New Delhi: Oscars, or the Academy Awards, is the longest-running celebration of its kind in the entertainment industry. On Sunday, millions of people all around the world gathered around their televisions to watch the Oscars 2023, the most glamorous awards night. Many people eagerly await the annual Academy Awards broadcast, but only a few are familiar with the procedures surrounding the selection of the coveted golden award winners.
Wouldn't it be fascinating to know the criteria used to decide the winners? Here's a peek at the complete process that determines who takes home the Oscars:
Who are the Academy members?
There are about 10,000 people that are part of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, and they are spread out across 17 different parts.
To promote a more diverse atmosphere, the Academy has pledged to quadruple the number of women and members from underrepresented groups by 2020.
To join the Academy, one must have some connection to the film industry, although membership is not limited to those working in the creative fields; there are other divisions for executives and those working in marketing and public relations.
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has made strides in recent years to diversify its membership after facing backlash over a string of all-white nominations. A fresh set of members is added once a year. The Academy's Board of Governors makes the ultimate decision on new members each year during the spring.
A breakdown of the Oscars voting process
For each category, online voting is held, and the winner is the one who receives the most votes. Yet when it comes to the Best Picture, voters rank the nominees in order of their preferences. If one film receives more than 50% of the first-place votes, it is the clear winner. If none of the movies receives a majority of first-place votes, the one with the fewest total votes is eliminated and the supporters of the other movies get their votes. The process will keep going until one movie gets most of the votes.
Special committees choose the nominees for some awards, like best international film and best animated feature.
Voting happens over the course of a few days just before the ceremony; in 2023, it began on March 2 and concluded on March 7, which was five days before the award night.
Who knows who will win the Oscar before the official announcement?
According to the Academy’s official website, just two PwC (PricewaterhouseCoopers) partners have advanced knowledge of the results. PwC is the accounting company that is in charge of tallying up the votes.
This year Jimmy Kimmel returned for his third time as a host. He hosted the Oscar ceremonies in 2017 and 2018.