Following the recent announcement of the 2021 Academy Award Nominations, outrage has struck the Cambridge film and theatre community at their lack of recognition.
“It’s infuriating” said one writer, “Only, like, seven films came out this year, and still they refuse to acknowledge us?”
Having recently adapted to online content, the ADC Theatre writing community have been “pushing the boundaries of what is possible onstage, online and on Zoom”, according to their spokesperson. Despite dwindling numbers, many writers believed this had been the industry’s strongest season yet.
Tara Lamp, a third-year English student from Queen’s who wishes to remain anonymous, said: “I wrote this great play all about lockdown, where the characters misunderstand each other due to WiFi delays, can’t see what the others are looking at, and loads of other cutting-edge stuff. It was really unique, and I can’t believe The Academy has ignored how powerful it was.”
Another budding playwright commented: “There’s supposed to be ten films nominated, but rather than acknowledge my seminal one-man scripted read-through about a man who becomes a dog, the Academy only selected eight contenders. I had my hopes up when the Golden Globes nominated Borat 2, but this is a real snub.”
When asked to comment on whether a play is technically eligible for an Academy Award, the playwright told the The Porter’s Log: “It’s online, isn’t it? My webcam filmed it, so that’s got to count for something.” As a precautionary measure, the play has since been uploaded to YouTube as well as Quibi. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has been contacted for a statement, but is yet to respond.