Netflix Makes Statement In Wake Of Steven Spielberg's Attempt To Block Streaming Giant From Oscars (deadline.com)

Netflix has addressed Steven Spielberg's concerns, after the legendary director indicated he'd throw his weight behind making Oscars harder to reach for Netflix films like "Roma". From a report: The streaming giant didn't name Spielberg directly in its tweet, but considering his views on Netflix films and the Academy Awards, it seems like the statement is associated with the director's thoughts about their participation as contenders in award season. "We love cinema," the official Netflix Twitter account wrote. They continue with a list of things they loved including: Access for people who can't always afford, or live in towns without, theaters; letting everyone, everywhere enjoy releases at the same time; and giving filmmakers more ways to share art. "These things are not mutually exclusive," they concluded in a tweet that could be considered a clap back at the filmmaker. IndieWire reported last week that Spielberg, who serves as the current governor of the Academy's directors branch, intends to argue in favor of changing the Oscars' rules to prevent streaming services from entering the campaign field at the Academy Board of Governors' next meeting. Because Netflix is a home-viewing platform, critics like Spielberg say that it's better-suited for the Emmys, which celebrate TV, a medium inherent to home-viewing.

Comments

Gen X vs Millennials again

[DarkRookie2]

Old man yells at cloud.

Re:Gen X vs Millennials again

[Anonymous Coward]

More like, "Old man succeeds and becomes wealthy, pulls ladder up behind him so nobody else can follow."

Fuck Spielberg. Lead, follow, or get out of the way.

Re:Gen X vs Millennials again

[Darinbob]

It is unfair though that the same movie can be up for an Oscar and an Emmy. If Netflix wants an Oscar then they need to show the film in a cinema.

Re:Gen X vs Millennials again

[msauve]

"If Netflix wants an Oscar then they need to show the film in a cinema."

You're obviously not aware that Roma (and others) had a theatrical release before they started streaming it. So, Spielberg's sour grapes amounts to, uh, sour grapes.

Re:Gen X vs Millennials again

[hispeedzintarwebz]

Why is it not as simple as feature length films being eligible for Oscars and serialized, 30-90 minute multiple-episode series being eligible for Emmys? Seems the differentiation should be focused on content type rather than method of delivery.

Re:Gen X vs Millennials again

[The Grim Reefer]

we consume 100% at home or friends.

Don't your unconsumed friends ever get suspicious?

Re:Gen X vs Millennials again

[Darinbob]

But why the "Oscars"? We already have the Emmy awards for television. If people stop going to the cinema then the Oscars should just decline in interest rather than trying to morph into something else. Or maybe the Golden Globes gets more status over time than the Oscars. But just because home television is popular is not a reason by itself that home television movies should be considered for a cinematic award, a better reason is needed than popularity.

The dividing line between television and cinema is pretty easy to see, and so the divide between Emmys and Oscars should be too. The problem only comes with an existing grey area: the movie is shown in a cinema but can also show up television (later on video as with many indie films, or concurrently in the case of streaming). Roma was only up for consideration because it was indeed shown exclusively in the theaters (for three weeks). Where this is annoying Spielberg and maybe others, is that this was primarily a streaming movie and the cinema portion was just a tiny blip done as a technicality to get an Oscar consideration.

Spielberg just gave his opinion, others in the academy will disagree. But the rules belong to the academy and it's up to them. But Netflix did seem to be playing very close to the edge of the rules here.

Re:Gen X vs Millennials again

[Kiwikwi]

Roma (and the others) had an artificially limited theatrical release in order to make it eligible for the Oscars, to generate interesting on the festival circuit, and to satisfy the desires of the director for a "real" screening.

Here in Denmark, Roma could easily have carried a multi-theatre multi-week theatrical release... instead it was screened exactly once for a festival spot (a screening which sold out a month in advance). What's keeping these movies out of theaters is not a lack of interest among theatergoers, but a decision by Netflix to shore up their content monopoly.

Re:Gen X vs Millennials again

[mattyj]

Spielberg gave his opinion, _as the guy that heads the governing board that decides such things._

I'd like to know his opinion on shorts, which show in a few theaters in LA and NY environs two weeks before the awards.

The Academy Awards predate television and were a place for both long-form and short-form media long before the Emmys were around.

I'm not sure what the solution is, but most films/movies are made through the studio system, large or independent, then find distribution on TV or in theaters later.

The problem is that movie theaters are a racket that are in cahoots with big studios to keep non-traditional studio fare out of the theaters in the first place, which is why Netflix had to directly rent auditoriums to be Oscar eligible. They were not skirting the rules, they were busting up a monopoly. And I welcome the practice.

Maybe I'm dumb and don't have a memory, but I don't recall Roma being up for any Emmys. I don't recall any movie being up for both an Emmy and an Oscar. I don't know if it's an unwritten rule, but if it is I think a nice compromise would be for both governing bodies to allow a film to be up for one or the other, not both.

Spielberg is and always has been the mouthpiece for the big studios, and he's just the figurehead the studios are putting forth to protect themselves from more nimble 'rogue' studios like Netflix from eating their lunch.

Re:Gen X vs Millennials again

[msauve]

Ah, you you and Spielberg agree - the Oscars have nothing to do with honoring art, it's just about marketing and sales.

Re:Gen X vs Millennials again

[sexconker]

I'm not sure what the solution is

The solution is simple. Stop watching shitty awards shows. Thankfully, the masses are starting to take my advice.

TV & Cinema Distinction Becoming Irrelevant

[divide overflow]

Given the convergence of video and film production and the ubiquity of digital distribution the distinction between "Television" and "Cinema" is becoming harder to define. This inevitably leads to arguments over the boundaries between the two and turf wars between those with a stake in one camp versus the other. They will battle it out to protect their "hereditary fiefdoms," even as their defining characteristics merge and the distinctions become ever more intangible.

The plebeians won't care, having little investment in the outcome as their hardware capabilities provide them more and better options for data consumption and the media giants become more brazen in their attempts to capture consumers and lock out competition.

No films qualify for the Oscars then

[Solandri]

Because Netflix is a home-viewing platform, critics like Spielberg say that it's better-suited for the Emmys, which celebrate TV, a medium inherent to home-viewing.

Theater ticket sales in 2017 were $11.1 billion for the U.S. + Canada, $40.6 billion worldwide.

2017 sales of the same movies on disc and digital format were $20.5 billion for the U.S., $47.8 billion worldwide. Compounding this is the fact that disc and digital movies are cheaper per viewer. So each dollar spent on disc and digital formats represents more viewers than a dollar spent at the theater.

People view theatrical release movies predominantly in the home, not in theaters. It's been this way since the 1980s when movie rentals on videotape became a thing. If you honestly make "viewed in theaters" vs "viewed at home" the distinguishing factor, then no film (except those intentionally withheld from disc and digital distribution) qualifies for the Oscars.