November 10 , 1995. Copyright, 1995, Graphic News. All rights reserved

OSCAR NOMINEES Ð FOR A FEW HUNDRED THOUSAND DOLLARS MORE
By Nicholas Booth

LONDON, November 10, Graphic News- In Hollywood, itÕs started. Five months before the winners are announced, the movie studios are preparing their strategies to ensure that their films win Oscars. Special box sets of videos and full page advertisements are being prepared to jog the memories of that most exclusive of audiences Ð the five thousand members of the U.S. Academy of Motion Pictures, Arts And Sciences. Already, the whispers have begun: will Tom Hanks make it three in a row, with ÔApollo 13Õ? Will a gentle love story about an Italian postman, ÔIl PostinoÕ, win the best foreign language film?

The bottom line to these myriad questions is money. For a few hundred thousand dollars, Hollywood studios will begin the subtle marketing of their Oscar hopefuls. It is quite a bargain, for an Oscar-winning film can add $100 million to its takings, particularly in overseas earnings which are widely seen as a goldmine. Given that the average cost of a Hollywood movie is around $50 million,  Hollywood hopes each year for a blockbuster which will offset the costs of flops. An Oscar nomination, and better still a win, will give a movie a greater, more enduring appeal at the box office. 

The hot favourites for best picture are ÔApollo 13Õ, starring Tom Hanks, and one of the summerÕs great box office successes, ÔThe American PresidentÕ, yet to open in Britain, starring Michael Douglas who courts a beautiful environmental advisor; ÔBraveheartÕ, a surprisingly realistic biopic of William Wallace with Mel Gibson in the title role; and a love story with Meryl Streep and Clint Eastwood, ÔThe Bridges Of Madison CountyÕ. The stars of these movies are in line for Oscars for best performances, as are John Travolta, now starring in ÔGet ShortyÕ, currently wowing American film audiences, and Nicole Kidman in the black comedy ÔTo Die ForÕ which recently opened in Britain.

Nominations have to be completed by the end of this year, and some companies are gearing up on films which will not be released until Christmas Ð including Oliver StoneÕs ÔNixonÕ, starring Sir Anthony Hopkins as the disgraced American President. At least that film will be in cinemas when the voting is done, unlike a situation two years ago when Sony sent out a boxed set of video cassettes of a handful of films  Ð including empty boxes of two films which had not yet been completed. The Academy doesnÕt mind Ôvideo remindersÕ, but frowns upon the sending out of music videos, books and scripts.

Ultimately, the stars themselves know that Oscar wins will ensure their own bankability. According to the British Film Review magazine, top of the league earners at the moment are Jim Carrey, Sylvester Stallone, Harrison Ford and Mel Gibson at $20 million per movie. Tom Hanks comes relatively cheap at $15 million, along with Tom Cruise, Arnold Schwarzenegger and Robin Williams. The highest earning female actress is Demi Moore, at $12 million, with Julia Roberts and Whoopi Goldberg Ð who will host next springÕs Oscar ceremony Ð at $10 million, Sharon Stone and Michelle Pfeiffer at $7 million and this yearÕs hottest discovery, Sandra Bullock, at $6 million Ð whose price per movie will surely catapult if she wins an Oscar for ÔWhile You Were SleepingÕ.

Sources: Variety, Film Review.