[quote] I just don't believe that is Hollywood's job. It is an industry, a commercial, capitalist industry. It's role is to create product that makes as much money as possible for the people who invest in it. It just is. We can't even make phamra focus on new antibiotics (because there's no money in it,) so how and why would we somehow legislation (which is what the post implies) that activities of the film industry? The backlash would be insane. The oversight impractical. It can't happen.
[quote] They make decisions based on market data - which sometimes, like in the Vince Vaughn example, does't yield what they expect. So, in due course, goodbye Vince. But it is a conservative, cautious industry. They aren't going to start producing indies because they believe in a mission.
Essentially, producing because they believe in a mission is what is currently being done. Which is one of the reasons why so many flop. They produce movies now based upon their good ole boy network mission. The product of that mission many times does not sell but because of those relationships they are willing to take the risk.
[quote] Diverse movies are a huge business. Why doesn’t Hollywood make more?
[quote] Four of the year’s 25 top-grossing movies star a minority in a leading role. All but two had white directors. And the number of minority actors forecasters expect to get Oscar nominations can be counted on one hand.
[quote] In the year since the Sony Pictures hack exposed racially insensitive emails and cast a spotlight on Hollywood’s diversity problem, movie studios have shown little progress in hiring more people of color for their casts and crews.
[quote] The industry is ignoring a gold mine. Every year for the past half-decade, the average white American has bought a ticket to fewer films than the average black, Hispanic or Asian moviegoer, industry data shows. Though 37 percent of the U.S. population, minorities bought 46 percent of the $1.2 billion in tickets sold in the United States last year. . . . . . . . . . . .
[quote] For all its grandeur, Hollywood is a fiscally conservative industry, and studios and financiers have long proved hesitant to invest tens of millions of dollars into projects backed by filmmakers they do not know.
[quote] Very often, the people they know share their skin tone. In 2013, more than 92 percent of movie studios’ senior executives, 82 percent of film directors and 88 percent of film writers were white, UCLA researchers said.
The good ole boy network is alive and well.
I don't recall anyone stating or suggesting that there was only one solution to Hollywood's diversity issue and that solution would involve the Academy Awards. The Academy Awards serve as an annual reminder of the diversity problem that exist in the entertainment industry. Not that we needed a reminder but they serve as an annual wake up call.
Change is inevitable. If for no other reason because of the demographic changes that are taking place in the United States. A few years ago many people believed that gay marriage could and would never happen. The majority of the country opposed the idea. Public opinion shifted Gays and heterosexuals stood together united and demanded change. Because of that, public opinion shifted very rapidly and marriage equality is a reality. A great deal of work went into changing the hearts and minds of the public. It took a great deal of campaigning, advertising, petitioning, and demanding to be heard. A large and diverse group of courageous people lead us to victory. This change too will happen. Despite the white supremacist, their rhetoric and their attempts to shut down the conversation. eg. Alexis Arquette Those of us who believe in equality for all must work together to expedite change.
