Don't Cancel The Oscars! Academy Awards as LA Recovery Rallying Cry
· BCPosted in: ABC, Movies, Opinion, TV, TV | Tagged: academy awards, opinion, oscars
Don't Cancel The Oscars! Academy Awards as LA Recovery Rallying Cry
Instead of canceling, ABC and AMPAS should reinvent the 97th Oscars ceremony as a rallying cry for Los Angeles relief and recovery efforts.
Published Wed, 15 Jan 2025 13:37:08 -0600
by Ray Flook
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As the Southern California windstorms and wildfires continue devastating the area, a number of organizations have either canceled or rescheduled events related to their respective awards ceremonies. As awards season timelines continue to change, some believe that televised awards shows should be canceled in light of the loss of life and property. When it comes to the 97th Oscars ceremony, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) was put in the position of having to shut down a report that AMPAS was considering making that move.
The U.K. tabloid newspaper The Sun claimed that a "'contingency strategy'" was in place to cancel the ceremony – the first time that would happen in the ceremony's 96-year history. After speaking with senior members of AMPAS and others associated with the matter, The Hollywood Reporter reported exclusively "that no such plan is being contemplated and no such advisory committee exists [on how to handle canceling the ceremony]." But should the Oscars still be held? Is this the right time? Yes, it is – but the idea behind an "Oscars ceremony" needs to be reinvented from the ground up. While there isn't a lot of time to reconfigure an awards ceremony into something that would be a mashup of celebration, reminder, and telethon/fundraiser, we've got more than enough major stakeholders in this to make it happen. Because when you have a "microphone" that reaches as many people as the Oscars do, and you can use it for some good, you don't put it down.
First up, all of the monies earmarked for any and all pre-Oscars events should be donated to relief efforts – that should just be a given. As for the ceremony itself, there is no reason that winners can't be recognized – we would just need to cut the acceptance speeches. But the focus needs to be on the past, present, and future. In terms of the past, we need a ceremony that reminds the world that Los Angeles is the land where so many dreams were made for so long – a celebration of the city's history. In terms of the present, there needs to be a focus on honoring firefighters and first responders as well as profiles of those who've lost so much – putting faces to the devastation. In terms of the future, the focus needs to be on how Los Angeles is strong enough to rebuild itself and that the city knows a thing or two about "comeback stories." To do that, the focus needs to be on recovery and relief efforts – not just around Los Angeles but also help that's come in from across the country and around the world.
At this point, the studios and streamers come into play – because they could be the difference makers. Along with recovery and relief efforts, the future should also focus on what the future holds – and that means trailers. Hear me out. If you have a ceremony focusing on the strength and resilience of Los Angeles and recovery/relief efforts, one way to keep folks glued to their screens is to get some teasers and previews going in between the ceremony segments. We're talking film and television teasers and trailers, by the way – yes, we're talking to you, DC Studios' Superman and Netflix's Stranger Things 5. During the ceremony, you could have segments where famous names recreate scenes from nominated films or recreate moments from classic films. However it maps out, the ceremony would need to be a mix of hope and heart that makes Los Angeles the real award-winner.
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