The Oscars – Can Social Media Influence Who Wins an Oscar?

The 87th Academy Award Winners and Nominees for the 2015 Oscars was held on February 22, 2015 at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, Los Angeles. What’s actually interesting is that you may remembered last years’ Oscars more, thanks to Ellen DeGeneres taking a selfie at the Oscars and ordering some pizza. It is safe to say that she broke the internet with the most re tweets in history. In a matter of minutes, it became a world-wide trend. 

This year’s Oscars seemed a little dim in comparison but some of the same tactics were still implemented to create buzz around the event. Film producers can influence the conversations around certain films by creating social media campaigns. Once these campaigns have been launched, the organic conversations and engagement that occurs is ten-fold. They deliberately build a campaign over time through festival screenings, academy events, advertising and press appearances by a film’s talent.

Film makers have seen their Oscar hopes lifted and then dashed or decreased by reactions on social media, sometimes before the film has even been reviewed by major critics or hit the local theatres. Others have been uplifted by delightful enthusiasm on Twitter and Facebook. Do you know any films that have had this influence?

If a film isn’t deemed up to Oscar material, a single poorly received screening can quickly crush its awards hopes. Oscar strategists, like studio marketers, need to use tools like Facebook and Twitter proactively, said Marc Karzen, chief executive of RelishMIX, a company that consults on social media strategy for movies and TV shows.

The main goal is to get people to watch their movies and voice what they thought about it. Good or bad buzz still gets exposure on your movie. There will be people who like the movie or not, either way there is a conversation.

Yes of course, when it comes to the Oscars, the winners are determined by the opinions of the 6,000 or so voting members of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. But the power of social media can have an influence. #oscars2015