Little-known Oscars rules movies must follow in order to be nominated
The 97th Oscars is finally upon us, with dozens of nominees all hoping to take home one - or more - of the prestigious Academy Awards.
A Complete Unknown, Dune: Part Two, The Substance,and Wicked are among the titles hoping to take home awards at the event in Hollywood on March 2.
But before the event came the nominations themselves, and the Academy has had to make sure its chosen movies all met a set of criteria to make them eligible for consideration.
The rules for Oscars nominations are listed by the Academy on its website, with multiple conditions that must be met.
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Check them out below.
Movies must have played in a movie theater
Eligible motion pictures released during the relevant year must be 'feature length', the rules state, and have been shown for paid admission in one of six qualifying areas: Los Angeles County, City of New York, the Bay Area, Chicago, Dallas-Fort Worth, and Atlanta.
Movies must have also had a theatrical run of at least seven consecutive days in the same theater, with screenings occurring at least three times a day, and at least one screening beginning between 6pm and 10pm.
Category exceptions include Short Films, which do not need to be 'feature length', and Documentary Films, which may be eligible if they have won a qualifying award at a competitive film festival, rather than being shown in theaters.
Entries from other countries are eligible as long as they contain accurate and legible English-language subtitles if released in different language.
Eligible movies also have to be advertised during their theatrical qualifying run in a manner 'normal and customary to theatrical feature distribution practices'.
As if that wasn't enough, there are also restrictions on the type of film the movies are presented on, with the rules stating they must be shown on either 35mm or 70mm film, or in a 24- or 48-frame progressive scan Digital Cinema format with a minimum projector resolution of 2048 by 1080 pixels, among other specifications.
Movies must be released in theaters first
That means no Netflix-only movies!
The rules state that movies 'will not be eligible for Academy Awards in any category' if they have their 'first public exhibition' on broadcast or table TV, pay per view or video on demand, DVD, airlines, or internet transmission.
However, the rules note that motion pictures released on one of these platforms 'on or after the first day of their theatrical qualifying' will still be eligible.
Movies must complete a submission form
In order to be considered for an Oscar, movies must have a completed Oscars Submission Form signed by the movie's producer or distributor - unless this stipulation has been waived by the Academy.
Submissions must not be changed
If a movie is deemed eligible from its theatrical qualifying run, and is then altered, it could be declared ineligible.
Topics: Entertainment, Film and TV, Hollywood, Oscars
Emily Brown