Hollywood ‘disproportionately’ white
Not only are “Oscars so white”, but apparently Hollywood in general. This is according to “Every Single Word”, a Tumblr page by US actor Dylan Marron, which shows the marginalisation of people of colour in Hollywood by the numbers.
A view of the Hollywood sign from a street in a residential section of Hollywood, California, September 21, 2011. Photo AFP
The project measured the length of time characters from ethnic minorities spoke in mainstream Hollywood films. The method found that on average characters of colour spoke for about 30 seconds in films typically exceeding the 90 minute mark, a proportion that is much less than the estimated quarter of the United States that is not white.
Some of the well-known film subjected to the test include Fault In Our Stars:
Her:
and Moonrise Kingdom:
The 2015 Hollywood Diversity Report found that American entertainment media had a lack of diversity across the board. For instance, the research showed that 88% of film writers , 83% of lead actors in film and 94% of creators in broadcast TV were white.
Earlier this year, the Oscars were heavily criticised on social media earlier for their apparently disproportionate acknowledgement of Caucasian actors.
The hashtag, #OscarSoWhite, dominated Twitter shortly after the announcement of nominations for the Academy Awards in January.
No actor or actress of colour was shortlisted in any of the four main acting categories, although the Martin Luther King Jr movie Selma did make it into the best picture race.
The drama, starring Oprah Winfrey and Britain’s David Oyelowo as the Nobel Peace Prize-winning black civil rights leader, was judged best film of the year by the Rotten Tomatoes review aggregator website.
Every Single World could serve as a mirror to what seems to be fraught race relations rising to the surface in recent times, with events such as the Charleston shootings and the debates surrounding the Confederate flag.
