Bafta’s LA branch has voted in favour of an initiative designed to overhaul its membership, which will see voters who are not considered active members of the film industry removed, according to the Hollywood Reporter.
The British Academy of Film and Television Arts is undergoing a similar exercise as the US’s Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (which votes for the Oscars) as they react to suggestions that their membership does not reflect the reality of the contemporary film world. While Ampas has been convulsed by the recent #OscarsSoWhite campaign, and is currently rushing through measures to try to increase the organisation’s diversity, Bafta is concerned that its voting cap (only 6,500 members are allowed to vote) will exclude newer, more active members. The Hollywood Reporter suggests Bafta will periodically review its membership rolls and rescind voting privileges for those who haven’t worked within the industry for more than 20 years or “within the last five years”.
Bafta’s initiative was approved by its London and New York boards in June 2015, before #OscarsSoWhite took off; its influential LA chapter, however, opted to canvass its members via an online vote. The Bafta LA chairman, Kieran Breen, announced that 83% of respondents supported the change, adding that when members failed to meet the new standards, Bafta will “reclassify their membership so that they can remain members and enjoy all the usual benefits at a discounted membership fee, but without award voting rights or screeners”.
Bafta NY chairman Luke Parker Bowles told tbafthe Hollywood Reporter: “Once we have analysed the findings, we will publish a new diversity policy later this year ... The research aims to inform policy, initiatives and resources for employers and workers.”
