Netflix spends $30m in push for an Oscar

NETFLIX, the internet streaming service, is facing a backlash after a record spend of up to $30 million (£23m) on an Oscars award campaign for its film Roma.

The staggering amount, twice what the film itself cost to make, could mean a movie intended to be mainly watched on TV capturing the Best Picture gong for the first time.

It was a prospect that rattled some leading Hollywood film-makers, who predicted it could signal a bleak future for cinemas.

Los Angeles, home to many of the more than 7,000 members of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences who vote for the Oscars, has been plastered with billboards and posters urging them to back Roma.

There has been an endless stream of promotional parties, including a cocktail soirée hosted by Angelina Jolie, and a screening at the Chateau Marmont hotel hosted by Charlize Theron.

Film industry figures have been sent a $175 coffee table book about the film, and chocolates with a note from its star Yalitza Aparicio, who is nominated for best actress.

A fortune has been spent on television adverts.

Roma, which streamed worldwide from Dec 14, qualified for the Oscars after a limited cinema release.

However, Spielberg believes films made primarily for television by streaming services like Netflix, Hulu, and others, should not be eligible for the Oscars if given a “token” cinema release.

“The greatest contributions we can make as filmmakers is to give audiences the motion picture theatrical experience,” he said.