The Academy is looking to expand the number of festivals that can offer winning films a direct path to the Oscars, according to Ampas CEO Bill Kramer.
Speaking on a panel at Tokyo International Film Festival (TIFF) on Wednesday (October 28), Kramer said: “We’re looking to expand the universe of film festivals that will help a film qualify for the international feature film category.”
Asked if Tokyo might join that list, Kramer added: “Stay tuned.”
His comments follow a rule change in May where, for the first time, international non-English language films that win top awards at six leading film festivals (Berlin, Busan, Cannes, Sundance, Toronto and Venice) can be submitted to the international feature category alongside features chosen through the traditional Academy-approved selection committees.
Senior Academy members are in Tokyo this week as part of a push to increase the organisation’s global membership and reach. TIFF is hosting a special programme, titled Academy in Tokyo, offering a behind-the-scenes look at the Oscars and insights into its global initiatives and membership programmes.
Also on today’s panel were Ampas president Lynette Howell Taylor and chief membership, impact and industry officer Meredith Shea, who discussed the Academy’s international push in recent years.
This has seen non-US membership grow from 5% to 25% in the last decade and includes about 70 members from Japan, making for “a more diverse and inclusive Academy”, according to Howell Taylor. Total membership now sits at around 11,000.
The ‘Parasite’ effect
“We’re seeing more and more globalization across our programmes, which reflects the filmmaking community becoming more global and people watching films not in their native language,” said Kramer. He highlighted how there was international representation in every category of the most recent Oscars in March.
“Everyone remembers when Parasite won Best Picture (in 2020), which really shifted our thinking as to what was possible.”
Further efforts to increase its global reach include the Oscars’ upcoming move to YouTube in 2029, which will reach a potential audience of 2.5 billion in more than 30 languages, as well as a program for filmmakers with refugee status to submit their films for nomination from their host countries.
Japanese legacy
The trio emphasized Japan’s myriad links to the Academy. Japan was one of eight countries to submit a film (Kon Ichikawa’s Harp Of Burma) to the international category in 1956, when it transitioned from an honorary to competitive award.
Kramer also cited Japan’s “deep history” of animation production, and reported that many of the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures’ most popular exhibitions to date have centred around anime, including one centred on Osar-winning director Hayao Miyazaki.
Japan’s most recent Oscar winners include Ryusuke Hamaguchi’s Drive My Car (best international feature 2021), Miyazaki’s The Boy And The Heron (best animated feature 2024) and Godzilla Minus One (best visual effects 2024).
Technology and theatrical
Addressing the fast-evolving state of artificial intelligence in filmmaking, Howell Taylor emphasised that AI is a broad category that “includes many technologies that have been part of filmmaking for years and have helped reduce barriers to entry.”
“At the same time, there are real concerns about copyright, transparency, and disclosure,” she added. “Our job is to put it at the centre of our conversations and to guide those conversations, not letting it happen to us but to be a part of it.”
“Since the beginning of filmmaking, it seems like every five or 10 years there has been some kind of major technological shift,” said Kramer. “[AI is] moving quickly, maybe more quickly than other technologies, but it’s something we’re constantly thinking about.”
The trio also touched on the challenges facing the cinemagoing experience in the streaming age. Kramer emphasised that awards eligibility will continue to require theatrical release, to which the Academy remains “deeply committed”.
“We run four theatres in Los Angeles, including screenings on 35mm, 70mm and nitrate,” said Kramer. “But streamers allow access to many more people who might not be able to visit a cinema, and to films that might not get a theatrical release. It’s about how those worlds fit together.”
The Academy’s upcoming Marquee Theater List is “a kind of Michelin Guide for cinemas,” shared Howell Taylor, and will feature 25 cinemas inside the US and 25 internationally. The theatres will be selected by a committee of Academy members across all branches before being approved by the Academy’s Board of Governors and announced in 2027.
The discussion was moderated by TIFF festival director Takeo Hisamatsu, who ended the session by presenting Kramer with the newly established Global Cinema Leadership Special Award. It was awarded to the Academy CEO “in recognition of his significant contributions to the development of the global film industry and the advancement of film culture” as well as his work “to further diversify and globalise the Academy’s membership.”
Since being appointed to the leading role in 2022, Kramer has worked to further diversify and globalise the Academy’s membership. He is on his first visit to Asia and his trip to Tokyo will also include a private reception for Academy members and a further on-stage discussion between Kramer and Toho president and CEO Hiro Matsuoka on October 29.
The 39th TIFF takes place from October 26 to November 4 while affiliated content market TIFFCOM runs October 28-30.
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