Tag: andrea
Ms. Olympia Champions Andrea Shaw and Lenda Murray
The Academy will not revoke Andrea Riseborough’s Oscar nomination
First, there was the word-of-mouth campaign promoting Andrea Riseborough’s performance in the indie film To Leslie. Then, came Riseborough’s surprising Oscar nomination for Best Actress. Then, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) announced a review of the nomination process, which could have resulted in a revoked nomination for Riseborough. Well, after all that hullabaloo, the results are in: Riseborough remains an Oscar nominee.
An underdog in award season, To Leslie is a lesser-known drama that made $27,000 in theaters and did not have a competitive budget for a For Your Consideration campaign. Riseborough’s nomination came after a week-long social media blitz, in which her performance was lauded by the likes of Gwyneth Paltrow, Edward Norton, Charlize Theron, and many more.
To Leslie’s approach to securing an Oscar nomination ruffled feathers, but there’s more to the controversy than annoyance at a grassroots campaign. Riseborough, who is white, received a nomination over Black actors like The Woman King‘s Viola Davis and Till‘s Danielle Deadwyler, both of whom were considered contenders in the Oscars conversation. While some have viewed To Leslie’s nomination as a victory for small-budget films, others have pointed that even high-profile films with more resources for an awards campaign might be snubbed because of how the awards ecosystem fails Black women time and time again.
On Jan. 27, in the wake of the nominations backlash, the Academy announced it would be reviewing the nomination process. Their statement mentioned neither Riseborough nor To Leslie. However, given the controversial nature of Riseborough’s campaign, it seemed clear the review concerned her nomination.
The review garnered even more backlash, with actors like Christina Ricci sharing on social media that it felt “elitist and exclusive and frankly very backward.” Comedian (and Riseborough’s To Leslie co-star) Marc Maron also criticized the Academy’s decision on his WTF podcast.
The Academy’s decision came down in a Jan. 31 statement sent to media from AMPAS CEO Bill Kramer, who said: “The Academy has determined the activity in question does not rise to the level that the film’s nomination should be rescinded.” The statement does continue to say that To Leslie‘s social media tactics were cause for concern and are being brought up with the responsible parties.
Kramer’s full statement on the matter is as follows:
Based on concerns that surfaced last week around the To Leslie awards campaign, the Academy began a review into the film’s campaigning tactics. The Academy has determined the activity in question does not rise to the level that the film’s nomination should be rescinded. However, we did discover social media and outreach campaigning tactics that caused concern. These tactics are being addressed with the responsible parties directly.
The purpose of the Academy’s campaign regulations is to ensure a fair and ethical awards process—these are core values of the Academy. Given this review, it is apparent that components of the regulations must be clarified to help create a better framework for respectful, inclusive, and unbiased campaigning. These changes will be made after this awards cycle and will be shared with our membership. The Academy strives to create an environment where votes are based solely on the artistic and technical merits of the eligible films and achievements.
Thus ends the contentious To Leslie saga — at least until the Oscars air on March 12. If Riseborough pulls off an underdog victory, it will no doubt be one of the most surprising (and yes, discourse-inducing) Oscar wins of all time.
How a word-of-mouth campaign earned Andrea Riseborough an Oscar nomination for ‘To Leslie’
Perhaps the biggest shock of this year’s Oscar nominations — aside from many snubs — was the inclusion of Andrea Riseborough in the Best Actress category for her performance in To Leslie.
The shock does not come from the quality of the performance — Riseborough is a tremendous actor — but rather from the circumstances surrounding the nomination.
To Leslie, in which Riseborough plays a single mother who wins the lottery, is a low-budget independent film that made $27 thousand at the box office. Distributor Momentum Pictures does not have the kind of money to mount an awards season campaign, and Riseborough was notably missing from Oscar bellwethers like the Golden Globes and Screen Actors Guild Awards nominations.
So how did Andrea Riseborough get an Oscar nomination for To Leslie?
Riseborough’s nomination is the result of a word-of-mouth social media campaign by stars like Gwyneth Paltrow, Edward Norton, and many more.
According to a timeline by Vulture, the campaign unofficially kicked off on Jan. 10, two days before Oscar voting began. Paltrow hosted a screening and posted about To Leslie to her 8.2 million followers. Norton tweeted about Riseborough’s performance as well.
The number of celebrities highlighting Riseborough’s performance multiplied in the following days, with supporters including Susan Sarandon, Helen Hunt, Melanie Lynskey, and Alan Cumming. Tweets about the film often included the phrase “a small film with a giant heart,” prompting its fair share of memes and speculation about the coordinated phrasing.
Oscar voting closed on Jan. 17, just seven days after the social media push for Riseborough began in earnest. However, the campaign clearly did its job: Riseborough scored a nomination for To Leslie (the film’s sole nomination) after what is surely the shortest and least conventional Oscars campaign in history.
To Leslie is available for rent or purchase on Youtube, Apple TV, Prime Video, and more.
Andrea Shaw Wins 2022 Ms. Olympia to Complete Three-Peat
Heading into the Finals of the 2022 Ms. Olympia in Las Vegas, NV, on Dec. 16, the reigning champion Andrea Shaw had her sights set on another illustrious performance. Shaw did not fail in her mission and captured her third consecutive Ms. Olympia title. After prejudging, Shaw was already in a strong spot, even with a trio of…
The post Andrea Shaw Wins 2022 Ms. Olympia to Complete Three-Peat appeared first on Breaking Muscle.
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Strongwoman Andrea Thompson Sets Log Lift World Record of 140 Kilograms (308.6 Pounds)
Andrea Thompson has set a Log Lift World Record of 140 kilograms (308.6 pounds). The strongwoman scored the feat at the 2022 World Log Lift Championships (WLLC) on Oct. 9, 2022, in Ipswich, United Kingdom. It extends the previous World Record by five kilograms (11 pounds). That mark also belonged to Thompson, who accomplished a … Read more
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Strongwoman Andrea Thompson Trains With Laurence Shahlaei, Announces World Record Attempt
Andrea Thompson is one of the more prominent names in active strongwoman. As a professional competitor since March 2016, the athlete from the United Kingdom has amassed quite the competitive catalog. Thompson revealed her next grand ambition in a recent interview and training session with a strongman legend. On Sept. 30, 2022, Laurence Shahlaei, 2016 … Read more
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