Here's How Twitter Users Will Get A Say In The Oscars This Year

Oscars night is full of glitz and glamour as it brings together the world's biggest film talent — from costume designers to directors — in their fanciest outfits to see who has won the coveted Oscar statuette. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences handed out its first awards in 1929, and through the years, over 3,000 Oscar statues have been given out (per Parade). But how are the winners chosen?

This year, there were over 9,500 eligible voting members (per NPR). And members vote twice — first for nominees and then for the winners. Each member is a part of one of seventeen branches — like makeup/hair, acting, music, animation, etc. — and each branch determines the nominees for the awards related to their branch, for example, actors vote on the acting categories (via Variety). Then every member can vote on any of the nominees to help decide the winner.

But this year, it's not just the Hollywood elite who will be able to have a voice in the awards ceremony. According to The Hollywood Reporter, for the first time, Twitter users are invited to use #OscarsFanFavorite to vote for their favorite movie of 2021 — even if it wasn't nominated for an Oscar. The time frame for them to vote is from February 14 to March 3.

The winner of the popularity contest won't actually win an Oscar, per The Hollywood Reporter, but they will be recognized at the ceremony. And, three people who tweeted their favorite film will be chosen to attend the Oscars and give out an award at the 2023 ceremony. They will also get an all-expenses trip to Los Angeles for the event.

Each Twitter user gets 20 entries per day, and there's another plan to get the audience at home more engaged. The #OscarsCheerMoment lets fans share their favorite scene from a 2021 film. The most popular scenes will be broadcast at the ceremony along with select tweets. Then five participants will get free movie tickets for a year and other prizes.

"The idea that a movie fan might see their tweet during the Oscars broadcast is pretty epic," Sarah Rosen, Twitter's head of U.S. entertainment and news partnerships explained to The Hollywood Reporter, "and we are thrilled to have the opportunity to partner with the Academy to bring this to life."

In 2019, the idea of an Oscar for most popular fan film was floated, but it got shut down. Per Slate, it had been announced in August, but within a month, the Academy released a statement saying the award would be placed on hold because "The Academy recognized that implementing any new award nine months into the year creates challenges for films that have already been released."