Show notes
A roundtable discussion of the upcoming 88th Annual Academy Awards featuring the USC School of Cinematic Arts' distinguished panel: Director of Programming Alex Ago, fellow SCA alum and film critic Katie Walsh (Indiewire, LA Times, Tribune News Service), screenwriter and Adjunct Professor Tyger Williams (Menace II Society), and esteemed TV writer and Professor David Isaacs (Cheers, M.A.S.H.). A recently initiated member of the Academy, Tyger offers an inside scoop on the voting process and how the Academy functions (1:41) before our experts debate the best and worst of this year's nominees (6:24), the biggest snubs (18:17), the impact of the Netflix model on the awards race and distribution (24:09), and the widely debated topic of diversity as it relates to both the Oscars and the industry at large (29:41). Then, after a quick break, we'll break down this year's notable performances (46:20), most impressive directing and technical achievements (56:37), screenwriting successes and why they worked (1:11:11), and everyone's final predictions for Sunday night's big winners (1:29:00).