CineMata's Movie Madness
  • Homepage
  • Guest Reviews
    • Rhapsody in August
  • Cine's Closeup
    • The Pale Blue Eye
    • The Munsters 2022
    • Hello, My Name is Doris
    • In Praise of Family
    • Venom 2
    • Ophelia
    • Mank
    • Macbeth 2015
  • Pioneering Feministas
    • Janet Green: Tapping into the Dark Side
    • Women Make Film
    • Alice Guy-Blache
    • Auteur Directors
  • Star Spot
    • Juanita Moore
    • Raisin in the Sun 3
    • Cine's Walk of Fame Tour
  • The Woman's Voice
    • Blonde 2022
    • Women Warriors
    • The Divine Order
    • Twilight: A Primal Call for Patriarchal Dominance
    • The Fierce Women of Summer
    • Martha Fiennes' ONEGIN
    • The Dressmaker
    • Sofia Coppola and The Silent Woman
    • Thelma and Louise
    • Bridesmaids 2011
    • Mildred Pierce HBO
    • Dragonwyck
    • Cousin Bette
    • Stage Beauty
  • About Cine
  • Top Ten Faves
    • 'Tis the Season for Murder
    • 12 Days of Cinematic Christmas 2020
    • The Best Film Experiences of 2017
    • Female Villains to Die For
    • 10 Remakes to Remember
    • We Heart the Bad Boys
    • 12 Days of Cinematic Christmas 2014
    • Most Memorable Moms
    • Cult Film Faves
  • Contact Cine
  • Hollywood Notables
    • Fiona Shaw
    • Viola Davis
    • Elizabeth Banks
    • Shia LaBeouf
  • Rave Reviews
    • Best of Netflix 2017
    • Mayhem
    • Dave Made a Maze
    • Lavender
    • Hail Caesar!
    • Spy
    • Gravity
    • Inception 2010
    • Black Swan 2010
    • Flight
    • Moonrise Kingdom
    • Lincoln
    • Looper
    • Lawless
  • Telegenic Static
    • Wednesday
    • Cine's 2018/19 Seasonal Faves
    • The Highwaymen
    • Cine's New Year Resolution: Watch More Netflix!
    • TCM : A Class Act
    • Best of TV * 2017
    • Female Detectives on TV
    • Neo-Renaissance TV: Feud & Big Little Lies
    • True Detective Navigates Noirland
    • Texas Rising
    • 2014/2015 TV Season Highlights
    • 2013-2014 TV Favorites
  • British Film & TV
    • The Banshees of Inisherin
    • Doc Martin
    • Song of the Swan
    • Death in Paradise
    • Miss Scarlet and the Duke
    • The Stranger
    • Sanditon
    • Collateral
    • Handsome Devil
    • Love & Friendship
    • Victorian Slum House
    • 45 Years
    • Anonymous
    • Appropriate Adult
    • Sherlock Holmes: Many Faces
    • Philomena
    • British Feminista TV
    • Brassed Off
  • The Golden Age
    • Gone with the Wind
    • Cleopatra 1934
    • Elizabeth Taylor: The Passing of an Icon
  • Who You Callin' Crazy?!
    • Cine's Walk of Fame Tour
    • Count Bela: Nosferatu & Vampyr
    • Post Awards with Ida Lupino
    • The Duke: Cowboys/Aliens vs WWZ
    • Liberace Dishes
    • Elizabeth Taylor Visits Cine
  • Noir Greats
    • Nightmare Alley
    • The Big Heat
    • Femme Fatales: Crime is My Career
    • Femme Fatales: Honey, I'm Home!
    • Crime of Passion
    • The Loves of Carmen
    • The Many Faces of Noir
    • In Order of Disappearance
    • Boss - 2011/12 series
    • Pepe le Moko 1937
    • Mystery Street 1950
    • The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
    • The Barefoot Contessa: A Noir Bridge to Nowhere
    • They Won't Believe Me
    • Dan Duryea Nails Noir
    • What Is Film Noir?
    • They Drive By Night
  • Commentaries
    • Award Season 2019 Redux
    • #OscarsSoTarnished
    • Orson Welles Independent Film Tribute
    • Oscar 2016: The Politics of Segregation
    • Hollywood Director's Club: For Men Only
    • Poliwood and the Hollywood Blacklist
    • Cine Mata's 2015 Picks and Pans
    • The Unbearable Whiteness of Emmy Hosting
    • Oscar's Dodge
  • Drive-By Reviews
    • Dark Phoenix
    • Nola Circus
    • Comfort
    • ATOMICA
    • Innuendo
    • My Big Fat Greek Wedding 2
    • Film Franchise Meltdown
    • The Woman in Black
    • Girls with Guns 3.0
    • Coriolanus
    • Lady Scarface 1941
  • International Films & TV
    • My Pandemic Marathon Diaries
    • The Twelve
    • Mr. Sunshine
    • The World of International Noir
    • Romance of Our Parents
    • The Grand Hotel Saga
    • Don't Be Bad
    • The Handmaiden
    • Caramel / Sukkar banat
    • Morning for the Osone Family 1946
    • Fritz Lang's M
    • La Bete Humaine
  • Political Rx
    • Rebellion
    • Women in the White House
    • The Ides of March
    • By The People: The Election of Barack Obama
  • Culture Centric Cinema
    • Horror Noire
    • Self Made
    • Little
    • Hidden Figures
    • Fences
    • #Whiterose: Identity, Secrecy & BD Wong
    • Imitation of Life 1934
    • Frazzled Hair Wars
    • Soul Men
  • Indie Films
    • Scotland, PA
    • Adrift in Soho
    • H4
    • Paint It Red
    • HAMLET in the Golden Vale
    • Trouble is My Business
    • The Browsing Effect
    • Indie Films 2018 >
      • Clara's Ghost
      • Cold War
      • To Dream
      • The New Romantic
      • Here and Now
      • Unlovable
      • The Landing
      • I CAN I WILL I DID
      • Choosing Signs
      • Iron Brothers
      • Across the River
      • Josephine Doe
      • Sunset
      • SUNSET: Interview
      • The Forgiven
      • Kill Order
      • Midnighters
      • Half Magic
      • Looking Glass
      • Entanglement
      • Crazy Famous
      • Stratton
      • As You Like It
      • Hunter
  • eau de cinematic clunker
    • The Irishman
    • Almost Friends
    • The Osiris Child
    • Bushwick
    • Pilgrimage
    • Fun Mom Dinner
    • Once Upon A Time in Venice
    • Aaron's Blood
    • Black Rose
    • Lucy 2014
    • Transcendence 2014
  • Book Reviews
    • Conversations with Ray Bradbury
    • A Woman's View
    • Dark Dames
    • Auntie Mame's Favorite Son: Patrick Dennis
    • I'm A Lebowski, You're A Lebowski
  • Documentary Picks & Pans
    • Black Ballerina
    • Leftover Women
    • Natalie Wood: What Remains Behind
    • Unrest
    • Be Natural
    • Farmsteaders
    • Bombshell : Hedy Lamarr
    • Jungle
    • Who the F**k is that Guy?
    • The Man in the Camo Jacket
    • Spirit Game: Pride of a Nation
    • Burlesque: Heart of the Glitter Tribe
    • Listen to Me Marlon
    • I Am Not Your Negro
    • The Girls in the Band
    • TCM's Trailblazing Women in Film
    • The Honor Diaries
    • Side By Side
    • American Masters : Salinger
    • The Story of Film
  • LGBTQ pov
    • Making Sweet Tea
    • Drag Queens & Trannies
    • Milk 2009
  • Silent Classics
    • Charles Epting: Silent Film Historian
    • Hollywood's Silent Film Grave Huntress
    • La Boheme 1926
    • The Blot 1921
    • Pandora's Box
    • Don Juan
  • Art House Flicks
    • Birth
    • I'm Not There
  • Kid's Korner
    • Pokemon Detective Pikachu
    • Hotel Transylvania 3 : Summer Vacation
    • The Incredibles 2
    • Sherlock Gnomes
    • Paddington 2
    • Lego Batman: A Super Hero in Crisis
    • SING: Cine's 2017 Oscar Pick
    • Summer Flicks 2016
    • Kung Fu Panda 3 / 2016
  • Cine's Friends
  • Hollywood Award Shows
    • Cine's Fantasy Golden Globes 2021
    • Oscar 2020
    • For Your Consideration 2018
    • For Your Consideration 2017
    • 50 Shades of Oscar 2016
    • 2016 Golden Globes
    • 2015 Emmys Redux
    • 2014 Oscars: Plantation Politics
    • 2014 Emmys : A Dash of Racism
    • 2013 Emmys : Hold the Mayo
  • Archives
Picture
Picture
Oscar 2020:
​I'm Mad as Hell, but Now What?

by Paulette Reynolds * January 17, 2020


The new year isn't even out of its diapers yet and the Award Season has once again left women directors and industry artists of color on the cutting room floor.

Let's take a look at the ever-disappointing Oscars.  The announcement process always brings outrage, then the social media storm and finally a president's public mea culpa.  Once this ritual has died down, a diverse cast of presenters are named to pacify fans and industry members alike.  During the Oscar telecast, members and guests will shine on the red carpet, as the glitter and glamour lulls the viewer into a celebratory glow.  

Once inside the theater, a few presenters and comics will spark our momentary attention with a few well-chosen criticisms about the elephant in the room.  One winner will speak out against the racism and sexism of the Academy and be heartily cheered.  

For the next 24 to 48 hours social media will cover the remarks and the well-placed speech.  Commentators will sagely observe that even though the Best Director and Best Acting categories were mostly white and male, the award show was superbly diverse and thoroughly represented.

By the week's end, Hollywood will have settled into the rather large community of creative artists known as the Film Industry.  Sadly, this will occur again and again, without change and without fail.
While the award season highlights the best films or memorable performances that impacted 2019, the hashtag phenomenas of #OscarSoWhite, #MeToo and #TimesUp deserve a closer examination.  The decade of 2010 to 2020 saw these three movements inspire some change in the social conditions that permeate HollywoodLand culture.
Picture
When April Reign launched the #OscarSoWhite hashtag in 2015, actors and directors like Ava DuVernay, Jada Pinkett Smith, and Spike Lee broke out of the Award Season cycle and initiated a boycott of the Oscars that shook up the Academy - and Hollywood - for the entire year.  It stimulated awareness and began a trickle of  progressive changes in hiring and honoring artists of color industry-wide.
Picture
Picture
Picture
Then the women of Hollywood, both in front of and behind the camera, put on their Women with Attitude makeup and we witnessed a collective Howard Beale moment, straight out of Network * 1976, a la #MeToo.
Picture
As early as 2006, activist and sexual abuse survivor Tarana Burke created the "MeToo" phrase to identify a movement that would highlight the widespread abuse of women.  This action lit a spark that encouraged survivors of sexual abuse in Hollywood to identify Hollywood executives, actors and other powerful men who held Tinsel Town hostage with their predatory behaviors.  Women like Ashley Judd, Rose McGowan, Rosanna Arquette, Melissa Thompson, Gwyneth Paltrow, and others propelled the issue onto social media, exposing abusive behavior that had been systemically spreading for decades.  As the issue became more widespread, those from the LGBT community came forward as well to point the finger.  And then the boundaries extended beyond Hollywood - engulfing politicians, sports, media and music industries - all the way to the White House. 
Picture
They say that three times is the charm, so the  #Times Up initiative brought together volunteer lawyers and a legal defense fund of over $22 million to fight sexual harassment stemming from the #MeToo cause.  As the decade came to a close, gender parity also became a public focus.  

These three movements propelled women and artists of color to battle issues of racism, hiring discrimination, and sexual abuse.  They also encouraged global #MeToo campaigns, where perpetrators are exposed and survivors share their stories at an ever-growing rate.
Picture
Actor Marisa Tomei once said, "Those stories weren't being written at all - stories about women's inner lives and outer activism. We've come miles and miles, but we still don't have an equal rights amendment yet. We don't have equal pay yet. There's a lot of blind misogyny that's not personal, but institutionalized..."

I would say that misogyny is rarely blind, and neither is racism.  When a Hollywood institution like the Oscars systematically excludes women directors and artists of color from even being nominated, they are sending several distress signals.  

The most obvious one is that despite the renaissance of women directors and filmmakers of color, sexism and racism is still thriving in Hollywood.  It's well documented that a double standard continues to exist, where white male filmmakers are tapped for the lion's share of blockbuster scripts and films.  For every Patty Jenkins that gets grudgingly hired, there are ten male directors consistently working - whenever they choose - on big budget films.  For every high profile film like The Irishman (directed by Martin Scorsese) that receives back-to-back interviews and copious photo ops, there's a smaller film like The Kitchen (directed by Andrea Berloff) struggling to just to be seen.
Picture
The Academy's primary objective is to promote a handful of films every year, supposedly to raise the artistic level of Hollywood.  When MGM boss Louis B. Mayer created AMPAS in 1927, it was with the intention of smoothing out the wrinkle that was the labor unions  - and to improve the film industry's image. But another goal of Mayer's seemed to focus on keeping the newly formed Academy all white and almost all male.
Picture
The practice of excluding women directors and artists of color began with the original Academy founders. Of the original 36, 35 were white males and three women.  There were no members of color. 

Six male directors were hand-picked - all male - as Dorothy Davenport, Tressie Souders, Dorothy Arzner, Lois Weber, Alice Guy-Blache, Mabel Norman were ignored.  Mary Pickford was the lone woman in a group of seven to represent the Actors branch.  And while two women were included in the Writers branch of six, one wonders why writers like Anita Loos or Frances Marion were left out? * 1

AMPAS * GOVERNORS - DIRECTORS BRANCH
Picture
Picture
Picture
Susanne Bier * Kimberly Peirce * Steven Spielberg

After the 2016 Oscar boycott, The Academy vowed to double its membership of women and artists of color by 2020, but it's membership still hovers at 84% white and 68% male.  Nominees for each category are selected by votes from members of these specific branches.  There are 526 directors in the Directors branch of the Academy, but AMPAS refuses to reveal the gender statistics for this branch.  Time.com reveals that the complicated rules to join the Director's branch "might limit the number of women directors who are able to gain entry".  * 2

AMPAS * GOVERNORS - ACTORS BRANCH
Picture
Picture
Picture
Laura Dern * Alfred Molina * Whoopie Goldberg

While the current list of 60 officers appears more inclusive, one wonders just what the 'governors' from the Actors and Directors branches do to allow such misrepresentation of nominees in those two categories?  

What do the current Governors from the Actors Branch (Laura Dern, Whoopi Goldberg, Alfred Molina) and the Directors Branch (Susanne Bier, Kimberly Peirce, Steven Spielberg) actually DO?  Well, it's obvious that they're not encouraging creative recognition of women directors or actors of color.  It would seem their roles are only designed to maintain Louis B. Mayer's original vision of the AMPAS.
Picture
Picture
Sadly, another predictable response to the nominations is the tepid reactions from the women in Hollywood.  Issa Rae stoically congratulated all the "men" who got nominated for Best Director.  Nicole Kidman feels that progress is "just choose to work with the people we love...and the times they are a-changin'", Awkwafina is "grateful" for the press that The Farewell is receiving, and Greta Gerwig (Little Women) appears mollified that she was passed over for a Best Director nod in favor of a Best Picture and Adapted Screenplay nominations. 
Picture
Picture
Perhaps the ignored, dismissed and snubbed artists tell themselves that awards aren't important, that it's "just the work" that "speaks for itself".  On one hand, yes, they're right, but being excluded in favor of white actors and male directors promotes racism and sexism - and such practices often seep into other areas of the industry - so yes, representation does matter.
Picture
The silence from most of Hollywood would indicate that this may not be a year where the torch is picked up by the female directors, writers, actors and cinematographers of the Academy.  But the passion that fueled #OscarSoWhite and #OscarSoMale remains simmering on the stove.  At this writing BuzzFeed producer Julia Moser took to social media to announce her own Oscar boycott, “Gonna host my own Oscars this year.  It’s just me drinking wine and ranting about how much I love Little Women and The Farewell and Hustlers.” * 3
Picture
I hope that more of those disenfranchised artists do more this year than complain about the lack of representation during award season.  Politely waiting for conditions to change while the White Man in power gets “woke” never did win freedom, respect or equal rights.

Hashtag, anyone?
Picture

References: 

*1 https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Academy_of_Motion_Picture_Arts_and_Sciences

Original 36 AMPAS Board

*ACTORS: Richard Barthelmess, Jack Holt, Conrad Nagel, Milton Sills, Douglas Fairbanks, Harold Lloyd, Mary Pickford
DIRECTORS: Cecil B. DeMille, Frank Lloyd, Henry King, Fred Niblo, John M. Stahl, Raoul Walsh
LAWYERS: Edwin Loeb, George W. Cohen
PRODUCERS: Fred Beetson, Charles H. Christie, Sid Grauman, Milton E. Hoffman, Jesse L. Lasky, M. C. Levee
Louis B. Mayer, Joseph M. Schenck, Irving Thalberg, Harry Warner, Jack L. Warner, Harry Rapf
TECHNICIANS: J. Arthur Ball, Cedric Gibbons, Roy Pomeroy
WRITERS: Joseph W. Farnham, Benjamin Glazer, Jeanie MacPherson, Bess Meredyth, Carey Wilson, Frank E. Woods



* 2 Do the Oscars Keep Shutting Women Out of Best Director? This One Academy Rule Helps Explain It by Eliana Dockterman  January 13, 2020 https://time.com/5763937/oscars-2020-female-directors-shut-out/


2020 AMPAS Board: 

Academy Officers

President – David Rubin / First Vice President – Lois Burwell / Vice President – Sid Ganis
Vice President – Larry Karaszewski / Vice President – Nancy Utley Treasurer – Mark Johnson
Secretary – Bonnie Arnold

Chief Executive Officer – Dawn Hudson

Governors

Actors Branch – Laura Dern, Whoopi Goldberg, Alfred Molina
Casting Directors Branch – Lora Kennedy, David Rubin, Bernard Telsey
Cinematographers Branch – Ellen Kuras, Darkyn Okada, Mandy Walker
Costume Designers Branch – Ruth E. Carter, Jeffrey Kurland, Isis Mussenden
Directors Branch – Susanne Bier, Kimberly Peirce, Steven Spielberg
Documentary Branch – Kate Amend, Rory Kennedy, Roger Ross Williams
Executives Branch – Jim Gianopulos, Donna Gigliotti, David Linde
Film Editors Branch – Dody Dorn, Carol Littleton, Michael Tronick
Makeup Artists and Hairstylists Branch – Howard Berger, Kathryn L. Blondell, Lois Burwell
Marketing and Public Relations Branch – Sid Ganis, Christina Kounelias, Nancy Utley
Music Branch – Charles Bernstein, Michael Giacchino, Laura Karpman
Producers Branch – Albert Berger, Mark Johnson, Jennifer Todd
Production Design Branch – Tom Duffield, Jan Pascale, Wynn P. Thomas
Short Films and Feature Animation Branch – Bonnie Arnold, Jennifer Yuh Nelson, Tom Sito
Sound Branch – Kevin Collier, Teri E. Dorman, Scott Millan
Visual Effects Branch – Craig Barron, Richard Edlund, John Knoll
Writers Branch – Larry Karaszewski, Billy Ray, Eric Roth

Governors-at-large: (nominated by the President and elected by the board) – DeVon Franklin, Rodrigo García, Janet Yang

*3 Some Women Are Planning to Boycott the Oscars. They’ll Watch Hustlers and Drink Wine Instead.  Michelle Ruiz Vogue 
https://www.vogue.com/article/women-boycotting-2020-oscars

​


Paulette Reynolds: 
​
@PG13Reynolds
@CinesMovieBlog

​p.reynolds@live.com

Picture

​CineMata's Movie Madness
​is a proud sponsor of the Film Noir Foundation.


COPYRIGHT 2012/2020. Paulette Reynolds.  All CineMata Movie Madness blog articles, reviews, faux interviews, commentary, and the Cine Mata character are under the sole ownership of Paulette Reynolds.  All intellectual and creative rights reserved.  
Powered by Create your own unique website with customizable templates.