, and Sound - before the live telecast starts.

On Wednesday, a letter was sent to Academy President David Rubin, urging him to reverse the changes so that all 23 categories could be presented during the live telecast of the Oscars. "For nearly a century, the Academy Awards has represented the gold standard in recognising and honouring all of the essential crafts in filmmaking. Now, as we approach the Oscars' 100th year, we are deeply troubled that this gold standard is being tarnished by valuing some filmmaking disciplines over others and relegating those others to the status of second-class citizen," the letter read. This is not the first time that the Academy has tried to remove certain categories out of the live broadcast. In 2018, the AMPAS had announced that four Oscar awards would be presented during commercial breaks for the 91st Academy Awards. At the time, filmmakers Alfonso Cuaron and Guillermo del Toro were among those who had criticised the organisation for the decision.

Wanda Sykes, Amy Schumer and Regina Hall will host the 94th edition of the Academy Awards.

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