What are the new rules in voting the Oscar nominees that were created?”
LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) – Will the best picture of the year be named best picture at the Oscars on Sunday? Critics may carp, but members of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences could also have reason to gripe that the eventual winner is not in sync with their tastes. That’s because the Academy’s complex voting system favors some films over others. And in a race where two titles could easily run neck-and-neck, the voting system can change the results of the election, just as much as it does political ones. Rick Rosas, a partner at PricewaterhouseCoopers and one of two accountants charged with tabulating the results, says there are years when just a few votes separate the winner from the losers. “We have had exceedingly close (results), extremely close,” he acknowledges. “This is my eighth year, and I definitely recall having to recount a couple of times for best picture.” The Academy uses two very different voting procedures to determine the nominees for best picture
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences has changed Oscar rules in several categories this year. There were three significant changes in the original-song rules. Most notably, no more than two songs from a single film can be nominated, though any number of songs from one film can be submitted. Second, the clip packages showing how the songs were used in the films will not only be screened but distributed to Music Branch members who can’t attend the screening. Those members will receive DVDs along with the ballots. Third, Music Branch members with one or more songs up for a nomination won’t vote for nominees, though they’ll subsequently be eligible to vote for one of the finalists on the last ballot.
