It’s hardly a controversial statement to say that the Academy Awards exist as an advertisement for the Hollywood studio system, an attempt to graft some degree of cultural status to a limited number of (largely non-mainstream) films, in the eventual hope of them achieving higher commercial status post-broadcast.
Hmm, let’s think about that. An audio-visual product that, through the use of editing, sound mixing and the addition of new graphics and footage, sells a product, with the eventual hope of financial gain through increased cinema attendance / DVD purchase / download… that sounds familiar…
Of course, the Academy Awards ‘trail’ the whole of Hollywood rather than one film – to extend this trailer metaphor, the whole show offers a ‘free sample’ of the stars, genres, behind-the-scenes information and (supposedly) spectacular visuals that make up modern Hollywood. The trailer itself is, of course, far too low a cultural object to receive an Academy Award: yet the trailer-esque ceremony is itself constructed OF trailers. Short promotional films for each film, performance, or stylistic aspect, dominate the running time of the show: in each case, while the assumption may be to nostalgically ‘remind’ the audience of the film/star/whatever, these function in the same way as trailers to those viewers who have never seen the film ‘advertised’ in those segments.
The term ‘trailer’ has always referred to a broader discursive field than simply ‘short promotional film for forthcoming feature’ (a quick look at trade press reports of the 1910s confirms / expands Janet Staiger’s initial list of what ‘trailer’ referred to: political advertising, strip of film, vehicular trailer, person who ‘trails’ behind, as well as promotional film) so it should come as no surprise that we could describe an entire awards’ show as a ‘trailer’ (it isn’t just the Academy Awards, or even film awards – BAFTA / the Emmys do the same for television, the Grammys for music).
Whether the Academy Awards counts as a trailer is open to debate: but in 1962, the awards were criticised in terms very similar to those adopted in broader criticism of trailers. Asking whether ‘the vast potential of the show as a promotional weapon… [was] adequately capitalised’ Film Bulletin stated ‘the captive [television] audience… were neither entertained…nor sold sufficiently on the joys and pleasures of motion pictures.’ (‘Is Oscar Doing His Job? Film Bulletin April 16 1962, p. 17) Replace ‘the show’ with ‘the trailer’ and the captive TV audience with a cinema one, and the parallels are compelling.
And, if you want further proof that the awards ceremony and the trailer share historical similarities, consider that the 1940 Academy Awards ceremony featured in its own ‘special free trailer’ in May of that year. Here, Warner Bros. released a ‘four-reel featurette on the industry’s national awards… made with the cooperation of all Hollywood studios and personally supervised by Frank Capra… It presents a survey of Academy Award winners from 1928 through 1939.’ (Showman’s Trade Review, April 6 1940, p.33) Despite being a compilation film that looked back at old ceremonies (and footage of the winners from the most recent) – that suggestion of memory and nostalgia again – this was special trailer produced for a show that was itself a trailer for industry. And you thought the 2015 ceremony was too post-modern and ‘meta’ for its own good…
Hmm, let’s think about that. An audio-visual product that, through the use of editing, sound mixing and the addition of new graphics and footage, sells a product, with the eventual hope of financial gain through increased cinema attendance / DVD purchase / download… that sounds familiar…
Of course, the Academy Awards ‘trail’ the whole of Hollywood rather than one film – to extend this trailer metaphor, the whole show offers a ‘free sample’ of the stars, genres, behind-the-scenes information and (supposedly) spectacular visuals that make up modern Hollywood. The trailer itself is, of course, far too low a cultural object to receive an Academy Award: yet the trailer-esque ceremony is itself constructed OF trailers. Short promotional films for each film, performance, or stylistic aspect, dominate the running time of the show: in each case, while the assumption may be to nostalgically ‘remind’ the audience of the film/star/whatever, these function in the same way as trailers to those viewers who have never seen the film ‘advertised’ in those segments.
The term ‘trailer’ has always referred to a broader discursive field than simply ‘short promotional film for forthcoming feature’ (a quick look at trade press reports of the 1910s confirms / expands Janet Staiger’s initial list of what ‘trailer’ referred to: political advertising, strip of film, vehicular trailer, person who ‘trails’ behind, as well as promotional film) so it should come as no surprise that we could describe an entire awards’ show as a ‘trailer’ (it isn’t just the Academy Awards, or even film awards – BAFTA / the Emmys do the same for television, the Grammys for music).
Whether the Academy Awards counts as a trailer is open to debate: but in 1962, the awards were criticised in terms very similar to those adopted in broader criticism of trailers. Asking whether ‘the vast potential of the show as a promotional weapon… [was] adequately capitalised’ Film Bulletin stated ‘the captive [television] audience… were neither entertained…nor sold sufficiently on the joys and pleasures of motion pictures.’ (‘Is Oscar Doing His Job? Film Bulletin April 16 1962, p. 17) Replace ‘the show’ with ‘the trailer’ and the captive TV audience with a cinema one, and the parallels are compelling.
And, if you want further proof that the awards ceremony and the trailer share historical similarities, consider that the 1940 Academy Awards ceremony featured in its own ‘special free trailer’ in May of that year. Here, Warner Bros. released a ‘four-reel featurette on the industry’s national awards… made with the cooperation of all Hollywood studios and personally supervised by Frank Capra… It presents a survey of Academy Award winners from 1928 through 1939.’ (Showman’s Trade Review, April 6 1940, p.33) Despite being a compilation film that looked back at old ceremonies (and footage of the winners from the most recent) – that suggestion of memory and nostalgia again – this was special trailer produced for a show that was itself a trailer for industry. And you thought the 2015 ceremony was too post-modern and ‘meta’ for its own good…
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