A 1943 Academy Award presented to W. Howard Greene for his work in colour cinematography for the 1943 film 'Phantom Of The Opera' is displayed at Julien's Auctions in Beverly Hills, California, on December 12, 2022, ahead of the 'Julien's Auctions and TCM Present: Icons & Idols: Hollywood.' - The auction will take place in-person and online on December 17 and 18. (Photo by Frederic J. BROWN / AFP) (Photo by FREDERIC J. BROWN/AFP via Getty Images)
Movies - TV
This Is What Happens When An Oscar Nomination Gets Vetoed
By WILLIAM BIBBIANI
The Academy Awards have become a celebration of peers in the film industry and a way to honor one another for outstanding achievements. Although rare, these prestigious nominations have been stripped from their candidates in situations that stirred up controversy or, in the case of technical and niche categories, went largely unobserved.
The Academy Awards follow many strict rules, which could see a film or person lose their nomination. For instance, former governor and at the time committee member in the Music Branch, Bruce Broughton violated campaign rules by directly contacting Academy voters to raise awareness for “Alone Yet Not Alone,” an unknown film he worked on as a songwriter.
Not all violations are about lobbying, however, as there are many other ways to break the rules. Some of the nominations vetoed were due to violating the Academy’s rules of eligibility, such as the film “Tuba Atlantic” appearing on TV before it screened in theaters or “The Godfather” composer Nino Rota reusing elements from another one of his scores.
Nominee violations aside, the Academy Awards has deeper problems of representation from lesser-known movies and studios that may not be able to promote their work. As Christina Ricci questioned, “So it’s only the films and actors that can afford the campaigns that deserve recognition? Feels elitist and exclusive and frankly very backward to me.”