Oscars 2019: Academy to announce all winners live during telecast after member feedback

Friday, February 15, 2019
LOS ANGELES -- Following an outcry from many of the movie industry's most prominent figures, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has reversed its decision to present four awards during the commercial breaks of this year's Oscar broadcast.

The film academy on Friday said all 24 categories will be shown live, after all, at the 91st Academy Awards on February 24. On Monday, the academy had said that the winning speeches for cinematography, film editing, makeup and hairstyling and live-action short would be aired in a shortened, taped segment during the broadcast.
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"All Academy Awards will be presented without edits, in our traditional format," the organization said in a statement. It did not address whether the change meant extending the show's length, which the academy has said it will be reduced to three hours.

On Wednesday, the American Society of Cinematographers responded to the original change, saying the decision goes against the very mission of the Oscars.

"Relegating these essential cinematic crafts to lesser status in this 91st Academy Awards ceremony is nothing less than an insult to those of us who have devoted our lives and passions to our chosen profession," reads the letter.

Emma Stone, Bradley Cooper, Robert De Niro and George Clooney are among the names who have signed that letter.



Even before the ASC's letter, the reaction to the broadcast plan from the Oscars' most famous alums was swift.

Guillermo del Toro, who won Best Director last year, blasted the decision, saying "Cinematography and editing are at the very heart of our craft. They are cinema itself."
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RELATED: Everything to know about Oscars 2019

Best Actor winner Russell Crowe wrote a scathing tweet, calling it "such a fundamentally stupid decision."

And Alfonso Cuaron, the mastermind behind one of this year's most-nominated films, Roma, added, "No one single film has ever existed without cinematography and without editing."

Don't miss the Oscars LIVE on Sunday, Feb. 24 at 8 p.m. ET | 5 p.m. PT on ABC.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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