Featured image: “Oscar” by lincolnblues (CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)
The announcement of the 2021 Oscar nominations mark a historic moment in film industry history.
For the first time, two female directors, Chloé Zhao and Emerald Fennell, are up for the best director award. Kathryn Bigelow is the only female director to have won this award with Hurtlocker in 2010. There have only been 5 female directors nominated for best director since the beginning of the Oscars in 1927. Currently female directors only make up 10.7% of directors in the industry. The Guardian reported that 17% of the top grossing films in 2020 where directed by woman, the highest ever recorded.
It is also the most diverse year on record with nine of the twenty acting nominees being POC. The Oscars has previously been heavily criticized for its lack of representation and white Eurocentric focus. Directors such as Spike Lee did not attend the award show in 2016 and called for a boycott of the award ceremony, following the predominantly white acting nominations.
Hopefully, this year marks a change and a more inclusive film industry.
Another standout of this year is the number of British nominees, including Olivia Coleman, who won an oscar in 2019 for The Favourite, she is nominated again this year for her role in The Father. Daniel Kaluuya is also among the British nominees for his standout performance as Fred Hamilton in Judas and the Black Messiah. Riz Ahmed is the first Muslim actor of Pakistani descent to be nominated for the award.
The Oscars will take place as usual this year. However, social distance regulations will be in place and it will be held on the 26th of April as opposed to its usual time in February.
The full list of nominations is available here
Featured image: Isabelle Dargue A powerful new film documenting Manchester’s Lights Up movement will premiere at The Savoy Cinema on 9 March as part of International Women’s Day celebrations. Lights Up is a free, community-led event organised by Bee Pedal Ready and Station South in partnership with Manchester Metropolitan University, We Are Cycling UK, MCRActive,…
Featured image: David Lindsay Manchester illustrator Stanley Chow will return to the decks for a special guest vinyl DJ set at The Garden Bar in Chorlton later this month. Chow, known for his distinctive geometric minimalist portraits of figures from Manchester and wider pop culture, is returning to his roots with an exclusive free DJ…
Following the passing of iconic Stone Roses and Primal Scream Bassist Gary ‘Mani’ Mountfield, there have been growing calls for him to be immortalised in a way that reflects both his cultural impact and the deep affection shared between the musician and his home city. GRIT Studios has answered the calls from fans, announcing plans…
Featured image: Evie Peattie Often overshadowed in popular narratives by the heritage houses of Paris or Milan, London’s fashion ecosystem has long traded on creative freedom. As London Fashion Week prepares for its 42nd year, running from the 19 to 23 February, the British capital is poised to reaffirm its reputation not simply as a…
Leave a reply