FRO M THE PRESIDENT The Academy Awards telecast is probably the most-watched annual program in the world. That fact notwithstanding, the Board of Governors spent a lot of time during the second quarter of this year, trying to set policies that will help the downward-ticking ratings of our broadcast. It is, after all, our principal source of revenue and our most effective way of telling the world what we're about. The Awards Review Committee, chaired by Public Relations Branch Governor Marvin Levy, spent three long meetings discussing the show and how to shorten it; the Awards Rules Committee, chaired by Music Branch NARRATIVE GOLD MEDAL WINNER JESSICA SHARZER Governor Charles Bernstein, spent equally MAKES HER WAY TO HER SEAT IN THE GOLDWYN THEATER long hours pursuing the same goal, particu­ larly by reducing the number of special awards such as the Thalberg and Hersholt E leven film students from eight U.S. universities presented on recent shows. took home Saul Bass-designed Student Academy At the June meeting the Board accepted Awards at the 29th annual competition in June. three major changes that will, we hope, have Arriving in Los Angeles on a Wednesday, the win­ a salutary effect. ners spent the rest of the week meeting each other and First, the Board voted to require the pro­ Academy staff, chatting with cinematographers at the ducer of the show to bring it to a close ASC and directors at the DGA, and meeting Academy before midnight on the East Coast. That governors at a dinner at the Beverly Hills Hotel before would make it no more than a three-and-a­ settling down to business at the Sunday awards half-hour show. presentation ceremony at the Academy's Samuel Goldwyn Theater. Second, the Board accepted the Awards "I feel as though this week I've stood on the Rules Committee's proposal to change the shoulders of giants," said Documentary Bronze Medal voting procedure so that it will be extremely Winner Thomas Burns, 'and now I can see farther." difficult to vote more than one "testimonial" The 2002 winners: award each year. Alternative Category, Gold Medal : "For Our Man ," Third, the Board voted to move the date Kazuo Ohno, Columbia University, New York; Silver of the show earlier by three weeks, to February 29th in 2004, in the hope that mov­ ing the show closer to the awards year will IACADEMY Q UA RT E RLY REPORT\ make it fresher and more exciting to the audience. (That this change might also result Published by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences 8949 Wilshire Boulevard, Beverly Hills, CalHornia 90211-1972 in less campaigning for Oscars didn't go (310) 247-3000 - www.oscars.org unnoticed, either.) With more and more things for an audi­ PRESIDENT . ... .. ... .. ..... .. FrankllPierson FIRST VICE PRESIDENT .. ... .... _ .. Robert Rebme ence to watch, more and more channels to VICE PRESIDENT . ... .. .... .... RogerLMayer watch them on, and more and more oppor­ VICE PRESIDENT .. ... .. .. .. .. .. .... Kathy Bates tunities for non-television recreation on any TREASURER .. .... ... .• ... CheryI Boone Isaacs given Sunday night, the battle to keep the SECRETARY ...... .... .• . • .. DonaIdC.Rogers EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR .. .. .• . .. ... Bruce Davis Oscar telecast fresh and interesting will go on for many years. We won't fix everything Photos: unless otherwise identlIied, by Long Photography in a single year, but you need to know that Design: Lisa Carlsson, Edler Carlsson Ink we're aware that things need to be done, and Oscar-, Oscars-, Academy AwardfI", Academy Awa.roa, A.M.P.A.S.-, we're resolved to find the best of them and and Oscar Night- are the trademarks, and the Oscar statuette is the then to do them. registered design mark and copyrighted property of the Academy of Motion PictuIe ArIs and Sciences. - FRANK PIERSON 2 ACADEMY QUARTERLY REPORT · VOL U ME 14 h. 29 th Group to Win Stud.nt A(ad.my Awards Medal: "Island to Island," Soopum Sohn, New York University. (No Bronze Medal was awarded in this category.) Animation Category, Gold Medal: "Passing Moments," Don Phillips Jr., Ringling School of Art and Design, Sarasota, Florida; Silver Medal: "The Velvet Tigress," Jen Sachs, California Institute of the Arts, Valencia; Bronze Medal: "Shadowplay, " Dan Blank, NYU. PRESENTER ALEXANDER PAYNE, Documentary Category, Gold Medal : "Moving LEFT, WITH ALTERNATIVE CATEGORY Hou se ," Pin Pin Tan , Northwestern University, GOLD MEDAL WINNER KAZUO OHNO Evanston, Illinois; Silver Medal: "Family Values ," Eva Saks, NYU ; Bronze Medal: "Revolutions Per Minute, " THEN ACADEMY FIRST VICE PRESIDENT Thomas Burns, Stanford University, Palo Alto, ROGER MAYER, SECOND FROM LEFT, WITH California. PRESENTERS FREIDA LEE MOCK, MICHAEL McKEAN AND ALEXANDER PAYNE Narrative Category, Gold Medal: "The Wormhole ," Jessica Sharzer, NYU; Silver Medal: "Barrier Device," Grace Lee, UCLA; Bronze Medal: "Sophie," Helen Haeyoung Lee, University of Texas at Austin. Honorary Foreign Film : "Feeding Desire," Martin Strange-Hansen, National Film School of Denmark, Copenhagen. The U.S.-based students knew they would each receive an award, but the level of that award - gold, silver or bronze - was not revealed until the ceremony. "Since we started doing that a cou­ PRESENTER FREIDA LEE MOCK AND DOCUMENTARY GOLD MEDAL ple of years ago, the students bond a little more tightly while they're out here," said Awards WINNER PIN PIN TAN Administration Director Ri chard Miller. "When they knew who'd won what, they didn't seem to inter­ act as we ll as a group. It was a good change on our part." Besides trophies, Gold Medal winners receive $5 ,000; Silver Medal winners are awarded $3 ,000 and Bronze Medal winners take home $2,000. Academy Award-winning documentary filmmaker Freida Lee Mock presented the awards in the documentary category; Oscar-nominated screenwriter Alexander Payne presented the Honorary Foreign Film Award and the medals in the Alternative category, and actors branch mem­ ber Michael McKean served as presenter for the narrative and animation categories. The Honorary Foreign Film winner, who received a $1 ,000 cash grant, was selected from a pool of 33 entries from 23 countries , the third time a student from the National Film School of Denmark has won this award. PRESENTER MICHAEL McKEAN AND "We live in a world of fantastic stories," said this year's winner, Martin Strange-Hanson. "Let's ANIMATION GOLD MEDAL WINNER keep te ll ing them." DON PHILLIPS JR 3 The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences launched its 75th Anniversary celebrations in May with a party during which its Center for Motion Picture Study was renamed in honor of one of the Academy's founders and its first president, Douglas Fairbanks. The Center for Motion Picture Study at La Cienega and Olympic boulevards, which houses the Margaret A 75TH ANNIVERSARY CAKE, THE Herrick Library and its Roddy McDowall DESIGN OF WHICH REFLECTED A Photograph Archive, is now known as the SET FROM THE 1936 BEST Fairbanks Center for Motion Picture Study. PICTURE, "THE GREAT ZIEGFELD," ~\lRBANKS CEl\'TE~ SERVED AS DESSERT. FROM FOR MUTlOl\ New signage designating the PICfliRE Sri lOY LEFT, BEVERLY HILLS MAYOR Fairbanks Center name was unveiled during the party. MERALEE GOLDMAN, PAST PRESIDENTS GENE ALLEN AND During the event Academy Executive Director Bruce Davis and ARTHUR HILLER, PRESIDENT Vera Fairbanks, widow of Douglas Fairbanks Jr., announced that the FRANK PIERSON, PAST Library would be the new home of the senior Fairbanks' career papers. PRESIDENTS DAN TARADASH AND RICHARD KAHN, VICE THE CENTER'S NEW NAME AWAITED (See separate story on page 6.) PRESIDENTS DONALD C. ROGERS PARTY REVELERS AS THEY LEFT "The kick-off to our 75 th anniversary AND ALAN BERGMAN, PAST PRESIDENT FAY KANIN, VICE celebration seemed a most appropriate PRESIDENT KATHY BATES AND occasion to add Mr. Fairbanks' name to this TREASURER SAUL ZAENTZ bui lding ," Academy President Frank Pierson said. "He was not only the LED THE AUDIENCE IN THE BIRTHDAY SONG Academy's first president, but his civic leadership actually helped get this magnificent building erected back in 1927." Fairbanks, who was active in Beverly Hills civic affairs, was instrumental in the implementation and design of Water Plant No. 1, the structure that now houses the Fairbanks Center. Among the 800 persons invited to the party were past Academy presidents, members of the Board of Governors, members of the Academy's standing committees, major donors, senior staff and Beverly Hills civic officials. The Academy was founded on May 11 , 1927. VERA FAIRBANKS AND ACADEMY PRESIDENT FRANK PIERSON TOAST THE ACADEMY'S 75TH ANNIVERSARY, THE NAMING OF THE FAIRBANKS CENTER AND THE ACQUISITION OF THE PAPERS OF DOUGLAS FAIRBANKS SR Diamond Annivfrsary S(rffninCJ Sfrifs Is a Runaway Hit "We 're a bit taken aback by the popularity of this program," said Randy Haberkamp, the coordi­ nator of the Academy's 75th Anniversary screen­ ing series titled "Facets of the Diamond: 75 Years of OA.M.P.A.S.- Best Picture Winners." "We've had full or nearly full houses for the first "ALL QUIET ON THE WESTERN FRONT" The Academy's twelve films." The idea was a simple one. Screen each of the 75 films that have won an 75'· Anniversary logo Oscar as Best Picture. Getting it done was a little more complicated. blends the Academy's "That's 75 weeks of fIlm, with a Christmas and New Years holiday, and a internationally seven-week hiatus at Academy Awards time while the theater is being used for nominations and voting screenings," Haberkamp said. "Will people stay inter­ known Oscar symbol ested until the middle of December 2003? Time will tell, but so far, at least, with a stylized 75. interest in the series seems to be increasing each week." Incorporated into The flfst Best Picrure, "Wings," was in the middle of restoration when the GUESTS TOUR THE lapel pins which were MARGARET HERRICK screenings began "and we really wanted to show that one off; Haberkamp LIBRARY ON THE WAY TO said.