The lull between the Academy Awards nominations and the actual ceremony is about six weeks long, which allows for plenty of spilling of the proverbial (now “digital”) ink regarding the nominees, including opining on how 2016’s list of acting contenders could be as blindingly white as the previous year’s. Spike Lee has recently had his say which, along with Jada Pinkett-Smith’s, is a call to boycott the Oscars in protest of the lack of minority representation. But rather than focus solely on who is (and isn’t) recognized for their contributions to film in a given year, Lee would have us all scrutinize the film industry itself, which can limit opportunities for filmmakers and actors of color, which in turn results in fewer options from which the Academy Of Motion Picture Arts And Sciences can choose to nominate (funny how that works).
Lee expressed his frustration at being one of the media’s most constant sources for an opinion on the underrepresentation of people of color in film, but at least some of that burden is shared by John Singleton. And the Boyz N The Hood director, who was the first black person nominated for the Best Director Oscar, is far more…charitable in his assessment of the nominees of the last two years. Talking to Variety, Singleton described a kind of embarrassment of cinematic riches, as recognition-worthy films will always outnumber the pertinent slots and categories that comprise the awards show. Although he noted that there are undoubtedly black actors, directors, and/or productions that might have “warranted” acknowledgement, Singleton said that the Academy’s voting has always been “subjective,” and that the proceedings are essentially a “lottery.”