OSCAR expands to 10 noms

Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences president Sid Ganis at a press conference Wednesday morning, announced the decision to broaden the Best Picture Oscar race to 10 films. Yes you read that right. It seems this re-assessment comes after this year's ceremony which witnessed many changes in the show's format and production. Thanks to the much needed injection of 'new' blood of producers Bill Condon (Chicago, Dreamgirls) and Laurence Mark (Dreamgirls, Julie & Julia), the Oscarcast 'resulted in a positive reaction and improved ratings'. Apparently, this comes in the wake of popular films Dark Knight and Wall-E not making the final cut this year, after 'many media pundits, industry workers and film fans bemoaned the omissions', according to Variety.

Here are some more answers to questions raised because of this decision:

• The foreign-language, feature documentary and animated film races will not be affected.
• The nomination ballot will have space for 10 entries instead of five. That's the only change, and the awards schedule will remain the same, since PricewaterhouseCoopers won't need more time to count ballots.
• Academy execs said they don't feel the move will add significantly to the running time of the show. (We'll see when they decide to showcase all 10 of the best picture noms)
• Best director category and everything else still get 5 nomination slots only. (Now there will be 5 more 'director-less' best pic nominations)

Here's more info on this decision by the Academy (click below):



























Opinion: I don't know if this move is going to add any value to an already long Oscarcast, let alone its credibility. Still, I look forward to the witty and humorous banter of Bruce Villanch plus the dazzling production of Bill Condon and crew, next year.