April 2021 Oscars Will Be In-Person

For the films of 2020
Mister Tee
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Re: April 2021 Oscars Will Be In-Person

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Re: April 2021 Oscars Will Be In-Person

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Re: April 2021 Oscars Will Be In-Person

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Magilla rightly notes that the early-50s bi-coastal hookups weren't an experiment; they were a necessity in an era when a good bit of the entertainment industry was still centered in NY, and coast-to-coast flight was still a dream. Even through the 60s, there were frequent nominee absences because flying from remote locations was too difficult (Cliff Robertson, who'd campaigned like a banshee for Charly, had to miss the presentations because he was filming somewhere in the south Pacific).

Remote hook-ups eventually became easier to set up. In 1989, the Academy seemed determined to show off this expanding technology, having a number of awards presented from assorted countries around the globe (though the winners were all in the theatre in L.A.). In 1992, Anne Bancroft and Dustin Hoffman gave out the screenplay awards by hook-up from the Russian Tea Room -- though Neil Jordan accepted his win in L.A. (Ruth Prawer Jhabvala didn't show up either place). And, in 2000, Oscar powers-that-be weren't about to forego a Bob Dylan performance/acceptance, and they allowed the "I don't interrupt my tour for anything" Bob to appear by satellite. (The Nobel folk didn't allow the same, and Dylan's speech there didn't come till months later.)

The point of all this: it's not as if the technology doesn't exist to link people from various points on the globe, and I have to assume there's some feverish negotiating going on right now to achieve exactly the right balance. Clearly, the producers have looked on in horror at the Kaluuya glitch and Jason Sudeikis' hoodie and decided, that's just not the Oscars, and it'll be a disaster if we don't find a way to keep closer to normal. Part of what makes the Oscars what they are is the sense of the room rising as one with enthusiasm -- something impossible to achieve when people are sitting in their kitchen or den. I think the idea of collecting people in at least sizable groups -- with space allowing for distancing (the idea behind Union Station) -- is a step in the right direction, but, as I said the other day, the very thing everyone is so proud of about this year's nominees, the geographical diversity, makes it more difficult to pull off than it might have a decade ago. (Of course, all these problems makes me conclude my initial impulse -- that the awards should never have been held this year -- was on the money...but that horse is long out of the barn at this point.)

Oh, and one more thing about those articles: despite all the real barriers to pulling this off this year, it's hilarious to read some of the anonymous managers/handlers, who think their right to certain perks is the overriding issue. Don't ever change, Hollywood.
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Re: April 2021 Oscars Will Be In-Person

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OscarGuy wrote:Well before my time, but they experimented with a bi-coastal show for a few years in the 1950s. How did that work? And did it work well?

I thought the Globes' use of the split screen for their show this year with Amy Poehler and Tina Fey went quite well.
Bi-coastal made sense in the days before routine air travel. It was done for a while on radio before the first TV broadcast. It would make sense now, as it did for the Globes, albeit with the nominees in the audience instead of on zoom if they can get enough of them to participate. Two locations in the same city, with one of them in a train station, doesn't make sense.

They have done hookups before where someone appearing on stage in London or somewhere was able to appear so there's no reason why they couldn't have remote hookups in London, Paris and Seoul or wherever it makes sense to have them.
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Re: April 2021 Oscars Will Be In-Person

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Well before my time, but they experimented with a bi-coastal show for a few years in the 1950s. How did that work? And did it work well?

I thought the Globes' use of the split screen for their show this year with Amy Poehler and Tina Fey went quite well.
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Re: April 2021 Oscars Will Be In-Person

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mlrg wrote:
Big Magilla wrote: A live location from the U.K. might help, but Anthony Hopkins won't come anyway.
Hopkins lives in L.A. for quite some time now.
Decades, actually, but I was responding to the Variety article which stated the following:

"Fennell and Zhao are frontrunners in categories including best picture, director, original and adapted screenplay. Neither of them are currently in the United States, nor are other nominees such as Carey Mulligan (“Promising Young Woman”), Sacha Baron Cohen (“Borat 2,” “The Trial of the Chicago 7”), Anthony Hopkins (“The Father”), Vanessa Kirby (“Pieces of a Woman”) and Yuh-Jung Youn (“Minari”)."
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Re: April 2021 Oscars Will Be In-Person

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Big Magilla wrote: A live location from the U.K. might help, but Anthony Hopkins won't come anyway.
Hopkins lives in L.A. for quite some time now.
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Re: April 2021 Oscars Will Be In-Person

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Prerecorded acceptance speeches are indeed hideous.

A live location from the U.K. might help, but Anthony Hopkins won't come anyway.

No one has mentioned the whereabouts of Riz Ahmed. I know he married an American, but I don't know if they live in the U.S. or the U.K. Wherever Yuh-jung Youn is, she should be making her travel plans now.

I don't get the Union Station set-up. What's there? What is Leslie Odom, Jr. supposed to do? Will he sit in the train station, waiting to lose to Daniel Kaluuya and then rush over to the Dolby to perform his nominated song, or do that in reverse?
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Re: April 2021 Oscars Will Be In-Person

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Mister Tee wrote:
Let me say that pre-recorded acceptance speeches are a hideous idea. The rush people get from actually winning (think Olivia Colman, or Bong Joon- ho) can't be replicated in a hypothetical speech.
Agreed.

They actually did this with the Daytime Emmys where all the nominees were asked to pre-record their acceptance speeches. I saw a clip of it. It wasn't very good!

They have a month to figure this out.
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Re: April 2021 Oscars Will Be In-Person

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anonymous1980 wrote:Another idea is to organize a safe event in the UK for all UK and Europe-based nominees to attend. Since they’re gonna hold the event in two places this year, why not add a third for the UK and European nominees.
I think, at minimum, that'll have to happen.

The AMPAS team really didn't think this through. Lots more, from Variety:

https://variety.com/2021/film/news/osca ... 234937105/

Let me say that pre-recorded acceptance speeches are a hideous idea. The rush people get from actually winning (think Olivia Colman, or Bong Joon- ho) can't be replicated in a hypothetical speech.
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Re: April 2021 Oscars Will Be In-Person

Post by anonymous1980 »

The Grammys should be their model. It’s a healthy combination of both in-person and virtual elements.

Another idea is to organize a safe event in the UK for all UK and Europe-based nominees to attend. Since they’re gonna hold the event in two places this year, why not add a third for the UK and European nominees.
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Re: April 2021 Oscars Will Be In-Person

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I think it's presumptuous of Soderbergh and the organizers of this year's awards to hold a live show in the still raging pandemic. That said, Chadwick Boseman, the presumptive Best Actor winner, having passed away last year will not be there no matter what. Carey Mulligan and Daniel Kaluuya will be hosting Saturday Night Live in April so they will be here anyway. That's three out of the presumed four acting winners accounted for. It likely won't be the least attended Oscars by winning performers. 1966 still holds that record, Walter Matthau having been the only winner in attendance.
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Re: April 2021 Oscars Will Be In-Person

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Still a not-insignificant possibility of a trainwreck.

https://deadline.com/2021/03/oscar-prod ... 234721184/
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Re: April 2021 Oscars Will Be In-Person

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Yeun is American and lives in the Los Angeles area, so there are no travel issues for him. He can easily be there if he wants to be.
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Re: April 2021 Oscars Will Be In-Person

Post by Reza »

OscarGuy wrote:Flights and accommodations are usually put up by the production company responsible for the Oscar campaign itself. So, even if Yeun or Youn are not made of money, I have little doubt that A24 will make it happen.
Don't think either cares about the trip. They probably know they have zero chance for a win. Boseman is the frontrunner in the lead category.

While many think Youn will win, one needs to remember that the Academy usually reserves the supporting actress category for a starlet. This year both Bakalova and Seyfried qualify for that position.

But then there is also Glenn Close. A win for her over Youn seems much more likely if the Academy wants to go the geriatric route.
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