IT MAY not be #OscarsSoWhite this year, but after hearing the nominations for the Academy Awards announced today, it's clear that the motion picture industry still has a way to go to reflect the American movie-going audience.
Asians and Asan/Americans got overlooked again. Latinos fared no better. Absolutely no Asians or Latinos were among the nominees in the Oscars' acting categories.
Four African/American actors were nominated in the acting categories. Mudbound's Mary J. Blige, The Shape of Water's Octavia Spencer, Get Out's Daniel Kaluuya and a surprise nomination for Roman J. Israel, Esq.'s Denzel Washington.
Jordan Peele was included in the Best Director Category for his work for Get Out.
Only Guillermo del Toro, director of The Shape of Water, was able to break through the monochromatic nominations in the major categories. The movie garnered 13 nominations, including del Toro's Best Director nomination.
Hong Chau, who was nominated for best supporting actress by the Golden Globes and by the Screen Actors Guild, missed out getting nominated for her portrayal of a Vietnamese refugee in Downsizing.
The absence of Asans or Asian/Americans was not missed by actress Constance Wu (Fresh Off the Boat and the upcoming Crazy Rich Asians).
Kumail Nanjiani and his wife Emily V. Gordon were nominated for Best Original Screenplay for writing The Big Sick. Many thought the movie, based on the intercultural, interracial courtship of Nanjiani and Gordon, should have supporting acting nods for Holly Hunter.
Among the other awards, Abacus, the documentary of how the government went after a small Chinese/American bank for its role in the mortgage crisis but let the big banks off the hook, was among the nominees for Best Documentary. (If you haven't seen it yet, it's on Amazon.)
Nominated for best song, Coco's "Remember Me," was composed by Filipino/American Robert Lopez.
Coco, a Mexican-themed animated movie, which was nominated for Best Animated Feature.
“There’s still a lot of work that needs to be done,” said April Reign, originator of the hashtag #OscarsSoWhite. “People unduly focus on films that reflect the black experience, when that has never been the goal of #OscarsSoWhite.
“It’s about everyone in this country being able to see themselves on-screen,” she told the Daily News. “Because we are very slowly becoming a more inclusive society and definitely a browner country, people who pay their $15 to sit in the theaters deserve to see their stories being told.”
__________________________________________________________________________
No comments:
Post a Comment