How Colorful is the Oscars?

      Everyone knows that the Oscars is a huge show that we all look forward to each year. The films that we watch and the actors that we love are all nominated for the biggest award in the entertainment industry and we get to be apart of that experience and predict and celebrate right along with them in the company of our own homes. A few days after the show, is when the complaining starts with who was more deserving and who should’ve won. This year, a lot of that complaining was directed toward racism. There were several films that were all films of color and were stories that I myself, very much enjoyed. Some fiction and others, real life events from inspiring African Americans who want to share their stories and hope to make an impact on the world. After this year’s show there were negative complaints toward the Academy, also known as the prime voters of the actors and films, that these films and the actors in them, were not recognized in the way that they should be. I will give an example with the film Selma. This is a true African American story and a spectacular film that received great reviews. However, it was only nominated for Best Picture, which in my opinion is one of the simpler categories that a film can fall into. I can see where people think that the film deserved more and was not recognized in the way that it should’ve been, along with the actors that play in it because it is based on a true story and inspires people and sends incredible messages to people all across the globe.

      Even through all of these complaints and views on which films should’ve won certain awards, everyone is entitled to their own opinion and too much thought is put into race and gender and how people are affected by it. It is a topic that is taken too personally. People say that 75% of the Academy voters are white and that is the answer to these films like Selma, not receiving the attention that it deserves. These are opinions, not facts, as the race and gender category is mostly opinionated anyway and based on feelings. I can say that there were white films that I enjoyed that did not receive the attention that they deserved, but the amount of white films that exceed African American films, is what gives so much power to the gender and racial arguments and complaints.

      There is no way of knowing how racist the Academy is. The voters change every year and the competition just to be nominated is something that we don’t see and is much bigger than we imagine. As I said before, this is mainly an opinionated topic and yes, statistics from previous shows many show us gender comparisons, but people form their own opinions on how racist the show is based on those stats as well. There is really no conclusion as to how it should be seen or conducted, but if you went all the way up to the head of the show, that would be an opinion as well.