Oscar Voters Face New Rules on Conduct
Oscar voters are going to be playing by new rules. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences h..
Oscar voters are going to be playing by new rules. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has moved forward with new standards of conduct as part of the organization’s attempt to respond to the sexual harassment and assault scandals that have roiled the entertainment industry since October.
The standards, which were approved by the Academy's board of governors on Saturday afternoon, outline how individuals may report claims of workplace misconduct by Academy members.
“The Academy’s goal is not to be an investigative body, but rather ensure that when a grievance is made, it will go through a fair and methodical process,” Academy C.E.O. Dawn Hudson said, in an email sent to members Saturday afternoon.
According to a document Hudson emailed to members Saturday, individuals will be able to report misconduct via an online form which the Academy will launch in the summer of 2018, or by phone to the Academy's membership department. Those allegations must be substantiated by evidence, and will be subject to a review by the Academy's membership and administration committee. If the matter is deemed serious enough, that committee may refer the issue to the board of governors, which can vote to suspend of expel a member.
A task force, led by Academy governor and casting director David Rubin has been working on how to respond when there are allegations of misconduct since the Academy voted to strip Harvey Weinstein of his membership after allegations of sexual harassment, assault, and rape were made against him in October. (His spokesperson previously told Vanity Fair that “any allegations of non-consensual sex are unequivocally denied by Mr. Weinstein.”)
The process outlined Saturday followed an email Hudson sent to Oscar voters in December, articulating the industry group’s values. In that email, the Academy declared its opposition to “any form of abuse, harassment or discrimination on the basis of gender, sexual orientation, race, ethnicity, disability, age, religion, or nationality.”
Not all Academy members agree that the organization should be taking on this expanded new role regarding members' workplace conduct. “This should be left to the companies people work for and to the police,” producer and Academy governor Bill Mechanic told Vanity Fair in December, of the movement toward a new code of conduct. “Six months ago, all the moral police were silent. Was it wrong for people to be silent six months ago? Yes. Is it wrong to go overboard now? Yes. What you want is rationality to the process.”
Get Vanity Fair’s HWD NewsletterSign up for essential industry and award news from Hollywood.Rebecca KeeganRebecca Keegan is a Hollywood Correspondent for Vanity Fair.
