87th Annual Academy Awards to offer online voting option

Geoffrey Young, Reporter

Neil Patrick Harris is set to host this years’ 87th Oscar award show, taking place at the Dolby Theater in Los Angeles, on Feb. 22. The award show will be air on ABC at 6:30 p.m. Online participation is encouraged.

Online voting is open to the general public through the Oscars’ web page. Voters can share their feelings, regarding who they deem worthy of receiving one of the coveted awards. Online voting is made possible through Facebook with ABC’s “play with friend’s option.” The option, once you’ve voted, will allow you to share your ballet with friends online, confirming who predicted the results most accurately.

However, its impact on the Academy’s decision is ineffective. The online voting experience is geared as a conversation piece among friends, perhaps to help build viewership for the Oscars.

The votes that have the highest impact are the roughly 6,000+ votes casted by members of The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. The group consists of 17 separate branches and each branch has a specific view for judgment, directors, cinematographers, and actors.

Voting system notwithstanding, some common ground regarding a film’s quality is made evident by evaluation of frequency of the film’s nominations:

Alejandro G. Inarritu’s “Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance)” holding 9 nominations for: actor in a leading role, actor in a supporting role, actress in a supporting role, best picture, cinematography, directing, sound editing, sound mixing and writing (original screenplay).

Wes Anderson’s “The Grand Budapest Hotel” holding 9 nominations as well for: best picture, cinematography, costume design, directing, film editing, makeup and hairstyling, music (original score), production design and writing (original screenplay).

Morten Tyldum’s “Imitation Game” holding 8 nominations for: actor in a leading role, actress in a supporting role, best picture, directing, film editing, music (original score), production design, writing (adapted screenplay).

Other honorable Oscar nominations go out to: Richard Linklater for his 6 nominations for “Boyhood,” and James Marsh’s “The Theory of Everything,” Damien Chazelle’s “Whiplash,” Christopher Nolan’s “Interstellar,” and Bennett Miller’s “Foxcatcher,” for all receiving 5 Oscar nominations.