A Hollywood luminary of many highly esteemed and critically adored films enters the stage. The old guard rises from their seats and claps with reverence. The younger generation follows suit out of courtesy. They don’t recognize the person.
Just when the ovation starts to become awkward for the in-house crowd and viewers at home, the production staff steps in to marshal the proceedings back into order, ceding the moment to the luminary alone. She looks straight into the camera and millions of homes, and begins her address:
When narrative cinema we all adore and cherish was born it was there. When the large studios emerged and turned this industry into a assembly line of creativity, daring, and dream realization it was the grist on which the wheels of commerce turned celluloid into the gold of our collective imaginations. During the Great War it was our companion, best friend, touchstone, and hope for a better tomorrow. It comprised the stories we could rally around and unite against a common enemy.
It was our safe harbor, the place we could easily turn when industry censors had their ears up and editing scissors out. It was the cool side of the pillow providing that extra bit of relaxing comfort when the old studio-dominated system was in flux and new cinema-obsessed voices took the reins to lead us into the future. It was bedrock of the next era when those new voices grew into old and wisened voices, speaking to us in vivid color, passionate sound, and raw human emotion, while we sat in awe, transfixed by the experience. Today it is the single most important asset of every streamer that is propelling us into the beautiful horizon at lightening speed.
I’m speaking of course of Intellectual Property. It’s always been that thing we refer to in passing on sets, locations, production facilities, and editing bays across the world. It’s the mostly unacknowledged jumping off point for the creative side of the industry that means everything to the commercial side. Over the lifespan of cinema nothing has played a bigger role, been more impactful to the bottom line continuous growth of the industry we love and celebrate here tonight, without receiving the proper recognition it deserves, in any awards show or otherwise, until tonight, here at the 95th Academy Awards.
When I look back at my own career I’m in awe of the people I’ve worked with and helped turn an idea or vision into a full formed unit, a thing unto itself that will outlive us all. I was lucky enough to star in a little book adaptation at an early age that you may know. It was and is an amazing character that launched my career. An opportunity I never forget and give thanks for every day. It was also the first time I had the opportunity to take existing, well-known Intellectual Property, already in the cultural conversation, and realize it on screen with an amazing group of collaborative artists and crafts people.
That led to many other, wondrous roles and experiences in the world of cinema and Intellectual Property, too many to speak of tonight, but suffice to say I’ve been part of play to movie adaptations, musical adaptations, real world events rendered in non-fiction texts, remakes of the films my parents and grand-parents enjoyed, reimagining of old and newer stories, shot-for-shot remakes of foreign films, and of course in the last few years it has been immense joy to add comic book adaptations to that list in what I appreciate is the coda of my time in spotlight of your mind. It’s been a joy servicing you, the audience, and our Lifetime Achievement Award winner tonight: Intellectual Property.
The crowd erupts into rapturous applause. Actresses, actors, directors, cinematographers, writers, set designers, musicians, make-up artists, and producers alike look and nod to each other, exchanging thankful glances of collective appreciation. It’s an award they feel they are sharing as an industry.
Out of the frenzy, the camera fixes on a group of five well-known and powerful producers, who are kissing their loved ones, basking in the adulation, while they slowly amble up to the stage. The crowd continues to clap and roar with glee and reverence while the producers bow, and one speaking representative steps to the microphone:
Thank you, thank you. Please, please sit. We know what it’s like to manage a production of this scale and keep within a certain window of time to maximize entertainment value so we’ll keep this as brief as possible. First things first, our friends call it IP, and since we’re among friends here in this room and of course all of you at home, I invite everyone to use the shortened, informal name. Now that that’s out of the way we can all relax a little bit since we’re on a kind of first name basis (slight chuckle from the crowd).
There are many people that deserve thanks for this prestigious honor, one that wasn’t expected but is much appreciated and dare I say well earned. IP is the lifeblood of what we on this stage do, however we’re only a representative sample, albeit a rather large one in terms of box office and asset value (long pause for gleeful applause), of a diverse industry of amazing professionals who enrich the lives of people with stories every day. We are uniquely focused on our responsibility to deliver the highest quality entertainment, wherever it initially arises. One never knows what will bubble up to capture our attention and become an object of some obsession, much like the comic book driven content we all love or plays, books, or old movies we yearn to see with new stars on screen and creative teams behind the scenes.
But the list of honorees extends far beyond the film industry, does it not? Are we not just a reflection, a beacon even, of content borne from all manner of creators and mediums, then distilled into what will always be, knock on wood, the leading form of entertainment consumption. That is why I want to acknowledge the editors, copy editors, publishers, literary managers, scouts, readers, interns, social platform purveyors, influencers, and everyone else who has a hand in manning the cultural frontlines – vetting, opining, reviewing, rating anything and everything the human mind can dream up and my fellow producers and I can rely on for IP currency.
For that is what IP is all about. It is the act of choosing what has already been chosen. It doesn’t even matter sometimes if the IP is popular. Turning marginal IP into cinematic treasure is a very real possibility. We take calculated, data driven, risks every day to keep our fans happy and entertained. Our best work doesn’t always get the recognition it deserves at this event and we are immensely grateful for this award that we will share forever.
Thank you all. And now that my little speech is complete, I can only hope we someday turn this day into a movie that will also get recognized with an Academy Award. (The crowd rises in unison and claps loudly as the producers exit the stage and the broadcast cuts to commercial.)
GLAZ 