Oscars Snub ‘Look Back’: Anime Continues to Miss Out

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  • The Academy Awards Celebrate the Best Cinema… To a Degree

The selection of movies in the anime category for an Oscar has been rather limited. In 2002, Spirited Away made history by being nominated and winning Best Animated Feature. Since then, only films produced by Studio Ghibli have been considered, with a rare exception in Mamoru Hosoda’s Mirai in 2018. Studio Ghibli is renowned for its exceptional work in the anime world, producing thoughtful and visually stunning features that deserve recognition. For hardcore anime fans, the studio founded by Hayao Miyazaki is a known quantity when it comes to exploring the medium. Given how eager the Oscars are to recognize animated features from around the globe, it’s surprising that Japanese anime often gets overlooked.

Kiyotaka Oshiyama’s “Look Back”, a manga creation by Tatsuki Fujimoto, has left fans in awe and garnered both fanfare and critical acclaim. Yet, its absence from the Oscar nominations underscores the ongoing pattern of the Academy Awards overlooking anime.

‘Look Back’ Could Have Been a Contender

Anime has faced difficulty gaining recognition at the Academy Awards due to several factors, with the main issue being that studio promotions and careful release scheduling significantly impact nominations. The cost of getting a movie in contention ranges from three million to ten million dollars. Despite its phenomenal international success and critical acclaim, the 2016 film “Your Name” was surprisingly snubbed at the 2017 Academy Awards. While it’s true that other films like “My Life as a Zucchini” were also strong contenders (though how many still remember it?), it is hard not to suspect that the lack of promotional efforts from well-funded studios was a significant factor in its omission.

As a devoted enthusiast, I can’t help but ponder why Look Back, a masterpiece in my eyes, didn’t receive the recognition it deserved. Even amongst Letterboxd fans, this animated gem was crowned the highest-rated feature, surpassing other nominees like The Wild Robot, Memoir of a Snail, and Flow.

On Rotten Tomatoes, Look Back boasts a perfect 100% score from critics, and an impressive 99% on Popcornmeter. The movie also meets all the criteria one would assume would secure an Oscar nomination: it’s a beautiful homage to art (specifically manga), offers a sweeping and picturesque visual experience, follows a young character undergoing a transformative journey, and is deeply connected to a significant cultural event.

However, despite these seemingly solid qualifications, Look Back was overlooked. The Oscars, as we all know, operate in their own unique way, and sometimes, the most deserving films don’t always make the cut.

The Academy Awards Celebrate the Best Cinema… To a Degree

The political sphere surrounding the Academy Awards has often been met with some debate or skepticism. Terms like “obvious Oscar bait” are born out of imperfections within the system, and films such as Shakespeare in Love (1998) and Crash (2006), despite being celebrated winners, stirred up a fair share of controversy. Contrary to its purpose of honoring the arts, the ceremony is more like a finely-tuned machine that maintains a rigid stance in evaluating what it deems as the best.

It doesn’t necessarily imply that every selection or nomination made by the Academy is hasty. In fact, the Academy Awards serve to showcase numerous outstanding films each year. However, oversights like the omission of “Look Back” from the Best Animated Films category demonstrate their potential for missing the mark and how lesser-known productions may not receive the same level of recognition.

By the way, you can watch what is considered the best animated film of the year in “Look Back”, available on Prime Video.

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2025-01-23 19:31