Basically everyone knows about the Oscars, and how when people win an award, they infamously say, “I’d like to thank the Academy,” right?
It came to my attention recently that I do not actually know who the members of the Academy even are or how they ended up in such a prestigious position. So, I decided to figure it out myself by making my way to the official Academy Awards website.
For starters, there are 17 branches of the Academy, including Actors and Writers. In order to be a member of the Academy, you must be a film artist, “working in the production of theatrically-released motion pictures.”
Each branch has its own list of requirements. For example, the Actors branch can only accept those who have a minimum of three feature film credits that are recent, scripted and Oscars caliber, have been nominated for an Academy award in an acting category and have the approval of the Actors Branch Executive Committee to contribute as a motion picture actor.
There also has to be an invitation of membership from the Board of Governors in the first place. This board consists of those whose main focuses are to deliver the Academy’s “strategic vision,” maintain finances and make sure their mission gets fulfilled.
Along with these requirements, a candidate applying to any of the 17 branches must have endorsements from two members of the branch they are attempting to join. Once they get the endorsements, their application is reviewed by the respective branch and finally sent to the Board of Governors for the final decision.
It requires a major thought process for this important group of people to choose to sponsor a candidate. First, they must be sure that this candidate will be a positive addition to the team and worthy of the spot. They are also only able to sponsor one candidate for every cycle, which occur once a year.
The annual membership reviews happen in the spring. In order to be considered, candidates must apply by Jan. 6, 2023, at 5 p.m. PST.
The Board of Governors consists of ten officers and three people for each branch of the Academy. These are the people in the Academy that everyone thanks during their acceptance speeches.
There are terms for each section of the Board of Governors. Officers can serve one-year terms, with a maximum of four straight years in any singular office. Board members get a bit more tricky. They can serve up to two three-year terms, have a hiatus of at least two-years and then serve up to two more three year terms.
A couple of recognizable people on the Board of Governors include actor, Whoopi Goldberg and Disney animator, Marlon West. The other members of the board can be found here.
All of the officers are also a governor of a certain branch, aside from the CEO, Bill Kramer, and President Janet Lang, who is the Governor-at-Large. They also all hold the title of vice president, again excluding the two officers previously mentioned.
I’m honestly not entirely sure what I expected to find out during this research process, but I’m very surprised by how in depth the overall process is. In my head, the Academy was just a table of about 12 to 20 old people who decided on every element of the Oscars and chose who won every award.
Now that I know the reality of the process of becoming a member of the Academy, I feel like I have a deeper understanding of the awards show as a whole.