The academy’s new class and the L.A. Times’ Diverse 100: So, how did we do?
After months of intense scrutiny prompted by a second year of #OscarsSoWhite, on Wednesday, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced its new class of invitees for membership, its largest and most diverse ever.
“We’re proud to welcome these new members to the academy, and know they view this as an opportunity and not just an invitation, a mission and not just a membership,” said Cheryl Boone Isaacs, the organization’s president. “This class continues our long-term commitment to welcoming extraordinary talent reflective of those working in film today. We encourage the larger creative community to open its doors wider, and create opportunities for anyone interested in working in this incredible and storied industry.”
The list contains a total of 683 invitees from 59 countries, including the United States, people who the academy believe will, eventually, upend its overwhelmingly white male body. In a landmark 2012 study, the Los Angeles Times reported that voting members were 94% white and 77% male. When updated in February of this year, little progress had been made: Oscar voters were 91% white and 76% male. After the latest addition of invitees, if they all accept, the academy will be 89% white and 73% male.
Earlier this month, in an effort to assist the academy in accomplishing its daunting goal, The Times released its own list, Our Diverse 100, of women, people of color and members of the LGBT community who we felt could help solve the academy’s, and broader Hollywood’s, diversity problem. Readers also offered up their suggestions, and the disability community staked its space in the conversation as well.
So, how did we do? Of our 100 suggestions, the following 36 were invited to be members. If we were in the Major Leagues, we’d be batting .360 — which isn’t too bad at all.
Actors
Chadwick Boseman: “Captain America: Civil War,” “Get On Up”
John Boyega: “Star Wars: The Force Awakens,” “Attack the Block”
Idris Elba: “Beasts of No Nation,” “Pacific Rim”
America Ferrera: “Cesar Chavez,” End of Watch”
Oscar Isaac: “Ex Machina,” “A Most Violent Year”
Michael B. Jordan: “Creed,” “Fruitvale Station”
Regina King: “Ray,” “Jerry Maguire”
Adepero Oduye: “The Big Short,” “12 Years A Slave”
Nate Parker: “Beyond the Lights,” “Red Tails”
Tessa Thompson: “Creed,” “Dear White People”
Gabrielle Union: “Top Five,” “Bad Boys II”
Designers
Celia Bobak: “The Martian,” “Shanghai”
Directors
Ramin Bahrani: “99 Homes,” “At Any Price”
Ryan Coogler*: “Creed,” “Fruitvale Station”
Anne Fletcher: “The Proposal,” “Step Up”
Cary Fukunaga: “Beasts of No Nation,” “Jane Eyre”
So Yong Kim: “For Ellen,” “In Between Days”
Karyn Kusama: “Jennifer’s Body,” “Girlfight”
Dee Rees: “Pariah,” “Bessie”
Patricia Riggen: “The 33,” “Girl in Progress”
Yohei Taneda: “The Hateful Eight,” “Monster Hunt”
Sam Taylor-Johnson: “Fifty Shades of Gray,” “Nowhere Boy”
Lana Wachowski: “Cloud Atlas,” “The Matrix” franchise
Lily Wachowski: “Cloud Atlas,” “The Matrix” franchise
James Wan: “The Conjuring,” “Saw”
Documentary
Dawn Porter: “Trapped,” “Gideon’s Army”
Music
Robert “RZA” Diggs: “Django Unchained,” “The Man With the Iron Fists”
Producers
Anne Carey: “Mr. Holmes,” “The Savages”
Debra Martin Chase: “Sparkle,” “The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants”
Short films and feature animation
Jorge Gutierrez: “The Book of Life,” “Carmelo”
Sanjay Patel: “Sanjay’s Super Team,” “Tokyo Mater”
Writers
Tina Fey: “Mean Girls”
O’Shea “Ice Cube” Jackson Sr.*: “Friday,” “Ride Along”
Takeshi Kitano: “Outrage,” “Kikujiro”
Abi Morgan: “Suffragette,” “The Iron Lady”
Phyllis Nagy: “Carol”
*Invited to membership in two branches
Twitter: @TrevellAnderson
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