Guest Column: Film Academy Member Applauds Oscars Relocation, If Not Process That Led to It

Share on Facebook Share on X Google Preferred Share to Flipboard Show additional share options Share on LinkedIn Share on Pinterest Share on Reddit Share on Tumblr Share on Whats App Send an Email Print the Article Post a Comment Bruce Feldman, a veteran publicist and awards strategist, has been a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences since 1986. Quite a few people have reacted with surprise or dismay upon hearing the news announced yesterday that Oscars ceremony, starting in 2029, will be moved from the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood to the L.A. LIVE complex downtown. I am not one of them. I grew up watching the Oscars on TV back when it was held at the the Pantages in Hollywood and the Civic Auditorium in Santa Monica. Since entering the business, I’ve attended it twice, once at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion downtown and once at the Shrine Auditorium near the USC campus. And over the 24 years since it moved to the Dolby, I have never missed it. Related Stories Movies Oscars Relocating From Hollywood's Dolby Theatre to Downtown's L.A. Live in 2029 Guest Column Why You Can't "Shop the Red Carpet" Anymore In other words, I have enough time and perspective under my belt to realize that things change, and that change is not necessarily a bad thing, even when it comes to something as traditions-bound as the Oscars. In fact, to me, the move to L.A. LIVE feels like a good thing — as long as the Academy does the right thing and remembers its members. For decades now, very few Academy members have been able to attend their own marquee event due to the space limitations of the Dolby Theatre. It offers just 3,300 seats, most of which were always needed for nominees and their teams, families and friends governors of the Academy; and members of the press. Rank-and-file Academy members have had to enter a lottery, and anecdotally, it doesn’t seem like very many win. The Peacock Theater, however, has more than twice as many seats — 7,100, to be precise — and it is...