We are all distraught by the impact of the fires and the immense loss suffered by so many in our community,” said Academy CEO Bill Kramer and President Janet Yang.
The Academy of Oscars announced on Monday the cancellation of the traditional and sumptuous nominees’ luncheon, at a time when Los Angeles, cradle of the American film industry, is still in the grip of devastating fires. The nominations will be announced online on January 23 by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, which awards the precious statuettes.
The traditional lunch, initially planned in Beverly Hills on February 10, was simply canceled. “We are all distraught by the impact of the fires and the immense loss suffered by so many people in our community,” said Academy CEO Bill Kramer and President Janet Yang. “The Academy has always been a unifying force within the film industry, and we are determined to stick together through difficulty,” they added.
Besieged by flames since last Tuesday, Los Angeles continues to count its dead: the death toll rose Sunday evening to 24 people, according to the authorities. Around 92,000 people are still affected by an evacuation order.
In the film industry, several events have been canceled or postponed even though the awards season has just started. The Critics Choice Awards ceremony, which was to be held on Sunday, was thus postponed, and the nominations for the SAG Awards (SAG), the awards of the American Actors Union, were revealed by simple press release. The Academy of Oscars, however, announced Monday that it was maintaining its gala evening until March 2, during which the awards will be awarded. “We are determined to use this opportunity to celebrate our resilient and compassionate industry,” the Academy said in a statement, adding that it intended to “honor” the people “who helped fight the fires.”
The Grammy Awards will also take place in Los Angeles, “as planned”, on February 2, the organizers of these music Oscars announced on Monday. The ceremony, which will take place “in close coordination with local authorities”, will this year aim to raise funds to fight wildfires and will honor “the bravery and dedication of first responders who risk their lives to protect ours” , they clarified.
The tragic fate of works of art…
While the dramatic loss of life and thousands of acres destroyed by the flames are still making news in Los Angeles, the disaster could also cause one of the most serious artistic losses of all time. A painting by the Frenchman Guillaume Bresson, the entire archives of the artist Diana Thater or even the studio of Paul McCarthy, made famous for his controversial inflatable green tree at La Monnaie in Paris, 10 years ago: so many examples, cited by the newspaper Le Temps, of very concrete losses following the fires. And it shouldn’t stop there as the flames continue their destruction. A district of Los Angeles where François Pinault’s residence is located would, for example, be on the path of the fires. So far, the Breton billionaire’s collection is not in danger but the concern is there, even if some are doubling their imagination to protect their works. Ironic fate for the billionaire who did not hesitate to pay 100 million euros to restore the Notre-Dame de Paris cathedral after… the fire which ravaged it. Faced with this fire danger, the fate of the Getty Villa, which houses a collection of 44,000 antique objects and the Getty center which also has a prestigious collection of Rembrandt, Turner, Van Gogh and Monet, calls into question. Despite the danger, the paintings will likely stay put because the building would be the safest place to be at the moment. This Getty Center was in fact designed as a marvel of earthquake and fire engineering, with materials and design specially adapted to the safety of the collections, both inside and out.
(source: RTBF)
Related News :