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Q: Why does the Oscar recognize producers when a movie wins Best Picture? What exactly did they do?
There's a good reason you're confused. Because it is difficult for the producers themselves to explain their work.
“I would do the impossible for an ungrateful person,” one cracked when I asked. “You can learn it, but you can’t teach it,” another person told me, quoting professional wrestler Maurice “Mad Dog” Vachon, who often said about his profession. Said. One of my long-time producers advised me to abandon this job completely. “Forget it, Jake, this is Chinatown,” he says, using a classic movie line to describe how difficult it is to unravel the mysteries of the piece.
She is truly a drama queen! Okay, I'll admit it: Producing is a complex and underrated job. But there teeth Some ways to think about gigs help explain why producers, not directors, win Oscars.
What is a producer and what is not?
For the purposes of this discussion, I'm going to throw out anyone who is credited as an “executive producer” on a film (someone who usually plays a big role early on by securing funding or important rights). Only those credited as “producers” have a chance of winning a small gold statuette at the end.
Producers oversee the entire process from planning to screening of a film. They identify movie ideas, sometimes by reading books or news articles, and work with screenwriters to develop the script. They convince the director. Some help secure funding and find the right leaders for various departments, such as casting, production design, and wardrobe. The producer also manages the budget, location scouting, and schedule. Once the film is complete, we will discuss the marketing campaign.
“Everyone has their own way of working,'' says the filmmaker, who was nominated for Best Picture last year for “Past Lives,'' and whose recent works include the erotic thriller “Baby Girl'' and the epic immigrant drama “The Brutalist.'' said producer David Hinojosa.
“However, the work is basically the same,” Hinojosa continued. “You're downloading every aspect of the project into your DNA: financially, logistically, emotionally.”
Many (though not all) producers spend a lot of time on set.
“I show up on the scene with hoses and oxygen and an ax and I'm ready to fight any fire. I'm going to do whatever I have to do to protect the project,” said Veritas Entertainment, one of the production companies. said founder Peter Jasen. “A Complete Unknown” depicts the rise of Bob Dylan.
It may be a long distance. Jasen said Veritas began work on “A Complete Unknown” in 2018, after HBO decided not to move forward with another version of Dylan's origin story.
How many producers do we need…
Independent producers don't always win Best Picture. In the early decades of the Academy Awards, that honor (then called Outstanding Picture) went to corporations. Studio bosses such as Louis B. Mayer and Jack Warner usually agreed to give speeches.
The first time an independent producer was nominated for an Oscar was in 1951. Records in the Academy's Margaret Herrick Library show there were “long discussions” among Oscar organizers about the adjustment, but do not give the exact reason for the change. It probably had something to do with the collapse of the post-war studio system. Three of the previous four Best Picture winners have been independent production companies or foreign filmmakers.
More rule changes — how many Harvey Weinstein's brainchild now allows producers to win top Oscars. In 1999, a record five producers ran on stage to collect the Best Picture trophy for “Shakespeare in Love.” Among them was the jailed Miramax co-founder Weinstein, who elbowed a colleague in the way during a fight over a microphone. An embarrassed Academy then limited the number of producer nominees to three.
To narrow it down, the Academy first turns to the Producers Guild of America. largely Were you involved? The Guild has a thorough vetting system that includes an appeals process. You can tell which producer was chosen by looking at the on-screen credits. There will be a “producer's mark” next to your name, consisting of a lowercase pga.
The Academy's producer department will then make a final decision, including changes to the three-candidate rule. Five producers were allowed to provide hardware for “Maestro,” one of the 2024 Best Picture nominees. (I lost to “Oppenheimer”.)
And Oscar…
The job of producer has a bad reputation because the job definition is vague and many people on the periphery of the film industry call themselves producers when in reality they are just charlatans.
However, since the producer genuine Producers have overarching responsibility for their films, stick to their guns even as doors slam shut (and work without much compensation until relatively late in the process), and their commitment to the Best Picture Oscar. 's argument is strong.
“Producers are filmmakers,” producer Minette Louis (“Land Ho!”) wrote to Bluesky in November. “We're not investors, managers, executives, agents, etc. We're creative and we also happen to be good at leadership, organization, logistics, business, and math.”
“Speak up,” she concluded. “We've been doing this for over 100 years.”
