Do Big Industry Award Shows Still Really Matter?
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It’s award show season in Hollywood, but are industry award shows even relevant anymore in the middle of a pandemic? This time last year, people were talking about Oscar parties and picking their favorite films. This year everyone seems less interested. Many films never even had theatrical releases, as movie theaters were closed for months. Film release dates have been pushed again and again. Award show ceremonies have also pushed their dates forward, and it’s still undecided whether formats for some shows will be live, virtual, or a combination of both. Television ratings for award shows have been declining for years. Will the pandemic end the tradition of televising the shows for good? Or perhaps we’re all longing more than ever for the escapism the shows provide.
I, for one, think there’s still a place for the industry award shows, provided they evolve to fit the difficult times in which we’re living. The shows need to incorporate a sense of empathy and compassion for the 400,000 plus people lost to COVID-19. They can’t just be a celebration of the privileged, without acknowledging the unprecedented times in which we find ourselves and the losses we’ve suffered.
The Benefits of Award Shows
Industry award shows provide hundreds of jobs for the crews who work on them. Caterers, hotels, and numerous other vendors benefit from supplying all the parties and events surrounding the shows. At a time when live event workers have seen their careers grind to a halt, the award shows are one bright spot. Even if the events end up being virtual, many technicians will still get work in an otherwise lifeless part of the industry.
The red carpet events preceding all the award shows are a huge publicity machine for brands as well as actors. Designers and stylists build their careers from the red carpet events. It’s unclear if there will be more socially distanced versions of the red carpet at the shows this year and what other changes will take place.
Award Show Formats in Flux
As for the awards shows themselves, dates have been changed and formats are, in many cases, still being determined. Unfortunately, the Tony Awards ceremony has been postponed indefinitely, as Broadway has been shut down since March with no set reopening date. The Golden Globes will be held a month from now, at the end of February. It’s been announced as a live event, but it’s hard to imagine how that will play out, given the past format of the show. I doubt attendees, many of whom are over age 60, will sit clustered and mask-less around tables, as is the usual custom.
The Academy Awards have announced a live event in April at the Dolby Theater. The Theater holds 3,400 people. Safety protocols haven’t yet been announced, but it seems unlikely that the theater will be at full seating capacity for the Oscars. Will everyone be tested first or wear masks if they’re not on stage? The logistics of making a live show like this happen during a pandemic is mind-boggling.
Conclusion
I believe the awards shows are here to stay, and I think that’s a good thing. The jobs they provide are much needed and the celebration of achievement in a field known as much for crushing career dreams as fulfilling them is fun to watch. If this year’s shows manage to find the right balance between celebration, compassion and entertainment, they will have accomplished a great deal. The industry will have shown that in their own unique way, awards shows do still really matter.
Show Schedule
Here’s the most recent schedule for the ceremonies of some of the more high-profile awards shows:
Golden Globes – February 28th (nominations announced February 3rd)
Critics Choice Awards – March 7th
Grammys – March 14th
SAG Awards – April 4th
DGA Awards – April 10th
BAFTA – April 11th
Academy Awards – April 25th (nominations announced March 15th)
Books
Brush up on a bit of award show reading with the following books:
(Note: I have an affiliate relationship with the seller of these books. That means I make a small amount of money from any sales. It helps cover the expenses of running this blog.)
Academy Awards: The Complete Unofficial History, by Gail Kinn and Jim Piazza
Black Oscars: From Mammy to Minnie, What the Academy Awards Tell Us About African Americans, by Frederick Gooding Jr.
Naked Screenwriting: Twenty-two Oscar-Winning Screenwriters Bare Their Secrets to Writing, by Lew Hunter and Meg Gifford
