Over the years, many questions surface among fans who follow the long Oscar selection process, from nominations to the moment the statuettes are handed out. How did the outcome come about? What did the voters think? And who are the voters exactly? A few days before the 95th ceremony, here are clear answers.
Who decides the awards?
The Oscars are owned by the United States Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, an organization made up of professionals who have demonstrated active involvement in the industry. To join, a member must be sponsored or nominated for an award. Only academics who can prove work on at least one film in the last ten years can vote. This year, 9,579 people participated in the elections, a 65 percent increase from 2014.
What is an academic profile?
In recent years the Academy has worked to diversify its ranks by increasing the presence of women, racial minorities, and talent from other countries. The association is organized by departments, including screenwriters, directors, editors, actors, and more, totaling 17 sections. Nominees for each category reflect their professional discipline, and all academics are eligible for Best Picture nominations.
How are nominations made?
The nomination process uses a so-called magic number of votes needed to secure a spot. For each category, the total votes are divided by the number of nominees plus one to determine the threshold. In practice, the five-candidate categories are decided by dividing the total votes by six and repeating the process until the final list is set. The Best Picture slate starts with dividing the total votes by 11 to yield ten nominees. Once nominees are set, each academic casts one vote per category.
Preferential vote for Best Film
The Best Film category employs a Preferential Voting system. Voters rank candidates from most to least favorite. If a candidate earns more than 50 percent of the first-choice votes, they win. If not, ballots are recounted and reshaped until one candidate clears the threshold. In practice, the winner is usually the film that garners broad appeal rather than one that excites only a small, passionate faction.
Envelopes with winners
After the submission process, the selection firm PricewaterhouseCoopers places the names of the winners in sealed envelopes. Two copies are kept in separate briefcases for security, guarded and carried by two company employees. Security measures do not guarantee perfection, and the 2017 ceremony proved this when the Best Picture Oscar was briefly announced for a different film before the correct winner was revealed.
Do the Oscars reward quality?
Those who believe the Oscars reward quality may encounter different perspectives. Hollywood is a close-knit ecosystem where people know each other, work together, marry, divorce, attend parties, share rumors, and exchange favors. In truth, the arts are subjective, and taste varies. The awarding process also hinges on political campaigning that grows stronger in the weeks after the ceremony, intensifying over the next several months in recent years.
Politics, influencers and financial power
Studios and producers invest varied sums, from a few thousand dollars to tens of millions, depending on their size. The goal is to keep academics engaged with their projects during the voting period through events, cocktails, dinners, and interviews hosted by celebrities and influencers. Campaigns spread across podcasts, TV appearances, and social media, while large budgets support advertising in mail campaigns, press outlets, digital networks, billboards, and even private travel. The aim is to stay memorable as votes are cast.
Every movie bets on a narrative
Campaigns revolve around creating a compelling narrative around potential nominees to attract the votes of academics. Some titles this year sparked conversations about the future of cinema. Films that initiated debates or paid homage to the industry itself often shaped voters’ perceptions more than anything else. In that context, awards reflect a mix of craft, storytelling, and broader cultural resonance.
what is forbidden
Rules govern the campaigning process to keep things fair. Directly contacting academics to promote a film or performance is prohibited, as is advertising that targets a rival. The first rule about Oscar campaigns is to avoid talking about the campaign itself. Those involved rarely admit to engaging in vote-seeking, and many emphasize a shared love for cinema as the core motivation behind their work.