TV5MONDE: What does the #OscarsSoWhite movement represent?
April reign : #OscarsSoWhite is not just about the faces we see on the screen, the actors and actresses. It is also important to know who is telling the story; who is behind the camera; so the director, the director of the
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photography, producers are just as important if not more important than actors and actresses. It is encouraging because many filmmakers, actors and actresses are now creating their own production companies and are no longer waiting for former film studios like Paramount, 20th Century, Universal and others to create the art we want. see. They do it themselves. Ava DuVernay is a perfect example: its range of productions ensures that in the cinema and on television, there is inclusiveness in front and behind the camera.
Are the lines moving in this 2020 edition?
A.R. Each year we see how #OscarsSoWhite is trending on networks both literally and figuratively in the United States and internationally. For example with this year’s BAFTA, the British equivalent of the Oscars, Joaquin Phoenix had a very passionate speech on systemic racism, inclusion and diversity as he accepted his award for his interpretation in “Joker”. Just the fact that I’m speaking to TV5MONDE, is an indication that people, not just in the United States, but around the world are having these conversations about inclusion and representation in film. I also interacted with people in New Zealand, Brazil, literally everyone wants to recognize themselves on the screens and understands the importance of diversity and inclusion in the entertainment industry.
#OscarsSoWhite is not just about race and ethnicity. It’s not something as binary as black against white. It is also about sexual orientation, gender identity, disability, people with First Nation status, all those who have been marginalized from the entertainment industry.
April reign
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So when we talk about advances, it is important to talk, for example, of women who are directors, women who are filmmakers. We see small advances: “Hair Love” is for example named in the category of the best animated short film, directed by Matthew Cherry and produced by Karen Tolliver.
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Another example: “Saint Louis Superman” named in the category of the best short documentary, speaks of a black man, Bruce Frank Jr. who was on the ground in Ferguson after the death of Mike Brown. So there has been progress, but obviously not enough. It’s consumers like you and me who pay for movies or video on demand services from our hard-earned dollars. And like any other industry, Hollywood is ruled by money. So as a consumer, we need to be smart about the entertainment we consume. We must be careful not to reward mediocrity but to support films from traditionally under-represented communities both in front of and behind the camera.
Is French cinema too white?To (re) see on TV5MONDE:
A few hours before the Oscars 2020, what can we expect?
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You never know what’s going to happen on stage. What I do know is that these people who are not from marginalized communities like heterosexual people, able-bodied people, white people (not “colored” people) … For these people, it is important also to defend issues of inclusion and representation. Those who have been marginalized from a system that is almost a hundred years old are not in a position of strength to be able to change this system. But these people who look like the people behind these marginalizations, those who look like studio managers have the responsibility. Just like Joaquin did: get up and say “you know there is a problem in this industryAnd then show concrete actions on what they will do next. Joaquin Phoenix and others have an incredible amount of influence networks that they can use to effect structural change within the Academy, so I hope that he and others will follow not only with words but also with actions.
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