Hollywood is buzzing with the upcoming Academy Awards nominations out Tuesday, Jan. 23. If this awards season so far is any indication, Christopher Nolan’s “Oppenheimer” will continue to gain accolades after collecting five Golden Globes.
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But the road to a nomination is not as simple as producing great work. Getting on the awards ballot can be a tough and expensive proposition akin to a presidential election.
“It’s so political, and obviously not in the true political sense, but Hollywood politics are very intricate,” ComScore Senior Media Analyst Paul Dergarabedian told Straight Arrow News.
Every year, seemingly obscure movies and actors are nominated for awards like the Golden Globes and Oscars. Movie studios spend big money on marketing campaigns starting around November to get their films recognized.
“Sometimes the way you do that is with a ‘for your consideration’ ad, and that can be in the trade papers,” Dergarabedian said. “If you look through Variety, The Hollywood Reporter, or even online with The Wrap or Deadline, any of the big trades for Hollywood, it’s really like speaking to that in-house crowd.”
“It’s so political… Hollywood politics are very intricate.”
Paul Dergarabedian
Unlike politics, there isn’t a federal regulator keeping an eye on campaign spending, so studios don’t have to disclose exact amount they spend. However, a Variety report on the 2015 Oscars race for Best Picture estimated small studios spent up to $3 million per film, while larger studios could pay as much as $10 million per movie to lobby for the honor of being nominated. At the time, getting watermarked screeners to prospective voters could also run as much as $300,000. It’s nowhere near the $14 billion spent in the 2020 presidential election, but still a significant investment.
Academy Award winner and actress Susan Sarandon took issue with the process in 2016, saying Hollywood needs “campaign finance reform.”
“You have to start on the road, it’s as long as a presidential campaign,” Sarandon told Variety. “You have to have money to go to festivals, you know, Palm Springs, where all the older Academy voters are. People have to be available for months. And someone has to pay for that.”
Crafting the award-worthy story
Hollywood is about storytelling and that’s exactly what studios do for candidates for individual awards. Dergarabedian says crafting a narrative around a star can be very beneficial.
“Paul Giamatti has been really everywhere, big screen and small screen, promoting ‘The Holdovers,'” Dergarabedian said. “There was a picture of him after the Golden Globes going to In-N-Out Burger, an institution in Southern California. And I don’t think that was any mistake. I think that was just a way to get him out there that went viral.”
The Academy has rules on how a studio can market its film, cast and crew for award consideration. But social media has muddied the waters in recent years.
In 2023, Andrea Riseborough received a Best Actress nomination for her role in “To Leslie.” Her manager, along with the wife of director Michael Morris, tapped their famous-friends network to get the word out about the film and Riseborough’s performance, even hosting an intimate reception at the director’s home. After the ask, Edward Norton and Academy Award winner Gwyneth Paltrow were among those who took to social media to applaud the performance.
After hearing about the circumstances, the Academy investigated the grassroots campaign. The Academy allowed Riseborough to keep her nomination but maintained the campaign tactics “caused concern.”
Beyond the prestige of taking home statuettes, a substantial Oscar campaign can show actors what a studio is willing to do for them.
“It’s sort of a dog and pony show for everybody else in the industry,” Dergarabedian said. “And if you’re a studio, and you’re really putting yourself out there, spending a lot of money on ads, getting out screeners and other promotions, then talent will look to that studio and say, ‘They do a really good job of getting my movie out there.'”
The Academy expanded the Best Picture category in recent years to 10 films, which has broadened the category to include big-budget blockbusters along with the independent dramas that have dominated awards for decades.
“Everyone’s expecting ‘Barbie’ and ‘Oppenheimer, Barbenheimer, to both be nominated for Best Picture,” Dergarabedian said. “So there you’ve got, in just domestic box office, close to a billion dollars. That’s a lot of people who saw both of those movies [and] have a vested interest in watching an awards show that has both of them in contention.”
Tags: Barbenheimer, Barbie, Golden Globes, Hollywood, Hollywood awards, Hollywood Foreign Press Association, movies, Oppenheimer, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences
[SIMONE DEL ROSARIO]
It’s Oscars season, and that means controversy
[PRESENTER]
“Guys, guys, guys, I’m sorry, There’s a mistake. Moonlight, you guys won best picture.”
[SIMONE DEL ROSARIO]
That’s not quite what I meant.
[CHRIS ROCK]
“Wow… Will Smith just smacked the sh*t out of me.”
[SEMIOFFICIALKATI]
“I’m reading the nomination list. I’ve not even heard of half of these movies.”
[SIMONE DEL ROSARIO]
Ah, there we go!
[LEBATARTSHOW]
“Oh, you gotta watch Banshees of Inisherin. So, I’m like, alright.”
“It’s absolutely a horrible movie. And it’s nominated for all these awards.”
[SNOWBABYFRESH]
“This is where I want to lose my fucking marbles. Ana de Armas, I love you. But Blonde was one of the worst movies I’ve seen in my entire life.”
[KI.THOMAS]
“Why in the world was this movie nominated for an Oscar? And before you try and guess, I’m going to stop you right there. We all know it’s Licorice Pizza.”
[SIMONE DEL ROSARIO]
But seriously, why does this seem to happen every single year? Aside from the fact that people have different tastes.
[TROPIC THUNDER CLIP]
“You should have got an oscar.”
“Well, you know, just to be nominated.”
“You were nominated?”
“No no no, I wasn’t nominated. I’m just saying to have been nominated would have been nice. It’s just very political. You have to take out ads.”
[PAUL DERGARABEDIAN]
“It’s so political, and obviously not in the true political sense, but Hollywood politics are very intricate.”
[SIMONE DEL ROSARIO]
Every industry has its own politics, but Hollywood’s awards season is more like the road to the White House than lobbying for the best parking spot at the office.
Here’s how movies you’ve never heard about get nominated for top awards.
[PLANES, TRAINS AND AUTOMOBILES CLIP]
“Marketing. Marketing? Super, super.”
[SIMONE DEL ROSARIO]
Starting in November, studios go on spending sprees to score nominations.
[PAUL DERGARABEDIAN]
“Sometimes the way you do that is with a for your consideration ad, and that can be in the trade papers. That’s a big one. Because if you look through Variety, The Hollywood Reporter, or even online, with The Wrap or Deadline, any of the big trades for Hollywood, it’s really like speaking to that in-house crowd.”
And it’s a big business.
[SUSAN SARANDON]
“You have to start on the road, it’s as long as a presidential campaign. You have to have money to go to festivals, you know palm springs where all the older academy voters are, the lunches. People have to be available for months. And someone has to pay for that. You have to have a Harvey Weinstein or somebody behind you.”
[SIMONE DEL ROSARIO]
Whoa… that last reference didn’t age well…
[FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION CLIP]
“I didn’t get nominated. I didn’t get nominated.”
“What was that?!?!”
[SIMONE DEL ROSARIO]
Anyway, it’s a lot of money… Not presidential election levels of money that hit more than $14 billion in 2020, but a lot of money.
There’s no Federal Election Commission or campaign spending laws, so studios don’t have to report exactly what they spent. But according to Variety, for the 2015 Oscars race for Best Picture, small studios shelled out as much as $3 million per flick while larger studios could spend as much as $10 million to lobby for the honor of being nominated.
Heck, even sending out watermarked screeners to voters could run up $300,000.
Sticking with our election analogy, if the Academy Awards are the general election, the Golden Globes, Guild Awards and even People’s Choice can be seen as somewhat of a primary.
[REAGANS_RATINGS]
“So if you have a category where someone has missed like Charles Melton earlier for the SAG awards. That’s a really bad sign.”
“It indicates to people that he’s not really a popular choice. So, people don’t like to vote for something where they feel their vote would be wasted.”
[SIMONE DEL ROSARIO]
Of course, it’s not always about the film as a whole. When it comes to individual awards like Best Actor, studios craft a whole story around that.
[PAUL DERGARABEDIAN]
“So creating a narrative for an act around an actor, while they’re in contention or for consideration. That’s very interesting.”
“I mean, Paul Giamatti has been really everywhere, big screen and small screen promoting the holdovers, there was a picture of him after the Golden Globes going In-N-Out.”
“And I don’t think that was any mistake, I think that was just a way to get him out there that went viral.”
[SIMONE DEL ROSARIO]
The Academy does have some specific rules about how to lobby your film. But the social media age has muddied the waters a bit.
Last year Andrea Riseborough got a long-shot Oscar nod for Best Actress. Her manager and the director’s wife enlisted their famous friends to get the word out on “To Leslie.” That included an intimate reception at the director’s home. After the ask, Edward Norton and Gwyneth Paltrow were among those who took to social media to applaud Riseborough’s performance.
After hearing about the fishiness, the Academy launched an investigation into the grassroots campaign. Ultimately, they let Riseborough keep her nomination but said the campaign tactics “caused concern.”
Awards shows have often been characterized as people in the entertainment industry patting themselves on the back. And to a certain extent that’s by design.
[PAUL DERGARABEDIAN]
“It’s sort of a dog and pony show for everybody else in the industry. And if you’re a studio, and you’re really putting yourself out there, spending a lot of money on ads, getting out screeners and other promotions then talent will look to that studio and say they do a really good job of getting my movie out there.”
After years of criticism about Best Picture nominees being indie dramas that no one ever sees, the Academy expanded the category to 10 nominees and has been throwing some big budget blockbusters in the mix.
Of course this year, everyone’s expecting Barbie and Oppenheimer. BarbenHeimer, to both be nominated for Best Picture. So there you’ve got, in just domestic box office, close to a billion dollars. That’s a lot of people who saw both of those movies have a vested interest in watching an awards show that has both of them in contention.
[FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION CLIP]
“And congratulations on almost being nominated. That’s exciting”
“Yes it is. Thank you very much. It was an honor just to be almost nominated.”
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