In order to see what audiences think of the Academy Awards, we decided the best course of action was to reach out to our friends, families, co-workers and more to get their opinions on the Oscar race this year. While audiences have no overlap with Academy membership, it’s nice to get some clarity where some people outside the #FilmTwitter space are landing on the films in contention and the Oscars overall.

Our Audience Audit comes from Bill, who lives in Massachusetts and is dating one of our staff writers, Jessa.  He’s in his twenties and is an Industrial Designer for a houseware products manufacturing company.  We asked Bill about his thoughts on 2023 films, the Oscars telecast, and more!

Offscreen Central: Do you watch the Oscars every year? 
Bill: Sometimes.

Offscreen Central: Do you enjoy the performances of the Original Song nominees?
Bill: I do.

Offscreen Central: What criteria do you think goes into nominating a film for Best Picture?
Bill: I know there is certainly campaigning going on from the studios, but I would usually say it is the movie that is the most moving for audiences, critics and the Academy.

Offscreen Central: Best Picture is voted on by a preferential ballot; do you think all categories should be voted on like this?
Bill: I do like that because someone’s taste of what they like in films can be very subjective and having a ranked system can help better determine what the actual Best Picture is.  For the other categories, I’m still not sure but I don’t see why we can’t try that out.  Maybe for the major categories, like acting and directing, we can start there.

Offscreen Central: Out of the 20 acting nominees, which performances stand out to you the most?
Bill: I really liked Lily Gladstone’s performance.  Certainly Bradley Cooper, I would even say he was my favorite.  Along with Paul Giamatti, Emma Stone, and Carey Mulligan, they were amazing.  I thought Da’Vine Joy Randolph was outstanding too.  Mark Ruffalo was excellent.  I haven’t seen a comedic performance from him before and he had me laughing so hard.

Offscreen Central: Is there anyone you think should have been nominated for an acting Oscar this year?
Bill: Maybe Willem Dafoe in Poor Things.  It’s hard to say I think most of the acting nominees are pretty great.

Offscreen Central: Aside from Best Picture and the acting categories, which awards do you care about most?
Bill: Definitely Animated Feature, Cinematography and Production Design.