Are prizes merely the privilege of a functioning society, or is there a way to make them work even when the world around us is still in trouble? Those are the questions that many in Hollywood are asking after Sunday’s disastrous Golden Globe ceremony drew 6.9 million viewers, a free fall from last year’s 18.3 million count.
Certainly, people have more pressing questions in their minds than whether “Nomadland” can win “The Trial of the Chicago 7”, but even casual movie fans certainly cringed (or changed channels) when technical difficulties almost destroyed the Golden Globe winner Daniel Kaluuya’s speech at the top of the show. We are all tired of buggy Zoom calls now, even when these miniatures are filled with the best and brightest in Hollywood.
There is still almost two months to go before the Oscar broadcast on April 25, which will be produced by the always innovative Steven Soderbergh alongside Stacey Sher and Jesse Collins. It won’t be easy for them to set up a flashy gala during a still violent pandemic, but here are the lessons that can be learned from the award shows that were unlucky enough to go first.
Do a sound check.
In many of the ceremonies I attended this year, from the Gotham Awards to the Golden Globe, the first big winner of the night had no idea when to speak or was still speechless when it finally started. Clearly, some more robust pre-show preparation is needed: if you already have the stars on hold, keep punching them off the screen until they know the cue to enter. (And send them better cameras and microphones when possible.) An acceptance speech should start with emotion, not technical difficulties.
DO NOT do improvised comedy.
Golden Globes reserved two sets of consummate vampires – Saturday Night Live vets Maya Rudolph and Kenan Thompson, and “Barb and Star” protagonists Kristen Wiig and Annie Mumolo – but each pair’s improvisation just made one show in ruins look even more chaotic. The makeshift comedy works best as a palate cleanser during a well-crafted ceremony, and it seems perverse to let comedians churn out during show time for a joke when some of the biggest winners have their speeches quickly interrupted by a closing song.
MAKE a few short, pre-recorded bits.
Live award ceremonies still seem to be surrounded by a strange social detachment, but many films and television programs are back in full production around the world. Oscar could take advantage of his long lead time and ask some of Hollywood’s most astute to shoot pre-recorded parts, in no more than thirty seconds, to help expand the show’s breadth in safe and creative ways. Call Taika Waititi and ask him to improvise something funny with Chris Hemsworth! Tell Judd Apatow that yes, it has to be 30 seconds – not 60! And any shorts that are shortened to time can easily be launched online the next day to extend Oscar’s golden sparkle.
DO NOT waste a place.
Look, it’s been fun to have a look at the celebrities’ houses, but after the Golden Globe, I feel like I spent as much time in Aaron Sorkin’s office as I did last year. Let’s hope that Oscar is able to attract more nominees out of their homes: if it’s still not safe to put them in the Dolby Theater, spread the honorees in a variety of interesting locations in Los Angeles, such as the open-air Hollywood Bowl, the impressive and cavernous Union Station, or the Academy Museum to be opened, which has a plethora of theaters and galleries that may well be put to good use now.
Increase the glamor.
The Golden Globe may not have had a traditional red carpet experience, but the show still delivers when it comes to dressing: Stars like Cynthia Erivo and Anya Taylor-Joy wore some of the most striking dresses of their careers during the ceremony, clearly savoring the chance to serve to take care of the block. For those of us who still wear sweatpants, a brief burst of Hollywood excitement was greatly appreciated.
DO NOT let the winners sit down.
Still, some of that glamor is undermined when the actors don’t even bother to get off the couch when they win a big prize on television. If Oscars are forced to take remote acceptance speeches, they should at least encourage the winners to perform up to the occasion – it will look less like a casual Zoom that way. (And if I can figure out how to balance my laptop on a pile of shoe boxes during a video conference, then so can celebrities.)
MAKE great commercials.
The Super Bowl has managed to turn its limited duration into a feature, not a bug: it is the rare show where people tune in specifically to see what will happen during the commercials. Oscar should take advantage of the same opportunity, supplying each commercial break with teasers of some of the biggest films of the year. ABC could protect itself against a drop in audience like that of Globo if its parent company, Disney, promised the first filming of films such as “West Side Story” and Marvel’s upcoming entries “The Eternals” and “Shang Chi”, and others studios did the same.
Sell us the magic of the films during each commercial break, and that excitement is sure to be carried over to the show itself. After a miserable year of going to the cinema, where the theater sector practically collapsed, all those trailers would even serve as a public service: Finally, there is something to look forward to again.