Who votes for the Oscars? Voting, Rules, Telecast, TV rating
academy award is well-known all over the world, little is really known when it comes to who exactly decides the winners and nominees in each year. Research indicates that a body by the name Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Science does the voting for the nominees and winners. Importantly, the academy majorly comprised and limited to film artists who work in the production of theatrically-released motion pictures. Furthermore, the body generally has 17 branches in the craft sector ranging from writers to actors. As if not enough, it also has two broad categories, Associates, and Members-at-Large which are basically meant to incorporate individual members who work in the production of motion pictures and do not fit any of the 17 branches.
Additionally, in the recent past, the body actually indicated that by 2022 they will double the number of its female and minority members so that it can be more inclusive and importantly as part and parcel of the measures put in place to eliminate the backlash to the lack of diversity in the past years. Moreover, as of last year, the academy had more than 7000 people and it’s on record that it invited 322 more members for recruitment so that the body can comprise of more diverse faces to its ranks.
How to be a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Science
The process of being a member of this academy is entirely by sponsorship and not by application. As a candidate, you must be sponsored by a couple of Academy members from the branch to which you are seeking admission. Crucially, the nominees of the award are automatically considered members and do not require any form of sponsorship. The branch committee reviews the candidature of the sponsored and the Nominees and importantly the recommendation for the membership is done by the Board of Governors. The board is essential which determines the individuals who will receive an invitation to the Academy. The review of membership normally takes place once a year during the spring season. Currently, the deadline for any interested candidate is March 12th, 2023.
In a nutshell, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Science is majorly an international organization that represents the best of the global art form. Significantly, the organization has members from different countries across the world.
Sponsorship instructions One of the most serious elements when it comes to inviting a new member into the Academy is sponsoring a new member. Before you agree to sponsor somebody is sure the candidate has exceptionally demonstrated achievements in the theatrical motion pictures field. Importantly, be well conversant with the criteria for admission in your branch. Some of the branch requirements are as follows:
- Only one candidate can be sponsored by a member per membership cycle.
- Candidates for branch membership must be sponsored by members of the branch in question.
- Members of Associates and Member-at-Large may actually be sponsored by any two members of any branch.
- Associates may only sponsor Associates and Members-at-Large may also only sponsor Members-at-Large.
Voters
The voting membership of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Science is approximated to be about 6000 members. Records indicate that actors constitute the largest number of voters about 25%-30%. For the past 89 years, the Oscars votes have been certified by an auditing firm by the name of Price Water house Coopers. On behalf of the Academy Branch Executive Committee, the AMPAS members must actually be invited to be part and parcel of the Board of Governors. As earlier mentioned, the eligibility for membership is achieved through a nomination that’s normally very competitive. All candidates are usually considered based on their important contributions to the motion pictures field. The consideration of proposals of new members is usually done on an annual basis.
Rules
Some of the official Academy Awards Rules are as follows: The involved film must always open in the calendar of the previous year which is determined to be midnight of January 1 to midnight of December 31. This usually takes place in the county of California in Los Angeles and importantly plays for a consecutive seven days so that it can qualify for the award nomination. However, there are exceptions which include: Best Foreign Language Film, Best documentary short Subject, and Best Documentary Feature. Films that are selected in the category of gold, silver, and bronze are always eligible for the award.
Additionally, a film must be defined as a minimum of 40 minutes, feature-length, exist in 35mm and 70mm print, and minimum projection resolution of 2048 by 10 80 pixels. Importantly, the concerned producers must actually submit an official screen credit online before the deadline day else the film will not be eligible for the award.
Telecast
The event is usually presented at a live televised ceremony and it usually takes place in the late dates of February or early dates of March. This is normally determined by the relevant calendar of the year and importantly 6 weeks after nominees have been announced. The Academy award is basically the only award ceremony that is televised live in Canada, the United States, and the United Kingdom and crucially gathers millions and millions of views across the globe. Oscars was actually televised for the first time in 1953 by NBC until 1960 when ABC took over.
TV ratings
The award ceremony has millions of views and this not only helped the show from getting a good television rating but also in generating a good amount of money. According to Nielsen ratings, the most-watched Oscars Ceremony was the 42nd Academy Awards which actually got a household rating of 43.4%. It took place on April 7, 1970. The 78th Academy Awards which was not performed well has the lowest household rating of about 22.91%. The award ceremony was low budget and it generated about 38.64 million.