inewsamerica: Oscars: Russell Crowe and More Stars Rebuke Academy’s Decision to Present Awards During Commercial Breaks

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On Tuesday, hours after Oscar-winning filmmakers Guillermo del Toro and Alfonso Cuarón criticized the Academy’s decision to present four awards during commercial breaks of the February 24 telecast, Russell Crowe, Spike Lee, and more bold-faced names from the filmmaking community logged their own displeasure with the Oscar shake-up on social media.

Referencing the categories that Academy President John Bailey announced will be presented during commercial breaks, Crowe bluntly Tweeted, “The Academy is removing cinematography, editing, and makeup from the televised show? This is just such a fundamentally stupid decision, I’m not even going to be bothered trying to be a smart arse about it. It’s just too fucking dumb for words.”

Tweeting about the cinematography category specifically, Seth Rogen opined, “What better way to celebrate achievements in film than to not publicly honor the people’s who’s job it is to literally film things.”

“Agreed,” added Josh Gad. “Not quite sure why the Academy Awards seems to hate the Academy Awards this year.”

“Cinematography and editing are two of the most crucial things that make or break a movie!” wrote Jennifer Tilly. “Why ghetto-ize certain categories? Are we honoring achievement in film or just staring at celebrities? So disrespectful.”

“Who on Earth is making these fucked up decisions,” wrote Outlander star Caitriona Balfe, in a five-Tweet takedown. “Movie making is a collaborative experience with each and every cog in the wheel playing an essential role in the making of whatever project. No one part of the endeavor is more important or more valuable than the rest. How could a film exist without a cinematographer???? And editor???? An academy that demeans such essential roles is one that obviously doesn’t understand the filmmaking process.”

Meanwhile, this year’s nominee Spike Lee added his thoughts on the format change. “Without cinematographers and film editors, I would be lost, wandering in the cinema wilderness,” the filmmaker wrote in a message sent with BlacKkKlansman editor Barry Alexander Brown to the Los Angeles Times. “I think it’s outrageous,” added Jim Burke, a producer on this year’s best-picture nominee Green Book. “To not publicly recognize editors and cinematographers is a big mistake. I’m in favor of a shorter show but not at the expense of these two vital components to the filmmaking process.”

Earlier Tuesday, two-time Oscar winner Alfonso Cuarón led the charge against the decision on social media. “In the history of CINEMA, masterpieces have existed without sound, without color, without a story, without actors, and without music,” he wrote on Twitter. “No one single film has ever existed without CINEMAtography and without editing.”

Guillermo del Toro, who won the best-director Oscar last year, went to bat specifically for two categories. “I would not presume what categories should occur during commercials on Oscars night, but, please: Cinematography & Editing are at the very heart of our craft. They are not inherited from a theatrical tradition or a literary tradition: they are cinema itself.”

Even before Monday’s clarification of which categories would be dumped in commercial breaks this year, the Academy’s decision to streamline the ceremony proved unpopular amongst film insiders. Austrian cinematographer Christian Berger, who was nominated for 2009’s The White Ribbon, told Vanity Fair’s Joanna Robinson that he probably wouldn’t make the trip to Los Angeles if he were nominated this year: “Honestly, I would not come if I thought that while I was getting the prize they were selling Coca-Cola or whatever.”