The OSCARS. It's not all black & white.

Into the lions den once again…

Much is being made of this years OSCARS. Once again, the diversity issue is being raised and accusations of racism against the Academy have been levied. A few high profile actors have even stated their intentions of boycotting the event.

First off, do I believe their is less opportunity in the business for African American talent? Yes! I also believe there is less opportunity in the business for Asian, Hispanic, older women, handicapped individuals, gay, transgender, female directors/writers/producers, Native Americans and pretty much anyone else on the planet who is not white, attractive and young!

Does this make the Academy and Hollywood racist? No!

Hollywood sees one and only one color. Green. They care very little about anything else. Do they care about artistic and quality scripts? Do they produce films that our senior citizens would enjoy? Do they supply diverse and interesting stories for their diverse audiences? Do they supply children with quality and life learning stories? The answer to all the above is a resounding no. Is that because Hollywood is racist, sexist or bigoted? No. It’s because those films do not make the hundreds of millions of dollars that Hollywood wants. Super hero, special effect laden, flights of fantasy, science fiction films with more explosions than exposition and damn the story or characters is what tops the box office. It is the business of the show. Does everyone want to see Fast & Furious 7, Iron Man 4, Avatar 2 or yet another Rocky? No…but millions upon millions of film goers do and as long as theses films make billions Hollywood will produce them.

Yes, the Academy takes itself very seriously and they pick through the box office giants and grab up the handful of smaller, independent style films that at least attempt for some artistic integrity. The stories do show some diversity…this year happens to be big on transgender, gay and bears! Not so big on race, creed or minorities. Where there snubs? YES! There always is. Where the snubs directed at any particular group of people? NO!

Minorities…all minorities make up a very small percentage of SAG, WGA, DGA, PGA and the other film making unions. Under 10%…in some cases under 1%. These are the people that make movies. Moreover, these are the people that make Academy Award Winning films! It is very tough, see all but impossible, to get into these unions. Are minorities under represented within these unions? Probably. But minorities have gotten in! Talent wins out here. Yes, if you are a black filmmaker trying to push through your epic about the African American experience within inner cities, are you are fighting an uphill battle? HUGE! Not because you are a minority, its because that style of film shows limited box office. Have those films been made? Yes. Have they been successful? Yes. Did they have something to say? Most defiantly. BUT, for the most part they did limited business. Hollywood wants blockbusters!

Now, should the Academy be above making decisions strictly based on the bottomline? THEY ARE! Star Wars is up for a handful of technical awards and, historically, very few Oscar winners are box office giants. They go for the artistry, always have. Have the Academy gotten it wrong? More than a few times over the years…at times they got it WAY WRONG! Have they snubbed better films, directors, stars? Martin Scorsese has only won 1 Oscar…Spielberg has only won 2! Does that mean the Academy has a thing against Italians and Jews? NO!

As a writer, if I am supplying a script to a studio, production company or a director, I do not cast the film. Unless my script demands a minority to play a certain character I do not write a BLACK MAN enters the room. I do not write an ASIAN picks up the gun. I write in general terms…MAN, WOMAN, CHARACTER NAME. Yes, I will give him/her certain attributes, characteristics, minor description but it is not my job to cast the film unless I am directing it. Does Hollywood and Directors default to “white” every time they read a script? No, not if the director has any artistic integrity at all! He/she wants the best possible talent in front and behind that camera! A strong and diverse cast and feel will always be first choice…it gives the film the best chance to succeed. Again, are minorities under represented within the unions and guilds? Probably, but it is correcting itself as more and more minorities pour into the industry. Its not there yet, but it is getting better.

Does anyone: actor, director or writer ever want to think they got an Oscar just because of the color of their skin, their sexual orientation, their sex or their nationality? I don’t think so. It’s a tough as nails industry and yes, for some, it is even tougher. Can we make it easier? On blacks? Hispanics? Asians? Gays? Women? Where do you plan on drawing the line. Do you make it easier for some to get into the unions? Get their films made? Do you demand that a certain percentage be nominated every year?

In the 60 years the National Basketball Association has been giving away MVP of the league, white basketball players have won 11. Larry Bird accounted for 3 of them. Is the NBA racist? No! Am I saying white actors, directors and writers are simply better than African Americans or any other minority at filmmaking? Of course not!! Is the NBA saying blacks are just superior than whites? No.

Talent wins!