Films released on the Internet without going through the cinema box, due to the coronavirus pandemic, will still be able to compete this year at the Oscars, announced on Tuesday the Academy which temporarily changed its rules to adapt to exceptional circumstances . "Until further notice, and only for the 93rd edition of the Oscars, films which had planned a theatrical release but which are first broadcast on commercial streaming platforms can be qualified," announces the Academy in a statement.
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Normally, the Academy of Cinema Arts and Sciences, which awards the prestigious statuettes, requires that the films have been screened at least seven days in cinemas in Los Angeles in order to be selected. But California cinemas have been completely closed since mid-March and no date has yet been decided for their reopening.
The debate has been raging for a few years around films produced by video on demand platforms, like the giant Netflix with The Irishman this year and Roma the previous year. Until now, Netflix and the others have had to resolve to briefly screen their works in cinemas before putting them on the Internet to satisfy the Oscars.
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The Academy still claims to want to defend "the magic of cinema" projected on the big screen in theaters but recognizes the need for a "temporary exception" in its regulations due to the historic pandemic of Covid-19. Once the cinemas have been able to reopen, the Academy will set a date from which the usual regulations will resume, but films screened in other major cities than Los Angeles will also be eligible for the Oscars.
Last month, the Golden Globes, which traditionally usher in the film price season in the United States, were the first to relax their regulations to take into account the unprecedented situation brought on by the pandemic. The 93rd Academy Awards is scheduled to take place in Hollywood on February 28, 2021.