Film academy sharpens its focus on diversity with 928 new invitations
▶ A number of Middle Eastern filmmakers and writers are among the host of new members
Oscar-nominated Lebanese director Ziad Doueiri, Palestinian filmmaker poet Annemarie Jacir, and director Nadine Labaki have joined the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences as part of a diversity drive where more than 900 people were invited to join its ranks. Jacir responded to the news with a fairly straightforward tweet, saying “Well hello The Academy.”
Doueirim, director of The Insult, and Jacir were joined
at the Oscars table by Labaki – whose Cannes prize-winning Caphernaum last week sold out its screenings at the Shanghai International Film Festival – and Oscar-nominated Feras Fayyad director of Last Man in Aleppo.
The Academy, known to film fans as the body that votes on the Oscar awards, was keen to use the nominees as evidence of its inclusivity, noting that 49 per cent of those are female and 38 per cent are non-white. Should all the nominees accept, the new class would boost its overall membership profile to 31 per cent female and 16 per cent non-white.
“Hey yo. I’m in The Academy,” Pakistani-American Kumain Nanjiani, who co-wrote and starred in The Big Sick, tweeted. His wife and co-writer Emily V Gordon was also invited to join.
Tiffany Haddish, the comedian, received the news from Melissa McCarthy on the set of their film, The Kitchen.
“That’s super cool,” Haddish said in a video capturing the moment. “So I get to vote?” she said, before exclaiming with laughter: “I’m going to get movies for free?”
The film academy in 2016 pledged to double the number of female and minority ranks of its members by 2020. Then, 25 per cent of its members were female and 8 per cent were non-white.
Nominees always range from relative newcomers to industry veterans. Some of the youngest prospective members include 22-year-old actor Timothee Chalamet, who appeared in Call Me By Your Name, and Beasts of the Southern Wild’s Quvenzhané Wallis who, at 14, is the youngest to be invited this year. Both were Oscar-nominated for their performances.
On the other end of the age spectrum is 84-year-old
Gosford Park actress Eileen Atkins. Other recognisable nominees include Dave Chappelle, Jada Pinkett Smith, Amy Schumer, Christine Baranski, Sarah Silverman and Kyra Sedgwick. A batch of
The Simpsons stars were also among the acting prospects for their various film roles, including Julie Kavner, Hank Azaria, Harry Shearer and Yeardley Smith. Both blockbusters and indie films are fair game for academy membership every year, too.
This year is no exception, with invitations extended to persons in front of and behind the camera of films such as Star Wars (including actress Daisy Ridley) and
Black Panther (actor Daniel Kaluuya, designer Ilt Jones and writer Joe Robert Cole) to people like the revered, but very niche Hungarian director Bela Tarr. Notable music nominees include Kendrick Lamar (Black Panther), Melissa Etheridge (An Inconvenient Truth) and Sufjan Stevens (Call Me By Your Name).
Ten of the invitees were invited to join several branches, of which they will have to select one branch only.
New members will get the chance to celebrate together at private receptions this autumn.
The film academy in 2016 pledged to double the number of female and minority ranks of its members by 2020