In today’s busy word, watching films is a good way to relax and become surrounded in another world created by artists. Each year, we recognize the best films.
Keywords:
- Genre: the type of film, book, or music
- Examples of genre:
- Live-action: real people
- Cartoon: drawings/animation/claymation (using clay figures)
- Documentary: provides a factual record or report on a subject
- Examples of genre:
- Red Carpet/Haute Couture/Glitz/Glamour: very fashionable or stylish; usually also very expensive!
- Cinematography: the art of making movies
- Nostalgia and Escapism: wishing or longing for the past; escaping into another world through a book, movie, music, etc.
- Buzz: popularity; gossip
- Contenders: candidates or nominees
- Movie Trailer: the preview of the movie–this is usually about 30 seconds to two minutes long and gives a brief overview of what the movie is about
- Iconic: widely recognized or symbolic
- White-washing: the act of using white actors to portray non-white characters.
- Examples of white-washing:
- Johnny Depp portraying a Native American in The Lone Ranger
- Scarlett Johansson in the Japanese live-action of Ghost in the Shell
- Examples of white-washing:
Sunday, February 26, 2017 marks the 89th annual Academy Awards, also known as the Oscars. It will be hosted by Jimmy Kimmel at the Dolby Theater in Hollywood, California. Each year, there is much anticipation leading up to the glitz and glamour of the red-carpet tradition. This awards ceremony is the oldest American entertainment awards show, recognized by most as the pinnacle of success in cinematography.
Secrecy and Intrigue surrounding The Nomination Process:
With around 6,000 voting members in the Academy, hundreds of films and artists each year as possible candidates, and strict guidelines for eligibility, part of the allure of these awards is the complicated process that results in nominations for these awards.
Major Categories and 2017 Contenders:
For Discussion: How many of these films have you seen? What is your favorite film genre? Do you know any of these actors and actresses from other films?
Best Picture: since 1928. This Year’s Nominees: “La La Land, Moonlight,” “Lion,” “Hidden Figures,” “Manchester by the Sea,” “Arrival,” “Hacksaw Ridge,” “Hell or High Water,” “Fences”
Best Director: since 1928. This Year’s Nominees: Damien Chazelle (“La La Land“), Barry Jenkins (“Moonlight“), Denis Villeneuve (“Arrival“), Kenneth Lonergan ( “Manchester by the Sea“), Mel Gibson (“Hacksaw Ridge“)
Best Actor in a Leading Role: since 1928. This Year’s Nominees: Denzel Washington (“Fences”), Casey Affleck (“Manchester by the Sea”), Ryan Gosling (“La La Land”), Viggo Mortensen (“Captain Fantastic”), Andrew Garfiled (“Hacksaw Ridge”)
Best Actor in a Supporting Role: since 1936. This Year’s Nominees: Mahershala Ali (“Moonlight”), Michael Shannon (“Nocturnal Animals”), Dev Patel (“Lion“), Jeff Bridges, (“Hell or High Water“) Lucas Hedges (“Manchester by the Sea“)
Best Actress in a Leading Role: since 1928. This Year’s Nominees: Emma Stone (“La La Land“), Natalie Portman (“Jackie“), Meryl Streep (“Florence Foster Jenkins“), Isabelle Huppert ( “Elle“), Ruth Negga (“Loving“)
Best Actress in a Supporting Role: since 1936. This Year’s Nominees: Viola Davis (“Fences“), Michelle Williams (“Manchester by the Sea”), Naomie Harris (“Moonlight”) Nicole Kidman (“Lion”) Octavia Spencer (“Hidden Figures)
Best Animated Feature: since 2001. This Year’s Nominees: “Zootopia,”“Kubo and the Two Strings,” “Moana,” “The Red Turtle,” “My Life as a Zucchini”
Best Cinematography: since 1928. This Year’s Nominees: “La La Land” (Linus Sandgren), “Lion” (Greig Fraser), “Arrival” (Bradford Young), “Moonlight” (James Laxton), “Silence” (Rodrigo Prieto)
But That’s Not All! Other Categories Include: Best Costume Design, Best Documentary Feature, Best Foreign Language Film, Best Makeup and Hairstyling, Best Original Score, Best Sound Mixing
Best Picture Discussion Activity: For more information and for clips of trailers: http://oscar.go.com/nominees
A trailer is a short clip that is meant to get people interested in the movie. Watch the trailers of three “buzz-worthy” films: “La La Land,” “Lion,” and “Hidden Figures.”
What did you learn about the film from the trailer? Can you summarize the story in your own words? What do you want to know more about after watching?
- For “La La Land”: This film is expected to be one of the top winners across many categories this year. Why do you think that it is so popular? What type of world does it depict (show us)? Is this a film you would like to see?
- For “Lion”: How did the filmmakers decide to represent the different cultures represented in the film? What do you think the relationship between these cultures might be based on this clip? Here is a quote from the author who wrote the book on which the film is based: “At the end of the day, getting to the Oscars wasn’t for us. We wrote this book to help other people in a similar situation.” What is your reaction to this quote? Is this a film you would like to see?
- For “Hidden Figures”: How does this film deal with racial tensions and gender roles of this time period? Why is it important to tell this story? Does it have any particular significance right now?
Impress your Friends with Some Oscar Trivia:
- Shirley Temple was the youngest person ever to receive the Oscar Award, in 1934, at the ripe-old age of 5.
- Margaret Herrick, the Academy librarian, nicknamed the award statues after her uncle, Oscar, in 1931.
- Walt Disney was awarded with a total of 26 Academy Awards.
- Greer Garson gave the longest speech, when she accepted the ‘Best Actress Award’, somewhere between 5.5 and 7 minutes.
- The three movies have won 11 Oscars in a single ceremony: “Lord of the Rings: Return of the King” (2003), “Titanic” (1997) and “Ben-Hur” (1959).
- Meryl Streep holds the record for the most number of Oscar nominations, with 13 nominations.
(Adapted from: http://www.awardsandshows.com/features/oscar-trivia-45.html)
From the Red Carpet: Oscar Fashion-Who will be the “best dressed”?
Last Year’s Best-Dressed
Sometimes being fashion-forward (adventurous with your fashion) pays off, and sometimes it invites criticism. The red carpet puts people in the spotlight, and some like to use the red carpet to show off in haute-couture.
Even some “fails” can become iconic.
Examples of Oscar’s Speeches: Following the announcement of the award, recipients have the opportunity to speak. So what makes for a good acceptance speech? Well, brevity is one element we can probably agree on-the ceremony can only last so long, after all. Speakers are limited to around 45 seconds to one minute before they “cue the music” to cut them off. Also, recipients are expected to control their emotion, for the most part, and stay humble while recognizing their accomplishment.
Here is a link to some of the best Oscar Speeches: http://www.usatoday.com/story/life/entertainthis/2017/02/21/five-best-oscar-speeches-all-time-tom-hanks-halle-berry-sally-field/98066440/
And one of the worst: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u_8nAvU0T5Y (begin 2:25)
White-washing in Hollywood: An Ongoing Controversy
Hattie McDaniel was the first African American actor who won an Academy Award for her supporting performance in “Gone with the Wind” in 1939. Since then, here is a list of the 32 African American Oscar-winners in Academy Award history.
- For more on film and race: http://www.economist.com/blogs/prospero/2016/01/film-and-race
- A Fascinating History of Whitewashing in Images: http://www.complex.com/pop-culture/2013/04/25-minority-characters-that-hollywood-whitewashed/
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