AND SO IT BEGINS (FOR ANOTHER YEAR)…
FROM THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Editors: This is the first story in this season’s OSCAR INSIDER series, a behind the scenes look at the ACADEMY AWARDS.
For 81 years, she had amassed movie memorabilia.
Her collection now includes more than 10 million photographs, 80,000 screenplays and 35,000 movie posters dating back to when THE ACADEMY OF MOTION PICTURE ARTS & SCIENCES was founded in 1927.
So it’s fitting that the MARGARET HENRICK LIBRARY played host to the future of the film industry when it welcomed this year’s crop of OSCAR voters at a private reception honouring the newest members of the ACADEMY.
Surrounded by movie history, these new inductees celebrated becoming part of it.
“This organization first handed out awards in 1929 and I’m connected to that,” said DAVID KAMINOW, who just joined the public relations branch.
“It’s having an attachment to the history of movies.”
The library was the ideal setting for celebrating new members of the ACADEMY, said president TOM SHERAK.
“The foundation for this organization is the history of movies and when you become a member, you become part of that history.”
And that includes ACADEMY members influencing history by determining who will win ACADEMY AWARDS – a process that began for the 82nd time on Monday when OSCAR ballots went out to 5,777 academy members, including the 133 newest voters – who will collectively select the year’s OSCAR nominees and eventual winners.
TOM SHERAK gave the voting rookies some simple advice on how to handle the responsibility: Be conscientious.
“This is something we do that the whole world pays attention to and we need to take it very seriously.”
Each of the ACADEMY’S 15 branches is responsible for nominating those in their field – so actors nominate other actors and sound engineers nominate other sound engineers – based on the year’s eligible films. (There were 274 in 2009.) The entire voting membership submits their picks for best picture.
TOM SHERAK reminded them that the category is now twice the size it used to be: 10 nominees instead of five.
“You’ve joined in a tough year because we’ve made it twice as hard to fill out the ballot.”
Ballots are due to PRICEWATERHOUSECOOPERS on JANUARY 23, 2010. Nominations will be announced FEBRUARY 2. The ACADEMY AWARDS will be presented on MARCH 7.
Voting on the OSCARS will be exciting, commented ACADEMY AWARD winning documentarian MEGAN MYLAN. But being officially connected to the history of film as a member of the ACADEMY is even more profound.
“It’s cool that they have all of this archival stuff because it does make you have an elevated level of respect for the work you’re doing. I can see that there’s something that I have in common with these grand storytellers. To sit here and read these names – and to think anything you do might have something to do with that – it’s very heady to think about.”
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