The Academy Awards are changing how they count eligibility for films in the wake of COVID-19. As movie theatres around the world continue to keep their doors closed and films previously slated for theatrical releases move immediately to video-on-demand, the annual award show has updated its criteria outlining which films are eligible for nomination for next year’s ceremony.Announced this week, the Academy Awards have
listed several changes in their requirements. Films that are released directly to streaming platforms will still be eligible if they previously had a theatrical release date or have one scheduled post-quarantine. The rule that films must play in Los Angeles has been expanded and now other major cities like New York, Chicago, San Francisco, Miami and Atlanta will also count. Although film festivals around the world have been cancelled, their films can still be deemed eligible if they are made available through the festival's website and placed behind a pay wall or are password-protected.Changes to award categories have also been made. Sound Mixing and Sound Editing are now together as one award for Best Achievement in Sound, a move that the Academy says will help “emphasizes the team effort.” In the Original Score category, films must have now have 60 percent original music and sequel and franchise films must have 80 percent original music to be considered.In an effort to ensure that members are voting on films that they have actually watched, movies in the International Feature Film Category will now be made available through the Academy’s streaming platform and members will have to meet a minimum viewing criteria before they are allowed to vote. Previously, Academy members had to attend screenings at the organization's Beverly Hills headquarters.As for screeners, they are now required to include close captioning. This will also mark the final year for DVD screeners; the Academy will move to online-only screeners next year in their continued effort to go green.The Academy Awards shared the update on their website on Tuesday, clearly stating that most of the new rules would be in place for this year only. Of course, that could change depending on when and if theatres reopen. Once physical distancing measures have been eased, the landscape of the film industry will look very different. Not only will the release of new films be delayed as a result of film productions being shut down around the world, but it is possible that both independent and major movie chains will not reopen. AMC, the largest movie theatre chain in the world, was already
struggling financially before the COVID-19 pandemic. Still, recent comments made by NBCUniversal CEO Jeff Shell caused a controversy that led to AMC declaring they will no longer play Universal films once theatres reopen.AMC's strong stance was in response to Shell’s comments over the streaming success of
Trolls World Tour, which has earned over $100 million in video-on-demand rentals in North America in its first three weeks. Shell told the
Wall Street Journal that in light of the animated film’s success, Universal plans to release movies both in-theatre and through video-on-demand once movie theatres reopen. This is unacceptable to AMC, whose CEO Adam Aron responded by
saying, "It is disappointing to us, but Jeff’s comments as to Universal’s unilateral actions and intentions have left us with no choice. Therefore, effectively immediately AMC will no longer play any Universal movies in any of our theaters in the United States, Europe or the Middle East.”Remember when our biggest concern was who would host the Oscars?[video_embed id='1896980']Before you go: Three major trends from the Oscars red carpet[/video_embed]
