The Oscars acknowledge categories ranging across multiple disciplines that support a film’s story and visual dynamics. But the stunt department’s contributions remain unsung. This might be due to misperceptions about what stunt performers actually do these days.
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We keep seeing this happening across awards shows--debate between what disciplines should or should not be credited. Defenders of not giving awards to various groups tend to argue that the show itself is getting too long, or that it is trending towards a sort of participation award. I think there is something larger at play here, and I have discussed this before, about the class distinction between strictly creative departments and all the other departments. Part of the problem starts with the blurred lines in some departments; rather than just sending out instructions for the technicians to carry out, some designers are actively programming and inventing. Sound design, for example, has been an ongoing debate in some awards shows. Personally, I think the bigger awards are less meaningful; there are almost always obvious winners. The smaller awards, for the less visible disciplines, seem more carefully considered. The reality is that there are many more disciplines now than there were when the Oscars began, and the arbiters trend towards conservatism.
I’m not sure that I can decide whether or not stunts should be considered for Oscars. I think the stunt actors have incredibly difficult jobs and that they are extremely talented. The stunt coordinators and directors also draw from years of experience and work hard to balance the visual effects and the safety of their actors. There’s no doubt that the world of stunt making is completely deserving of acknowledgement. Still, the question remains of who the award would go to. Do the stunt actors get the award or does the coordinator get the award? If the actor gets the award, it will bring a lot of attention to “movie magic” that films are trying to conceal. If the coordinator gets the award, it will be a very narrow category, as there aren’t a huge number of stunt coordinators who work on Oscar nominated shows. I guess there are more positive reason to start a stunt award than negative ones.
I find this to be an interesting debate, and I think it is very difficult to say “this deserves recognition and this does not,” but not every part of a production can be given an award for the simple reason that the Oscars cannot run for 24 hours and we’ve already seen the outrage at the thought of presenting awards during commercial, so the only option is to limit that categories. Sure, there are plenty more aspects of production than there were when the Oscars began almost 100 years ago. As technicians and designers, we understand what it’s like to be overworked and underappreciated (but it’s cool because we love our jobs and all that jazz), so it’s a little bit harder, for me at least, to put my foot down and say, no this shouldn’t get an award, because I do think that stuntmen and women deserve recognition, they do very important work, and I’m sure there are other under-recognized categories that we aren’t talking about, but my question is where do we put them? How long are the Oscars going to get? As for how to decide which categories are important enough to award, I’m glad that isn’t my job.
I think that an “action designer” is exactly like a intimacy choreographer. They design a particular type of scene within the entertainment industry, and they should be acknowledged for their work, just like a dance choreographer or a filmmaker would be. I think Robert Alonzo has the right idea for stunt coordination. The fighting style, the camera angles, and the story of the fight itself all must propel the story forward and assist in the storytelling of the general plot. Why would you have an action sequence just for the sake of an action sequence? I think that it’s time for a lot of different parts of the entertainment industry to begin to acknowledge a lot of the industry that’s never even noticed. Stage Management deserves an award, stunt coordinators deserve an award, and many other people who work in the field of entertainment deserve an acknowledgement for their hard work with an award.
This is a really fascinating read and definitely something that I have never considered before as being a possibility or really an option when it comes to the Academy Awards. So it really goes to show, stunt coordinators and stunt actors are highly under appreciated and simply not recognized enough for the groundbreaking work that they do. That being said, Im still on the fence as to whether or not it should be a recognized category at the Oscars. Sure, I think it would be a really cool and exciting thing for there to be a category for action design and it would surely pull in a lot super hero and action thrillers into the awards ceremony who otherwise wouldn't even be invited. You have to look at other reasons, there are plenty of departments that aren't recognized at award shows, should we include them too? The issue that happens there is the Oscars turning into a 7 hour ceremony that doesn't end because everyone and their mother is being thanked and honored.
I physically understand the argument to not add more to time to an award show that drags on for years, but that is the worst possible reason to not award someone for their work that so clearly impacts a film. I think that the original point where this whole debate went wrong was the lack of specific language tied to award shows. For some reason, everyone said “Oh, let’s recognize people who worked on film!”, but had a ridiculous lapse in their memory where they forgot that there were more than 5 significant people involved in the creation of the product. I think that it is really difficult because the more categories we add to these award shows, the more they feel like participation ribbons than true honors, which really just defeats the point of making these big shows at all. I also must recognize that I am looking at this from the point of view of someone who is joining the legion of brilliant folks that provide the support to a film or production that does not get recognized. That being said, from what I know of it, the decision makers for who is important enough to get an award are certainly not from this side of things, and I think it is a true shame that so many people who really hold up these productions go unrecognized for all of their support.
This article raises an incredibly important question that I had never thought about before. I have always known that stunt doubles have to undergo an incredible amount of training and literally risk their lives at work every day, but I never really knew much about the process of their work. This article helps explain and clarify the world of stunts in films, especially as it relates to a creative lens. I really appreciated being introduced to the title of “action designer”-- it makes perfect sense, and is very effective in creating a fuller understanding of the responsibilities and role of this person. It also makes the question of why there is no awards category for action designers-- right alongside costume designers, set designers, etc.-- all the more prominent. They are choreographers, image-makers, and crucially important collaborators to every designer of visual aesthetics on the team. I hope to see increased recognition of the hardworking and creative individuals in this field in upcoming years.
Truthfully I do not know if they need to, nor if they should be. Of course, everyone should receive recognition for their work, but I am not sure if the stage of the Oscars is the right place for that. In fact, I do not know if the stage of the Oscars is the right place for anyone to receive any sort of recognition, as frankly, that show has very much been a mess this year, as well as the past few years. Awards shows such as the Oscars or Grammys or Tonys serve as an important cultural centerpiece for these industries, yet it is clear that they are dying with cable television, and having trouble adapting to the current younger audiences. I watched the Grammys this year and found it better than usual, however, that is a very, very low bar in my opinion. With all the many controversies surrounding Hollywood and the Oscars over the past few years, I am worried about the future of these traditions.
This article advocates to honoring stunt coordinators at the Oscars. Although theses people’s work is valuable, I feel this instills a more dangerous element to winning an oscar. I wonder whether there would be any repercussions, such as stunt doubles pushing themselves harder than before, to an unsafe level, to win. People might feel the need to try and break the boundaries of the physical. It is also likely that stunt coordinators will expect more from those performing these stunts, and make it a more competitive field. I do like the idea of rewarding their artistic choices, such as camera controls combined with choreographing around shots as well as maintaining character. People fight differently, and often playwrights don’t acknowledge that. “Fight ensues” is a very unhelpful description, and means one must get a good stunt coordinator to make up for it. I feel as though the next question would be if stunt performers would get paid, and how the relationship of who does smaller stunts would change, as well as actors who do more of the physical actions would want to be rewarded as well.
At first I did not really see the point of this article, but after having read it, I have changed my mind. This kind of work so often does go overlooked, but it is such an important part of so many different movies. Dance choreographers get their recognition, and I think that action choreographers should get their too. After all, the action in films really does have as much to do with the movie as the direction or dancing (if it has any). I wonder if they are suggesting for the stunt actors to get their recognition too or just the choreographers, which would be another interesting layer to look at for this particular issue. It is such a nameless role to play in an overall production, and they know that going into it. I wonder if giving an award to this category would legitimize and destigmatize the use of stunt performers in films.
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