#OscarsSoWhite, a diatribe on ethnic diversity management

The world of Cinema is currently interested by a diatribe on the criteria of representation and voice -sharing of the different cultures, mainly regarding 2016 Oscars and, more, in general, the composition of the Jury of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. The first thing I realized when I got into some professional fields is that Cinema, Communication, Marketing, Arts cannot be provincial or culturally limited. To be white, to be black, to be yellow, to be man, to be woman, should not be relevant at all.
And a diatribe on the racism in Cinema and in Oscars management really makes you suffer and worry about.
Everything started on January 18, Martin Luther King Day, when Spike Lee declared on Instagram he will be not at the 2016 Oscars Ceremony as a form of protest for the absolute absence of ethnic diversity among the nominated actors and actresses. The hashtag #OscarSoWhite was born and has become more powerful day by day; after Spike Lee, other professionals moved in favor of the cause, such as Michael Moore, Will Smith, his wife Jada Pinkett, David Oyelowo. Mark Ruffalo firstly agreed and changed mind in a second time.
Michael Caine told it is not possible to give an actor an Oscar just for being black, whereas Charlotte Rampling firstly defined Spike Lee’s initiative as a sort of “racism on the contrary, against the white ones” and then declared:

“I was misunderstood, I want to mean that in an ideal world any human being should have the same opportunities”.

George Clooney told a Variety journalist:

“Once Academy worked better than now, in 2004 there were a lot of black nominees, such as Morgan Freeman, Don Cheadle. Not it seems as if we are moving in the wrong way. ‘Creed’ could be nominated, ‘Concussion’ could offer a nomination for Will Smith, ‘Beasts of No Nation’ to Idris Elba, ‘Straight Outta Compton” could be nominated as well. Last year, ‘Selma’, by Ava DuVernay. I think it was ridiculous to not nominate her. (…) To gain a nomination you must have the possibility to make your film and minorities are offered less opportunities. We should have 20, 30, 40 high quality films involving minorities and that could compete for the Oscars. I am speaking of the Afro -Americans. For the Hispanics it is even worse. We must do better, in the past we did”.

Michael Keaton, asked in Rome for his opinion, said he does not know Oscars – assignment system, perhaps something must be changed, it is important to put the issue of racism on a very larger plane, related to American society as well as the rest of the world, as the anti-Semitism in France, as any kind of discriminations toward other ethnicities.
Robert Redford too spoke about #OscarsSoWhite and the more recent #OscarsStillSoWhite:

“I am not interested in Academy Awards (…) but the diversity comes from the word ‘independence’”

Currently, Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences is formed by 51 Governors and only 2 are not white, the president, Cheryl Boon Isaacs , and Daryn Okada, from Asia.
For the future, Cheryl Boon Isaacs, the woman at the top of the Academy, together with her Board of Directors, will make some changes among the members, by making inactive actors since 5 years get out and granting a pink and an Afro – American quota. More women and more ethnicities, then.
In an official note, she said:

“Academy leads the change, it does not wait for Cinema Industry do it!”

And please remember, just for say, that Leonardo DiCaprio, i.e., is a quite well- done example of different ethnicities put together, having ancestors from Italy, Russia, Germany… Just a black one is missing and, who knows, never say never…

Sources: Ansa

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