Academy Award season is the respected culmination of years of dedication and hard work for many of the best modern creatives in the world. These music, film, and TV awards recognize artists for their accomplishments in the last year. With categories like Record of the Year, Best Picture, Best Director, and even Best New Artists, the shows are supposed to showcase and recognize the best of the best- but that is not always the result.
Most recently, the 66th Grammy Award Show left the internet in shambles over nominations and winners, leading to public outcry for justice for people’s favorite artists, which is honestly understandable. For many people, there is a consensus that the winners of some of the biggest categories were undeserved in contrast with the other nominees.
“It felt very predictable to see some of the big winners of the night,” said OH junior Abby Geers, “In the past few years especially, I’ve come to expect this from the Grammys and try not to get my hopes up.”
Examples of these musical “snubs,” meaning someone received an undeserved loss, include Taylor Swift’s Album of the Year award over fan favorite nominees of Land Del Ray, SZA, and last year’s winner Jon Batiste.
While “Midnights” was a very well-received and enjoyable album, other nominations on the list better fit the category of best album regarding objective musical standards and quality rather than fan engagement. With other decisions during the show also raising this same issue, the question has begun to arise about the true criteria for their winners.
“I’ve come to realize that it is not so much an acknowledgment of achievement but more so an opportunity to see who the academy sees as the most marketable and the best option for their image,” Geers said.
Despite these objections, it is still important to recognize the strengths of the winners and treat them with respect, everyone was nominated for a reason, even if the winner is not a favorite of the masses, although it would be nice to see more people getting the recognition they deserve.
The Oscars, however, are shaping up to follow the same trend as the Grammy Award Show. This year’s nominations include great films like Oppenheimer, Barbie, and Anatomy of a Fall, and some of the categories showcase the diversity that the industry has to offer.
As Barbie was the highest-grossing movie of the year, not only due to marketing, but also the real and philosophical message of the film and its meaning to women all over the world, many were upset that Great Gerwig did not receive a directorial nomination, nor did Margot Robbie for Actress in a Leading Role.
“[T]hey made us laugh, they broke our hearts, they pushed the culture, they made history. Their work should be recognized along with the other very deserving nominees,” said Ryan Gosling, a nominee for Actor in a Supporting Role for his work on Barbie, in a statement after the release of the nominations.
It is important to note that winners and nominees should not be held to any less recognition just because a fan favorite was not chosen. Someone’s loss does not permit people to lack respect for the winner, but going forward with the rest of the award season, the basis on which these decisions are being reached must be addressed.
I am a senior at OH and so excited to be a Managing and Opinions Section Editor this year! I love working on 42Fifty, but I am also very involved in band and numerous honor societies here. Looking forward to doing great work this year!
So true! Love it so much