Oscars will have new inclusion standards for Best Picture eligibility beginning in 2024

The Oscars are raising inclusion standards for Best Picture nominees beginning in 2024.

On Tuesday, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced that beginning in 2024 with the 96th Oscars, films hoping to qualify for the best picture category must meet inclusion standards for race/ethnicity, sexual identity and other criteria, both on camera and behind the scenes, The New York Times reported.

Before then, an Academy Inclusion Standards form will be required for a film to be considered for the 94th Oscars, which are films released after Feb. 28, 2021, and the 95th Oscars the following year, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

“The aperture must widen to reflect our diverse global population in both the creation of motion pictures and in the audiences who connect with them,” the academy’s president, David Rubin, and CEO, Dawn Hudson, said in a statement. “The Academy is committed to playing a vital role in helping make this a reality. We believe these inclusion standards will be a catalyst for long-lasting, essential change in our industry.”

Beginning in 2024, a film must meet two of four standards to be considered for an Academy Award for Best Picture, the Times reported.

Standard A

A film must either have at least one lead character or significant supporting character from an underrepresented racial or ethnic group. Those groups include Asian, Hispanic/Latinx, Black/African American, Indigenous/Native American/Alaskan Native, Middle Eastern/North African, Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander, or other underrepresented race or ethnicity.

At least 30% of a film’s secondary roles must be from two underrepresented groups, including women, a racial or ethnic group, LGBTQ, or people with cognitive or physical disabilities, or who are deaf or hard of hearing. That standard will also apply to the main storyline or theme of the film.

Standard B

To pass Standard B, one of the following benchmarks must be met:

At least two of the following creative leadership positions and department heads -- casting director, cinematographer, composer, costume designer, director, editor, hairstylist, makeup artist, producer, production designer, set decorator, sound, VFX supervisor or writer -- must be from the following groups: Women, racial or ethnic groups, LGBTQ+ or people with cognitive or physical disabilities, or who are deaf or hard of hearing.

At least one of those positions must be filled by an Asian, Hispanic/Latinx, Black/African American, Indigenous/Native American/Alaskan Native, Middle Eastern/North African, Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander, or another underrepresented race or ethnicity.

At least six other crew/team and technical positions, other than production assistants, must come from an underrepresented racial or ethnic group.

At least 30% of the film’s crew must be women, from a racial or ethnic group, LGBTQ+ or people with cognitive or physical disabilities, or who are deaf or hard of hearing.

Standard C

To meet this benchmark, the film must meet both criteria:

The film’s distribution or financing company has paid apprenticeships or internships from the following underrepresented groups: Women, racial or ethnic groups, LGBTQ+ or people with cognitive or physical disabilities, or who are deaf or hard of hearing.

The film’s production, distribution and/or financing company offers training and/or work opportunities for below-the-line skill development to people from the following underrepresented groups: Women, racial or ethnic groups, LGBTQ+ or people with cognitive or physical disabilities, or who are deaf or hard of hearing.

Standard D

This following criterion must be met to achieve this standard:

The studio and/or film company has multiple in-house senior executives from among the following underrepresented groups on marketing, publicity, and/or distribution teams: Women, Asians, Hispanic/Latinx, Black/African American, Indigenous/Native American/Alaskan native, Middle Eastern/North African, native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander, other underrepresented races or ethnicities, and people with cognitive or physical disabilities, or who are deaf or hard of hearing.

Two of the academy’s governors, producer DeVon Franklin and Paramount Pictures' Chairman Jim Gianopulos, led the task force, the Times reported.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the 93rd Academy Awards ceremony is scheduled for April 25, 2021, Variety reported.

Cox Media Group