The Academy Foundation dissolved its Oral History Projects team earlier this month, laying off all five staffers responsible for preserving interviews with prominent figures in the film industry.
Union Voices Concerns Over Academy Restructuring
The cuts have sparked criticism from the Academy Foundation Workers Union, citing a lack of transparency adn disregard for the value of long-form interviews.
- The Academy Foundation’s Oral History Projects department, established in 2012, has recorded over 185 interviews-each lasting four too five hours.
- Two laid-off staffers were transitioned into different union roles within the Academy Foundation.
- this is the second round of layoffs at the Academy since the opening of the Academy Museum in 2021.
The Academy stated it will continue to preserve film history through its museum, collection and digital initiatives.
The Academy Foundation workers Union, AFSCME Local 126, expressed its dismay in a statement posted on social media, calling the cuts “a sad and reckless choice.” The union also voiced frustration with what it described as the Foundation’s “lack of transparency” and “disregard for the skills and expertise of our colleagues” during the restructuring.
“The Academy’s decision to abandon this dedicated project devalues the labor required to produce intellectually stimulating and rigorous long-form interviews, as well as underestimating the historical worth of each individual story,” the union wrote in an email.
The Academy Foundation initially established its Oral History Program in 1989, aiming to document the careers of industry professionals through audio recordings, archived in the Margaret Herrick Library. The Oral History Projects department was founded in 2012 to streamline this process.
The now-defunct department has amassed a collection of more than 185 interviews, each ranging from four to five hours in length. These detailed conversations offer invaluable insights into the lives and careers of filmmakers, and the Academy Museum frequently utilizes materials from the Academy Foundation’s library and film archive for its exhibitions and screenings.
“Through the work of OHP, the Academy has also become the primary preservation repository for filmmaker interviews from the guilds and other sources,” the organization’s website notes.
The union emphasized the meaning of the lost department, stating, “The Academy’s Oral history Project (OHP) recorded and collected audio and video interviews with the individuals who form the rich fabric of filmmaking history – production and costume designers, documentarians, executives, actors, animators, technicians, composers, and more. Without the department, these meticulously researched and skillfully crafted oral histories are no longer being produced.”
this isn’t the first time the Academy has reduced staff since the opening of the Academy Museum in 2021. A 2022 restructuring, which lead to the creation of a new Academy Collection and Preservation Department, resulted in the layoffs of 16 members of the organization’s archive and library teams.
In an internal email to staff,Academy CEO Bill Kramer explained that the restructuring was necessary to navigate “two worlds that are rapidly evolving – the film industry and the non-profit arts community.”
“We are working hard to stay focused on our mission while addressing this pivotal moment. And while we know how difficult these moments can be,we are confident in our steps to shape a enduring organization that is well-suited to meet our goals now and in the future,” Kramer said.
