Panel examines film awareness

Sunday night marked the making of history at the Oscars. Halle Berry became the first African-American actress to win an Oscar for a leading role, and Denzel Washington became the first African-American actor in 40 years to win an Oscar in a leading role. \nLast night the Union Board and Black Film Center/Archive sponsored a discussion about Hollywood and the role of African-Americans in film. The theme for the night was education and moviegoers taking a proactive role in the films they choose to support.\nAbout 35 people attended the discussion. The panelists for the discussion were Professor Audrey T. McCluskey, director of the Black Film Center/Archive, Elena Bertozzi, assistant professor of telecommunications and Amos Paul Kennedy Jr., director and founder of NAPPY, an international organization encouraging African-Americans in art. Each panelist began with an opening statement, and after the statements, the floor was opened for discussion.\nMcClusky emphasized the importance of knowing and understanding the history of Hollywood to put the historic Oscar wins Sunday night into perspective. \n"It's historic, it's momentous," McClusky said. "But it needs to be put in the context of history."\nMcClusky talked about Hattie McDaniel's win in 1940 for her role in "Gone With the Wind." McDaniel's role was that of a maid and caretaker, and McClusky used this win as an example of how Hollywood characterized African-Americans actors.\n"Sydney Poitier won in 1963 and was the first African-American male to win for a lead role," McClusky said. "He played a handyman and caretaker for white nuns. You get the idea of how Hollywood celebrates African-American talent."\nMcClusky outlined traditional roles for African-Americans in film and said Denzel Washington has been successful because he has chosen roles outside of those stereotypical roles.\nBertozzi made it clear in the beginning that film was not her specialty, but game design was. But the stereotypes were as prevalent in games as they are in movies. She said traditionally, the hero is a white man, and the bad guy is usually dark-skinned. \n"A lot of behavior -- terrible, horrible behavior -- gets rewarded in these games," Bertozzi said. "People definitely learn behaviors when playing these games."\nKennedy focused on the role of the consumer and the power an individual can have when determining what is important. He quoted Sojourner Truth and Frederick Douglass, saying Hollywood knew the majority of the consumers took the path of least resistance. \n"We change Hollywood by changing ourselves, by changing our focus, by changing our dedication," Kennedy said. "Hollywood isn't doing anything real. It's creating imaginary worlds."\nAll three panelists stressed critical thinking, a critical consciousness. \n"Hollywood hasn't done a good job with any people of color," McClusky said. "Hollywood just tends to see itself in those who rule them, who are white men."\nWhen viewing films critically, McClusky offered a suggestion for audiences.\n"Prepare yourself and ask the question what are the relationships and who has the power," McClusky said. "Hollywood can be dangerous to your health."\nThe panelists said stereotyping within Hollywood seemed to be driven by money and marketing, conceding Hollywood has no reason to change as long as it keeps making as much money as it does. McClusky said the Oscar selection is "all political," and feels viewers should remember that 96 of the 6000 Academy voters are African-American.\n"Hollywood cannot turn its back on the whole history in that one night," McClusky said.\nBertozzi hopes more people get involved with the production of media.\n"My plea is that people get upset, but people take it upon themselves to develop better media," Bertozzi said.\nSenior Jennifer Miller, assistant director for Union Board's Debates and Issues committee who helped to organize the discussion, said she got the idea during a Spanish class.\n"I've always been interested in film," Miller said. "During my Spanish class we were discussing Latinos in film and I realized there are other issues that can go along with that. When the nominations came out, I figured this could be a catalyst for a discussion."\nFreshman Victoria Ortega attended the discussion to hear what the panelists had to say about African-Americans in Hollywood.\n"It was entertaining hearing what they had to say," Ortega said.\nMiller was very pleased with the event.\n"I think it went really well. I'm glad we covered such a diverse set of topics," Miller said.