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Famous filmmaker finds Oscars criteria irrelevant for Russian films

Meanwhile, movies in which there is a certain number of LGBT actors only are eligible for an Oscars nomination, with racial diversity among actors being another key criterium, Nikita Mikhalkov argued

CHITA, November 12. /TASS/. Nikita Mikhalkov, a renowned Russian filmmaker, who was given an Oscar for his drama Burnt by the Sun in 1994, said on Saturday that it would no longer be possible for Russian films to qualify for an Oscar with the Academy Awards’ requirements contradicting Russia’s values.

Asked by a TASS reporter to comment on how long he thought Russia could abstain from racing for the Oscars, Mikhalkov said that would depend on how long the current criteria for winning an Oscar would be extended.

"It depends on for how many [years] they will extend the rules for awarding an Oscar, the principle of eligibility of films. <…> I think the Oscars is dead, and we are currently working to establish a Eurasian film academy with Eurasian awards that will be high-end, powerful and highly motivating. But those films will be considered for nomination that coincide with the moral values shared by all countries who would join the academy," Mikhalkov told reporters before showing his "12" at a theater in Chita.

Meanwhile, movies in which there is a certain number of LGBT actors only are eligible for an Oscars nomination, with racial diversity among actors being another key criterium, he argued.

This fall, Russia’s Oscars Committee should have submitted a film that could qualify for the awards show, but the board of the National Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences of Russia decided to boycott 2023 Oscars. Committee Chairman Pavel Chukhrai resigned in protest against the decision. He was followed by five other filmmakers.

Terrorist attack at Crocus City Hall

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