The nominations for the 2021 Oscars were announced last week, in the main for films that the public did not see in the cinema as the movie makers intended, another victim of the Covid pandemic. As elsewhere, the Oscars ceremony is going to have to adjust and the parties, networking for film and entertainment folk, will be as constrained as networking for print folk has been this past year.
We have lost numerous exhibitions, conferences and awards events and in their place visual exhibitions, webinars and clumsy online networking. Assuming these will be with us for some months or more to come, they need to improve. This was the original function of award schemes: to highlight the excellent and inspirational and to enjoy the acclamation of ones peers. Print technology has reached the post were judging books, magazines or more with a loupe is all but impossible, unlike the days when fit was shaky, colour consistency even more so and book blocks might be bound upside down.
Online events are far from this point. Some way of distinguishing the bad from the merely tolerable is needed. And we the audience (or victims) of such presentations should let it be known which work best for us and which do not work at all. It is all too easy for organisers to pat themselves on the back for creating what they believe to be illuminating content presented in an engaging manner for little more than a bag of chips. We should let them know if what they have is worthy of an award, or of our attention. Now we just need to work out the categories for these film award equivalents.
And the winner for best director is…
The nominations for the 2021 Oscars were announced last week, in the main for films that the public did not see in the cinema as the movie makers intended, another victim of the Covid pandemic. As elsewhere, the Oscars ceremony is going to have to adjust and the parties, networking for film and entertainment folk, will be as constrained as networking for print folk has been this past year.
We have lost numerous exhibitions, conferences and awards events and in their place visual exhibitions, webinars and clumsy online networking. Assuming these will be with us for some months or more to come, they need to improve. This was the original function of award schemes: to highlight the excellent and inspirational and to enjoy the acclamation of ones peers. Print technology has reached the post were judging books, magazines or more with a loupe is all but impossible, unlike the days when fit was shaky, colour consistency even more so and book blocks might be bound upside down.
Online events are far from this point. Some way of distinguishing the bad from the merely tolerable is needed. And we the audience (or victims) of such presentations should let it be known which work best for us and which do not work at all. It is all too easy for organisers to pat themselves on the back for creating what they believe to be illuminating content presented in an engaging manner for little more than a bag of chips. We should let them know if what they have is worthy of an award, or of our attention. Now we just need to work out the categories for these film award equivalents.
Gareth Ward
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