Why #OscarsSoWhite is not just the Oscars’ fault

For the second year in a row every actor nominated for an Oscar is white. All 20 of them. This has caused a lot of controversy throughout Hollywood, with many people calling for boycotts and popularizing the hashtag #OscarSoWhite.

But is the Academy (the organization that runs the Oscars) racist? Or is there more to the story?

I believe there’s more. The Academy is not the only organization to blame for #OscarSoWhite. There are three major players in this misrepresentation of minorities at the Oscars.

Hollywood

Looking at the nominees this year may lead someone to assume that the Academy is deliberately and obviously ignoring worthy performances by non-white actors. However, that’s not necessarily the case. There just simply aren’t that many options for the Academy to choose from.

Hollywood doesn’t tend to make movies without cookie-cutter white actors. If the number of white characters is proportionally larger than the number of non-white character, then it should come as no surprise that the nominees are white.

Now, some may argue that Michael B. Jordan and Tessa Thompson gave worthy performances in ‘Creed’. But when you can make the same argument about 30 other performances, it’s not hard to reason why they are left out. Only five people get nominated in each category.

“My own thought is that it’s the industry that needs to be looked at, not as much the Oscars themselves. If there were more minorities working in the industry then there would be more options to work with that would be impossible not to recognize,” UMass student Jesse Hernandez said.

Of the last 20 actresses nominated for Best Actress, only one was not white. At just nine years old Quvenzhane Wallis was nominated for Best Actress in 2012, she lost to Jennifer Lawrence. Meaning for the last three years, the Academy felt there was not a lead actress of color worthy of an Oscar nomination.

OK, but here’s the thing: These roles that are nominated and praised, do not need to be played exclusively by white actors. Nobody can argue that the role of Abraham Lincoln should have gone to an actor of color rather than Daniel Day-Lewis who went on to win the Oscar for his performance. But did J.K. Simmons’ Oscar winning performance in Whiplash need to be played by a white actor? Maybe J.K. Simmons really was the best for the part. But, the producers, writers, and directors of such films probably never auditioned or even thought about casting a non-white actor in their major role.

In fact it is very common for film makers, or television executives to state the ethnicity of the actors they are willing to audition. In any other industry this would be illegal. In Hollywood, they call it show business. But, why? Why aren’t there strong, interesting, complex roles that are available for and performed by actors who are not white? Hollywood is afraid to try new things. Executives are not willing to “risk” millions of dollars by casting non white, household names. That’s where the issue roots from.

In short, if there aren’t many performances to choose form, then it is unlikely that an actor of color will get recognized. The problem starts much earlier than when the Academy announces its nominees.

“The bigger issue, in my opinion, is the underrepresentation of people of color in TV and film in general. When a black or hispanic child goes to the movies and sees a film, the protagonist is going to be white more often than not. That sends a subconscious message that most of the important people in society are white, which is incredibly damaging.

“To add insult to injury, when a film like Straight Outta Compton is made (one of the best films of 2015 in my opinion, by the way), not only does it get zero nominations, but the actors and producers aren’t even invited to the Oscars,” said fellow student Forootan.

The Academy

“Idris Elba had the third best odds to win Best Supporting Actor before the nominations came out, so he got fucked over.”- Jeremy

Just because it isn’t all their fault, doesn’t mean it isn’t partly their fault.

Of course like any long standing institution, it is a political environment. By that I mean it’s an exclusive club. ‘Best’ does not mean best. It means who the Academy likes the most.

It’s sort of like how teacher’s pets get away with more. It’s not necessarily because they are the smartest or hardest working student in class. It’s because the teacher likes them. This doesn’t mean the Oscars aren’t a big deal and don’t have a lot say in Hollywood, it just means they aren’t judging exclusively on talent.

What’s worse is the make up of Academy members. The members are the ones who vote on who gets nominated and who goes on to win the biggest prize in movies. 76% of members are male, 94% are white, and the average age is 63 years old.

A 63 year old white guy is not going to nominate “Tangerine”, a movie about a hooker recently released from jail, starring two transgender actresses, shot on an iPhone 5, for Best Picture. But the Independent Spirit Awards will, and it did. As well as nominating two transgender actresses for Best Actress and Best Supporting Actress.

Like I said before the Oscars are political. Studios campaign for their movies, casts, and crews to get nominated. They parade their stars around town. Directors, writers, actors, cinematographers shake hands and take pictures with Academy members as if they are running for public office. Studios set up screenings or find ways for voters to see their movies in order to increase buzz.

Many people expected Robert Redford would be nominated for Best Actor for his little seen movie “All is Lost” at the 2014 Oscars. When he wasn’t he blamed the studio, saying that they didn’t show enough Academy voters his movie. Redford has won the Lifetime Achievement Award at the Oscars, and if his movie can get lost in the shuffle, anybody’s can.

Like Jeremy pointed out, Idris Elba was perceived as a strong contender for a nomination this year leading up to the Oscars. Maybe it was because his movie “Beasts of No Nation” was released on Netflix, a medium most members are either ignoring or don’t truly value. Or because the voters love traditional media like a theater. Or because they simply didn’t think he deserved it. Or possibly, his race. I don’t know why Mr. Elba was not nominated and I probably never will.

At this point, the Oscars is like assuming the Ivy League is automatically the ‘best’. In the same way that there are schools and other options for young adults that are better than the historically ‘best’ universities. While it is still an achievement, going to an Ivy does not mean you are smarter or work harder or are a better student than someone at a different school. Just like an Oscar does not mean you are the ‘best’.

The Audience

“I’ve heard a lot of people saying stuff like ‘but minorities have won Oscars in the past! under representation isn’t real!’ and that’s like saying that world hunger isn’t real just because there are people in the world who eat.”- Michelle

Movie goers may not be to blame necessarily, but we are the ones with most power to change the trends.

At the end of the day Hollywood is a business. Yes actors, directors, writers and people who work on the actual films may be artists and entertainers. But, production of movies is financed by business people.

Apple is not going to make a new product if they don’t think it will sell. McDonald’s will take an item off the menu if it doesn’t generate enough profit. Hollywood works the same way. If you want more movies starring minorities of any kind, if you want stories about interesting characters, if you demand higher quality movies, then go see the ones that are already being made.

It’s not that film executives are necessarily racist or sexist, it’s that they only worry about box office figures. Their main motivation is ticket sales. Tweeting about how the Academy is racist won’t accomplish anything. We did it last year when all the nominees were white and looked what happened again.

If we want more diverse stories to be told we need to demand it in the only language executives understand. Money.

Go see  ‘Carol’, the lesbian love story set in 1950’s New York, or ‘Straight Outta Compton’, or ‘Selma’, or ‘Dope’. If movies about minorities make money, they will keep getting made. That’s how businesses work.

Hollywood is scared to finance movies that aren’t about attractive white people because they think those movies won’t make money. So, prove them wrong. Go see them. Give them the incentive to make more. That’s how we will see more diverse performers, and more interesting stories.

At the end of the day Hollywood executives and the Academy may or may not be racist. But what I am certain of is that audiences have the power and the ability to change trends. We are the ones who dictate which stars and stories make money. The dollars they seek are in our pockets. A ticket at Amherst Cinema is $8.75 with a student ID. It’s not a perfect system. It is limiting, conservative, and traditional. However, we as the consumer are able to change it.