cinema

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More than a week has passed and our Arts and Culture members had time to digest this Oscars season… Here are their thoughts on the results for Best Picture, Best Actor and Best Actress!

Ana Cardoso– A&C Member and Writer

For best picture and actress, my bet was on Fernanda Torres and Ainda Estou Aqui. The film delivers a deeply moving narrative about resilience and identity, following a young woman’s journey of self-discovery after an unexpected loss. Its emotional depth and powerful performances made it my favorite. However, Mikey Madison and Anora took home the win—an unexpected but understandable choice. The film, which tells the captivating story of a woman navigating love and survival in a world that constantly underestimates her, captivated audiences with its authenticity and storytelling. While Anora’s victory came as a surprise, its impact on indie movies is undeniable. Finally, best actor was none other than Adrien Brody. Performance after performance, Adrien has consistently proven his brilliance as an actor.

His ability to fully immerse himself in complex and emotionally charged characters is remarkable, making us believe in every emotion as if it were his own. In Brutalist, Adrien elevates his performance to the level of the one that secured him his first Oscar. No surprise here—this win was well-deserved.

*Anora (2024) won big at the 2025 Oscars, including Best Actress and Best Picture. (Image credit: Getty Images / Jeff Kravitz)*

Marco Pagliacci– A&C Member and Writer

For best picture, Anora is definitely an unconventional and unexpected choice. The film has a good pace and keeps the viewer engaged, the film breaks traditional patterns, but I struggled to connect with the protagonists and fully understand the reasons behind their actions in a love story without love. However, the ending redeems it, offering a reflection on the hidden fragilities beneath the surface. I wasn’t particularly struck by Mikey Madison’s performance, which felt primarily physical rather than deeply expressive. While undeniably intense, it lacked the emotional depth needed to make the character truly compelling. It’s not even comparable to Emma Stone’s performance last year, which had layers and complexity.

For best actor, it was a well-deserved and anticipated victory for Adrien Brody, who captivated with an extraordinary and nuanced performance, as said in his final speech that can and should teach us something. In the final stretch, it seemed that Timothée Chalamet, with his portrayal of Bob Dylan, could threaten Brody’s win. However, Brody’s deeper and more personal interpretation of the drama ultimately triumphed, making him the rightful winner.

Marta Nascimento– Head of Arts & Culture

Best Picture’s winner was unexpected! But I loved the love that Anora got! It told such a striking story with layered characters (especially Anora) all brought together by Sean Baker’s beautiful cinematography. Mikey Madison also deserved to win, I think her part in Anora showed great range for her as an actor, especially considering her more laid back personality in real life. I was rooting for her and obviously for Fernanda Torres who I thought was outstanding in I’m Still Here. For best actor, I confess I was rooting for Colman Domingo or Timothee Chalamet but, nevertheless, Adrien Brody delivered, as always, an outstanding performance in The Brutalist (was it worth such a long speech though?).

Mafalda Carvalho– A&C Member and Writer

Regarding the best actress and best pictures awards, although my Portuguese-speaker pride would have liked to see I’m Still Here and Fernanda Torres much deservedly win, I can definitely say that Anora and Mikey Madison were my second favorites. Anora was my first Sean Baker film, and I was not ready for it. The movie and performances are incredibly realistic, conveying all the pain, joy, and discomfort felt by the characters, which can only be achieved through a deep research and understanding of the realities they depict. Sean Baker, as in all his movies, and Mikey Madison alike sure did a good job at this, especially seeing how the actress’ seemingly demure character, in interviews, contrasts with the lively, almost feisty, Anora.

As for Adrien Brody winning best actor, with The Brutalist, although neither actor nor movie were favorites of mine, it is undeniable that Adrien Brody delivers, once more, an impeccable performance. Nonetheless, I believe that the academy has looked past incredibly talented nominees, namely Timotheé Chalamet in A Complete Unknown, and Colman Domingo in Sing Sing.

Once again, the world of cinema is undergoing a noticeable transformation, that in this case is propelled by the confluence of contemporary trends and the unprecedented disruptions brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic. As audiences, filmmakers, and industry professionals navigate through a rapidly changing landscape, it becomes evident that the way we consume and experience film is evolving.

This transformation takes part with the rise of streaming platforms, the innovations in filmmaking techniques and implicit adaptation of traditional movie theaters, the impact of social media on the viewer’s experience and film promotion, and the growth of Artificial Intelligence (AI) use within the creative and operational process.

The subject of such changes lies not only within the form but also the substance of the art. In the sequence of the release of his most recent epic, Killers of the Flower Moon, Martin Scorsese takes part in BBC’s Talking Movies series, where the director descends on a reflection about what the future of cinema holds. In the interview, Scorsese unravels his fears regarding the exponential rise of franchise movies – that many times fail to deliver distinctive storytelling -, the lack of platforms for more alternative cinema, and the fragmentation of films’ landscape.

Cinema and Technology

The COVID-19 pandemic deeply injured movie theater affluence. Data collected from Statista displayed that in the United States before the pandemic, only 15% of the sample claimed to never go to the cinema, a percentage that jumped to 52% between the months of January and April of 2022. One of the most evident effects of such a scenario is the rise in demand for streaming platforms, with preferences shifting towards streaming, as it can be a cheaper option, with a wave of new content ultimately releasing in a digital format on the platforms upon merely two or three months of their debut. Besides providing licensed content, most of the streaming platforms are betting on original movie and series production. The profitability of such an undertaking is connected to the possibility of creating movie and series franchises, gaining not only from viewership but also from branding and merchandise.

However, the cinema is fighting back with the development of cinematic experiences that the audience doesn’t get to partake in from their homes. Some examples could be the IMAX and 4D experiences. The IMAX screen offers unparalleled picture quality on a grand scale, along with elevated sound technology. Furthermore, when a film is recorded utilizing an IMAX camera, the cinematic presentation on an IMAX screen is such that it effectively utilizes the entire expansive screen. The general audience became more invested in the concept with the release of Oppenheimer, after the director, Christopher Nolan, made an appeal to the public to watch it, if possible, in theaters that accommodate IMAX 70mm. The 4D cinema incorporates seat effect simulation with 3D, having an augmented reality paired with seats that shake, turn, or roll accordingly. The technology used in filmmaking is also evolving. One example of such could be the cameras that James Cameron helped design to shoot parts of Avatar 2: The Way of Water, underwater.

Filming underwater on the set of “Avatar: The Way of Water” (20th Century Studios)

Another tool that is becoming more popular in the broadcasting world is AI. Its major use is related to audience data collection and analysis, informing studios about content and market decisions. Based on such knowledge, it can be involved in the production, by casting and location scouting. It can be used in visual effects (VFX), creating more realistic and immersive special effects. AI also established the possibility of screenwriting, by analyzing scripts and coming up with new projects, reducing the costs of labor.

Social media: Interaction and promotion

The film experience is also changing because of social media. The rise in movie rating apps such as IMDb and Rotten Tomatoes, or even more interactive ones such as Letterboxd, has been making cinema more accessible for people and has been adding to the social aspect of cinema. IMDb and Rotten Tomatoes display critics and selected users’ reviews, while Letterboxd is, in a way, a social media app for movies.

Besides these more specific tools, a big part of movie advertisement is being conveyed through social media, such as Instagram, Facebook, or even TikTok. Often, this involves capitalizing on the involvement of well-known individuals in a film project. In that sense, the promotion of movies nowadays doesn’t rely solely on film critics, but also on audience reviews and social media presence. Lately, a greater weight of the marketing campaigns has been shifting towards influencers, such that studios try to control the pre-release narrative by leveraging influencers and social media, which often creates a bias in the public reception of the film, taking up space from the more specialized opinion of critics.

Nonetheless, social media focused advertisement also carries the potential to shift the weight of movie distribution from major studios into theater companies, as Taylor Swift did for her new production, a concert in the film format entitled Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour, that surpassed $200 million globally. This cultural phenomenon is relevant as it allowed Taylor to handle the promotion and distribution of her own movie, allowing for similar deals to take place in the future, and it wouldn’t be possible if it weren’t for the global presence of the artist online.

Taylor Swift fans during the “Eras Tour” concert film at Emagine Canton theater in Canton, Michigan

(Daniel Mears, The Detroit News)

Writer’s strike

Although technology has the potential to be a tool for creatives, it can turn into a way of subjugation, as it carries the potential of labor destruction. In a scenario where media companies have invested billions in streaming services, the compensation for writers was negatively affected. In a broader context, the proportion of television writers earning at least the minimum agreed salary rose from 33% in the 2013-14 period to encompass nearly half of all writers by the 2021-22 timeframe. Writers Guild of America, a trade union that represents more than ten thousand TV and movie writers across the United States, decided to go on strike on the 2^nd of May of 2023, to guarantee the survival of writing as a profession. This strike lasted 146 days and had a significant impact on TV and movie production, especially since it gained a lot of sympathy from the audiences. The deal that was made touches on matters such as increases to minimum wage, better pension and health fund rates, greater residuals (such as royalties), including foreign streaming residuals, more transparency with viewership data, and a set of terms concerning the use of AI – such that the use of the tool can’t be forced on writers and the writer’s content can’t be used to train programs. This event has had major significance when it comes to defining the line between creative work and its automatization.

Demonstrators rally outside a studio (Jae C Hong/AP)

Ultimately, although there is a clear potential for technological improvements to harm both creatives and audiences, if conveyed properly, they can serve as tools to elevate the art, to educate the public and to promote critical discussions. This delicate balance underscores the importance of ethical and responsible use of technology, where creatives are empowered to harness digital tools to unlock new realms of creativity and audiences are equipped to navigate the vast digital landscape with discernment, with the prospect of the valorization of the 7^th art.

Sources:

The Guardian, BBC, Rolling Stone, Statista, Vox, TIME, The New York Times

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